The Sisterhood of the East Midwood Jewish Center will hold its Flea Market on Sunday, October 28, 2007 from 10:00am to 2:00pm.

Please stop by!

The 7th annual Interfaith Thanksgiving Service, held November 18th at Our Lady
of Refuge Roman Catholic Church, was uplifting and inspirational.

Father Mike Perry of OLR, Rabbi Kass of EMJC, Rev. Sheldon Hamlin of Church
of the Nativity, Pastor Scott Kershner of St. Stephens Lutheran Church, and Faruk
Wadud of Baitul Jannah Mosque all spoke about the value of our coming together
every year to celebrate and give thanks for the blessings we have experienced
through our interfaith activities.

The service included readings of Thanksgiving prayers of many faiths,
recitations from Deuteronomy in English, Spanish, Creole, and Hebrew, poetry
readings, readings from the works of Abraham Joshua Heschel, and the Prayer
for Peace from Siddur Sim Shalom. Music was provided by the EMJC and OLR
choirs, and Ladino selections were performed by Cantor Levine, Marjorie
Sanua, and Ben Lapidus.

Many who attended brought donations of canned and packaged food for the OLR
food pantry. You can continue to drop off food donations at the church or bring them
to the EMJC office. Much thanks to all who spoke, read, and sang, donated food, and helped create a truly memorable service.

Sally Hipscher

Happy Chanukah from the EMJC family!

To celebrate, we've concocted our first-ever Latke Bake-Off, a winner-take-oil afternoon of fun for the whole family!

Sunday, December 9 - 12:00 noon to 3:00 PM

Sunday, January 20, 2008
8:45 AM - 3:00 PM

The Jewish Theological Seminary
3080 Broadway, New York, NY (map it!)

The day will begin with breakfast and Minyan in the Women's League Seminary Synagogue. Rabbi Neil Gillman, Professor of Jewish Philosophy at JTS, will lead the opening session at 9:30 am:

Contrasting Images in Judaism: Portraits of God

Dr. Ron Wolfson, president and co-founder of Synagogue 2000 and Synagogue 3000 will deliver the keynote address:

The Many Paths of Jewish Education:
Engraving and Empowering Jewish Journeys

There will be a choice of workshops for both the morning and afternoon sessions. Workshop topics will include: how to bridge the gap between day school families and religious school families, technology and Jewish life, the Haggadah, and many others. Workshop facilitators will include Dr. Michelle Lynn-Sachs from JTS, Amichai Lau-Lavie from Storahtelling, Rabbi Arnold Samlan from the Board of Jewish Education, as well other prominent leaders.

To register or get more info email METNY at metnyed@uscj.org or call 212-533-7800 x 2161

*Cost is $36/adult and $18/student; the day will include both breakfast and lunch. Books by both Rabbi Neil Gillman and Dr. Ron Wolfson will be available for purchase, as well as other titles related to Jewish life and education. To view the schedule, click here. To register, click here. (Both links are PDFs.)

Paper Clips: a film directed by Joe Fab and Elliot Berlin.

February 10, 2008 - 4:00 PM

Tickets $5 - free popcorn - discussion following movie.

A documentary about a small town's efforts to comprehend the Holocaust.

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Whitwell - a tiny, almost exclusively white Christian community - is nestled deep in the mountains of Tennessee. It is pretty much an insular community, but in 1998, something happened in a classroom, launching its students into an unlikely project.

During a history lesson on the Holocaust, students learned that Nazis had exterminated over 6 million Jewish people. One student bravely asked what 6 million looked like. He could not conceptualize so large a number.

Finding it difficult to explain the loss of life this great figure represented, administrators and students embarked on an inspirational journey of comprehension and remembrance. One principal's desire to help her students open their eyes to diversity and an unfortunate event epitomizing hate and bias, soon transformed into an international effort, breaching the walls of this insulated valley.

This movie tells a heartwarming story about a mission to honor each lost soul by collecting - yes - paper clips. One for every life lost. Eventually, this community even managed to procure an authentic German rail car, which would become the container for the millions of paper clips collected.

Please join us for this film, and other events throughout the year. We welcome all, men, women, singles, families, young and old. We are committed to serving the spiritual, educational, humanitarian, and social needs of our community.

Tuesday, February 12 - 8:00 PM - $10

Come and experience the talk that has been exciting and inspiring audiences around the world. David Solomon’s innovative and dynamic overview of Jewish History is a performance that will leave you inspired, informed and wanting more. In this extraordinary lecture, David literally maps out the unique scale and amazing contours of Jewish History around the audience, providing a framework that is accessible to people with any level of knowledge.

The Whole of Jewish History in One Hour covers everything from the origins of the Jewish people, up to the present day - and even beyond - in one continuous narrative!

Audiences have raved about the talk, declaring that it has rekindled a love of and passion for Jewish History and has moved them to pursue their own journey of discovery. The talk is not only entertaining… it’s real teaching! If you’ve ever wanted to understand how the details of Jewish History really fi t together then come and hear one of the world’s most exciting and original teachers speak on what is perhaps the most important topic in the Jewish world today.

For more information about David Solomon and his talks please visit inonehour.net.

UPDATE: Thank you all for participating so generously in our benefit auction! We brought in a big crowd, had an outstanding time, and - most importantly - raised a huge sum for the Center.

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Join us on Saturday evening, March 8th at 8:00 pm, when the Grand Ballroom will be transformed into the site for the EMJC 2008 Auction Extravaganza and Passover Wine Sale.

