Lifelong Learning
Voted "Best Adult Education" program in Seattle by the readers of the magazine Jewish in Seattle in 2016, Temple Beth Am promotes lifelong learning and is committed to being a center of Jewish life for people of all ages. Our classes, discussions, and lectures offer many opportunities for our adult community to learn at a variety of levels. The program listings below are updated frequently with a wide variety of offerings.
For our additional selection of Torah Study classes, including Introduction to Judaism and Adult B'nai Mitzvah, visit our Torah Study page.
Please contact our Director of Community Engagement, Alexis Kort, or call 206-525-0915 x 210 with any questions.
Scholar-in-Residence 2019: Rabbi Carole B. Balin, Ph.D
Beth Am B’Yachad:
What do we talk about when we
talk about Jewish Community?
A Deep Dive into Jewish Identities in the 21st Century with Professor Emerita of Jewish History,
Rabbi Carole B. Balin
We’re living during a unique chapter in the American Jewish story as we seek ways to sustain and grow Jewish life among the dizzying array of choices and opportunities that today’s world presents to us. We live not only in the marketplace of ideas, but also the marketplace of identities. Fluidity and diversity animate our society, and contemporary liberal Jews are shaped far more by consent than descent. Join Rabbi Carole B. Balin for a deep dive into what it means to be part of the Jewish community today, how we got here, and where we’re going.
Friday, November 8
Welcome and Embrace: Gender, Sexual Orientation, and Inclusion in American Jewish Communities
7:00 PM: Special Jazzy Kabbalat Shabbat service
8:00 PM: Dessert oneg and discussion with Rabbi Balin
Saturday, November 9
Lech Lecha: Getting Out and Doing Jewish
9:00 AM: Torah Study
Girls Storm the Bimah: How Bat Mitzvah
Changed Everything
4:00 PM: Afternoon Lecture and Havdalah Happy Hour, sponsored by the Sisters of Beth Am
Sunday, November 10
9:45 AM: Joyous Family Tefilah Experience for Parents and Kids
10:30 AM: Married to a Jew? Me Too: Celebrating and Exploring the Growing Diversity of American Jewish Families - talk with parents and adults
Scholar-in-Residence and University Lecture Series
Temple Beth Am is committed to bringing the Seattle community important and informative topics that impact the Jewish people both historically and in modern times. Our Scholar-in-Residence and University Lecture Series presents engaging presenters and scholars who speak on their areas of expertise.
Past presenters and scholars include Makom LA hazzan, Danny Maseng; Prof. Sasha Senderovich; URJ Vice President of Audacious Hospitality April Baskin; Prof. Hamza Zafer on "The Judeo-Islamic Experience," Former U.S. Ambassador at Large for International Freedom Rabbi David Saperstein; Rabbi Deborah Waxman; Noam Pianko on "Justifying Judaism in the Modern World"; Devin Naar on "The Sephardic Jewish Experience"; and 2017's University Lecture Series' scholar, Kathie Friedman, on "Immigrants and Refugees: We Were Once Strangers, Too."
Become a University Lectures Patron Sponsor for $100
Help ensure this annual learning series continues, while keeping ticket costs low for everyone. Patron sponsorship includes tickets to all lectures, attendance at an intimate private reception with our speaker prior to the final lecture, and acknowledgement of your sponsorship in the lecture program.
Israeli Authors Book Club Part Bet
Once a month-ish on Tuesdays, September 2019 – May 2020, 6:30 – 8:00 PM
Beth Am K’hilah Rm. 226
To get ready for our next congregational trip to Israel February 15-26, 2020, we are going to read another round of Israeli Authors for our 2019-2020 member-facilitated evening book discussion group. For a new twist, we will be reading fiction, non-fiction, poetry, a memoir, and even a cookbook! If you are interested in leading a book discussion or have suggestions for a topic/books for next year, please be in touch with Sandy Berger.
November 12: Poems by Israeli authors (poetry), reading to be available in October
January 14: If All the Seas were Ink by Ilana Kurshan (memoir)
February 11: Jerusalem: The Biography by Simon Sebag Montefiore (non-fiction)
April 14: The Hilltop by Assaf Gavron (fiction)
May 12: Israeli Soul: Easy, Essential, Delicious by Michael Solomonov (cookbook)
Union for Reform Judaism: Introduction to Judaism
Union for Reform Judaism: Introduction to Judaism
Sundays, October 20, 2019 – April 19, 2020, 9:00 - 10:45 AM
Beth Am K’hilah Rm. 226
$180 for members of URJ Congregations; $250 for non-members
Tuition allows for either one or two people to attend; couples are encouraged to attend together and singles may invite an interested friend. Tuition does not include the price of books. Class size is limited to 25 individuals.
Temple Beth Am is excited to again offer Introduction to Judaism, in regional collaboration with Temple De Hirsch Sinai and Kol Haneshama, with the support of the Union of Reform Judaism (URJ). This course is used across North America for adults interested in exploring Judaism and is recognized universally by Reform synagogues. Taught by Rabbi Jason R. Levine, topics include Jewish rituals, Jewish theology, history, texts and prayer, life cycle, holidays, and comparative Judaism, including a Shabbaton designed specifically for this class.
Contact Rabbi Jason R. Levine for more info or questions. Register here.
