Adult Programming

Lifelong learning is at the core of Beth Emet values.

Beth Emet is a diverse community of individuals with different viewpoints, backgrounds, and a broad range of Jewish learning experiences.

The Beth Emet Adult Programming offers exciting possibilities for meeting new people, exchanging ideas, and embracing Jewish history, ritual, and culture.

Our classes are taught by experienced clergy, teachers and lay leaders from Beth Emet and the larger Jewish community. Offerings range from one-time events to yearlong classes; some have fees and scholarships are available.

Fall 5784 | 2023

How to Register:

  • Registration is required for each offering, including classes and programs without fees.
  • When appropriate, students will receive Zoom links to classes after registration.
  • Members and Non-Members can register for individual classes at the links found on our calendar.
  • To enroll in multiple programs at once, click one of the buttons below.

The Spring 5783 term features a wide range of classes and special programs. Stay tuned for more information on the classes. This term includes some classes and programs in-person, others only remotely through Zoom, and some in a fusion fashion using Zoom and in-person learning. Course and program descriptions will specify the venues.

Everyone is welcome to listen, learn, contribute, and share new insights with other members of the Beth Emet community.

For yearlong courses, including Hebrew and Tikkun Middot, see below.

 

Members – Register for all programs               Members -Register for adult education courses alone

Non-Members -Register for all programs

Upcoming Programs

View Calendar

Tikkun Middot at Beth Emet

Middot are character traits expressed in our behavior that can impact our relationships. Participants in Beth Emet’s Tikkun Middot groups follow the innovative national program developed by the Institute for Jewish Spirituality, built on the Jewish tradition of Mussar, to cultivate moral traits such as patience, compassion, trust, and mindful speech.

Wise Aging Through the Lens of Tikkun Middot facilitated by Jane Weintraub and Sue Nadel

Monthly on Sunday afternoons, October- June

Are you thinking of retiring? Is your nest emptying? Are you facing age-related challenges or moving from one phase of life to another? Are you sandwiched between generations? Do you have fewer stairs to climb professionally and are more interested in making your next chapter meaningful? We will address these and other situations through a wide range of Tikkun Middot practices to focus on our personal characteristics, traits, or virtues, and employ curiosity and openness to investigate our internal and external reactions to situations. Through this lens, we will look at issues of aging and consider how choice points can help us create openings for personal and spiritual growth and turn away from reactive behaviors. Together, we will consider how to reframe life’s peaks and valleys into opportunities for growth and change, meeting monthly to examine how we wish to navigate this new landscape. Limited to 14 participants.

Interested? Contact Marci Dickman

New Tikkun Middot Va’ad (small group) facilitated by Marci Dickman

Monthly, November- June; Specific days and times to be determiined by the participants

The Va’ad focuses on a particular character trait each month, and each session includes meditation, mindfulness practice, study of Jewish and secular texts, and self-reflection. Between sessions, participants work with a chevruta (partner) on specific exercises to explore the internal and external obstacles and opportunities present in each moment in order to access wiser, more wholesome choices. In the words of a congregant participating in Tikkun Middot practice for their fifth year: “It is a blessing in my life and has gently pushed me to review and develop how I connect and interact with others, self, and with God… Learning and practicing Tikkun Middot has been a lifesaver for me. It was the place I turned to when I was confused about how to live in this unusual time.” The group is open to congregants of all ages and interests.

Interested? Contact Marci Dickman

Learn Hebrew at Beth Emet

Hebrew is the language of the Torah and the prayer book, and the universal language of the Jewish people. For many, Hebrew is a
gateway to Jewish community and study, empowering us spirituality, intellectually, and socially, and connecting us with people in Israel,
around the world, and fellow learners here at Beth Emet. Now is a good time to learn to read Hebrew or improve the Hebrew skills you
already have. Hebrew classes meet weekly during the school year in a supportive and stimulating environment.
(Scholarships are available.) Classes do not meet during Thanksgiving, Winter or Passover breaks.

Hebrew 1 with Bluma Stoller

Sundays, October 9 through Mid-May | 10:45 am – 12:00 pm

For learners with no or limited Hebrew language background. This class focuses on mastery of the hebrew alphabet in order to read and understand Hebrew words and phrases in the prayer book and modern usage. Hebrew 1 also connects Hebrew vocabulary with Jewish life, ritual, tradition, and Israel. Member fee $220; non-member fee $270 (five-student minimum for this class)

Non-Members Register Here

Members Register Here

Hebrew 2 with Nancy Fink

October through Mid-May | Class day and time tbd based on participants

Hebrew 2 is for learners seeking more meaningful participation at services. This class provides opportunities to improve your Hebrew reading fluency while exploring the structure, themes, and key Hebrew vocabulary of the Shabbat morning worship service and its individual prayers. Hebrew 2 also includes basic elements of Hebrew grammar. Member fee $220; non-member fee $270 (five-student minimum for this class)

Interested? Contact Marci Dickman

Hebrew 3 with Dorit Flatt

Sundays, October 9 through mid-May| 11:30 am – 12:30 pm (Class time may change when in-person)

Hebrew 3 is for learners able to sound out and print Hebrew words. This class will explore the grammar and vocabulary of modern Hebrew through a variety of reading, writing, and speaking activities. Member fee $220; non-member fee $270 (five-student minimum for this class)

Non-Members Register Here

Members Register Here

Beth Emet Adult Programming is supported in part by a generous grant from the David D. Polk and Marian Polk Fried Adult Jewish Studies Fund of the Beth Emet Foundation. This grant allows us to offer Beth Emet members all of the Friday morning 11:00 a.m. – 12:15 p.m. classes during the Fall / Winter 5782 term as a package for the reduced fee of $125.

Beth Emet Adult Programming is also supported in part by a generous the Jewish Education: Lifelong Learning Opportunities (JELLO) Fund of the Beth Emet Foundation.

Whether you’re considering taking a class or two (or three!), or have an idea for a topic, we’d love to hear from you!

Reach out to Marci Dickman, Director of Lifelong Learning.

Contact Marci