Over the past several weeks Center members, friends and local area merchants have generously donated a variety of goods and services for the auction, with all proceeds going into the EMJC Building Fund. Artwork, appliances, theater tickets, baseball tickets, home-cooked dinners, barbeques, week-end getaways, legal and other professional services are among the many items “on the block” that evening.

The auction will take three forms. A handful of items will be raffle prizes, others will be awarded in a silent auction, and still others will test the mettle of our two skilled auctioneers, Irwin Weintraub and Michael Marcus.

It promises to be a fast, furious, and fun-filled evening. But to be a success the most important element will be your enthusiastic – and generous – participation. Come to the Auction Extravaganza on March 8th, and don’t forget to bring your friends, relatives, and neighbors.

The Auction Extravaganza is coupled with this year’s Passover Wine Sale. An outstanding selection of kosher-for-Passover wines will be available for you to purchase and get a start on setting your holiday table.

Set aside the evening of March 8th for the Auction Extravaganza and Passover Wine Sale, and come ready to bid to better the East Midwood Jewish Center.

Up-to-date list of raffle items after the jump....

Thanks to all who came to the Herencia Judía CD release concert on Saturday night. We had a packed house, and everyone was blown away by the show's amazing fusion of Judeo-Latin rhythms and traditions. We were especially blessed by virtuoso klezmer mandolinist Andy Statman's rollicking treatment of Dayenu.

Missed the show? No worries. You can buy the CD now at Ben's site!

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Saturday, April 5 - 8:30 PM - $20

Here are some clips from Ben Lapidus' new album Herencia Judía, which was released on March 18th:

"This record is the result of many years of exploring a familial and musical Spanish Caribbean connection that has also turned out to be spiritual: my travels have not only placed me in contact with my distant family scattered throughout the Caribbean, but also with the Jewish communities in Cuba, Colombia, and Puerto Rico. Musically, the CD is an imaginary creation that envisions a syncretic Spanish Caribbean Jewish liturgical music from the synagogues of La Habana, Santiago or San Juan. My goal was to combine Afro-Caribbean culture with Jewish liturgy without sacrificing the musical or spiritual qualities of any of these traditions. As a result, there were several moments in the studio when the corriente (spiritual energy) was palpable." - Benjamin Lapidus

For more information, visit sonidoisleno.com.

$5 admission - free popcorn, as always!

The Band's Visit, on numerous lists of the most critically-acclaimed films of 2007, comes to EMJC's screening room on Sunday, January 18th at 4PM.

The movie, Israeli filmmaker Eran Kolirin's debut feature, is a subtle, heartfelt and humane work that goes a long way toward dissolving the incredibly complex cultural divide that continues to plague the Middle East. Check out reviews and a synopsis of the film here, and don't miss it on the afternoon of Sunday the 18th.

Join EMJC's Club Oasis for an incredible evening of music - havdallah and melaveh malkah with The Shuk - featuring Yoni Avital.

Saturday, January 24, 2009 - festivities begin at 7:30PM.

$20 per person; Middle Eastern foods available. In our beautiful Grand Ballroom.

Purim @ EMJC - Sunday, March 8, 1PM - 3PM (note new date!)

There's something for everybody at this year's Purim Panic:

• bingo
• karaoke
• carnival games
• music
• food
• arts/crafts
• and, believe it or not, the world's only copy of Guitar Hero 3D! (It's a prototype and it rocks!)

Come in costume and get a prize!

Free admission. (Purim Bingo is $1/game card, $5 for six cards. Refreshments available for purchase.) Fun for all ages.

Plan to stay for the 4:00 EMJC Movie of the Month, The Syrian Bride!

Sunday, April 5 - 2:45 - 3:45PM

Check wine off your shopping list and show support for the Center by purchasing your Passover wines at EMJC on Sunday afternoon April 5th, from 2:45 to 3:45 P.M.

A selection of fine kosher for Passover wines will be available for you to choose from, just in time to set your Seder table.

And after purchasing your wine... stick around for a very special event starting at 4:00 P.M. in the Grand Ballroom - a staged reading of Jeff Cohen’s new Off-Broadway play: The Soap Myth.

Join us for a very special event on Sunday, April 5 at 4:00 PM: a staged reading of The Soap Myth, a new play by Jeff Cohen, performed by a professional Broadway-caliber New York cast.

The Soap Myth is about a journalist on assignment to find the truth behind the crusade of a Holocaust survivor’s claim that the Nazis manufactured soap from the fat of murdered Jewish corpses. By turns funny, shocking and, ultimately, deeply sad, The Soap Myth is a provocative new play scheduled to open Off-Broadway in the fall.

Admission: $5

Followed by a discussion of the play with the playwright and cast.

Refreshments available prior to the performance.

Click through for the impressive biographies of our cast and our playwright, Jeff Cohen, whose previous play, Men of Clay, was selected as the Best New Play of 2005 by Baltimore's City Paper.

Thursday, April 9, 2009 - 6:00 PM

You are cordially invited to join your EMJC family for a Congregational Second Seder in our Grand Ballroom, conducted by Rabbi and Mrs. Kass.

You won’t want to miss this special evening. You’ll experience a traditional Passover seder with wine, matzah, and a gourmet meal. Pesach is a beloved holiday, not only because we recall our freedom, but because we link ourselves symbolically with all the Jews throughout the world. Enjoy a lively, family-friendly interactive evening filled with friends, music, and of course food!

Members: $75
Non-members: $80
Seniors & Students: $70
Children 6-13: $25
Children 5 and under: free!