We believe in life-long learning and offer the adults in our community a variety of ways to expand their knowledge and education. In addition to our stimulating cultural programs at Shabbat, we also offer stimulating opportunities for adult study throughout the year.
Adult Perspectives is the name of our Sunday Adult Education program. These sessions are led by Rabbi Peter Schweitzer or by a member of the congregation. TCC Members occasionally participate on panel discussions and guest speakers are also invited to make a special presentation. All are welcome to attend.
Sessions are held primarily on Sundays from 3:30 to 4:45 at 15 West 86th Street (SAJ), between Central Park West and Columbus Ave. in Manhattan. We meet in the Social Hall on the 2nd floor. Other Adult Education programs may be scheduled for a weekday or evening, either at SAJ or another location.
All dates and programs are subject to change. To confirm events and for more information, contact the office at 212-213-1002 or info@citycongregation.org.
Wednesday, September 9, SAJ, 7:30pm
“RETHINKING THE HIGH HOLIDAYS FOR SECULAR JEWS”
Rabbi Peter Schweitzer will explore how secular Jews can celebrate the High Holidays, and how Humanistic Judaism and the City Congregation give us a way to maintain our Jewish identity.
Sunday, October 4, SAJ, 3:30pm Rescheduled for Sunday, Nov. 8
Special Event CELEBRATION OF ANNE SHONBRUN’S NEW CD OF THE CITY CONGREGATION’S MUSIC
Anne Shonbrun has been a member of the City Congregation for almost twelve years and has been our long cherished and highly esteemed song leader for about eight years. Anne studied voice for several years with, among others, former Metropolitan and NYC Opera lead baritone Richard Fredericks. She works in the Division of Student Affairs at SUNY Downstate Medical Center.
Sunday, October 18, SAJ, 3:30pm
“THE SEARCH FOR MEANING IN JEWISH WRITING: Survival, Hope And Comedy”
Mindy Greenstein is a clinical psychologist specializing in cancer as well as a writer. Her most recent essays were published in the Los Angeles Times and Washington Post. Her essay, “Ba'lebusteh,” appeared in Mindy Lewis's anthology, DIRT: The Quirks, Habits and Passions of Keeping House. Dr. Greenstein, whose first language was Yiddish, will focus on the interplay between survival, hope and humor in Jewish writing.
Sunday, November 8, SAJ, 3:30pm
Special Event CELEBRATION OF ANNE SHONBRUN’S NEW CD OF THE CITY CONGREGATION’S MUSIC
Anne Shonbrun has been a member of the City
Congregation for almost twelve years and has been our long cherished
and highly esteemed song leader for about eight years. Anne studied
voice for several years with, among others, former Metropolitan and NYC
Opera lead baritone Richard Fredericks. She works in the Division of
Student Affairs at SUNY Downstate Medical Center. “JEWS AND JOURNALISM: Where we fit in and how we are depicted” This program has been canceled and will be rescheduled.
Sunday, November 22, SAJ, 3:30pm
“HUMANISM 101: Its History, Development, and Current Challenges”
You may know the basics of Judaism, but do you know the basics of Humanism? Find out what it’s all about and why it is so compelling.
Joseph Chuman, Leader of the Ethical Cultural Society, Bergen County, NJ, teaches at Columbia University and Fairleigh Dickinson University. Dr. Chuman has worked on behalf of human rights, civil liberties and in opposition to the death penalty, as well as many other progressive causes. He has been a popular speaker at TCC and we’re pleased to have him back to talk with us about this important subject.
Sunday, December 6, SAJ, 3:30pm
“FEMINIST/PROGRESSIVE MOTHERS RAISING SONS: What Sort of Men are These Boys Becoming?”
How do we raise feminist sons - especially during their adolescence? How do teenage boys go along with or resist our ideals? How do we help them to negotiate critical issues of development and individuation consistent with our values?
A panel of TCC mothers will join together to address these challenging questions.
Sunday, December 13, SAJ, 4:15pm
Special Event CHANUKAH CELEBRATION WITH YALE STROM
Join the KidSchool for this special event.
Guests: $10. Limited Seating. Please make reservations by December 1. Call 212-213-1002.
Yale Strom has been aptly called a “klezmer whirlwind.” He is an award-winning klezmer musician (violin), children’s author, documentary filmmaker, photographer, playwright, ethnographer, and great entertainer! Don’t miss this wonderful program.
Sunday, January 24, SAJ, 3:30pm
"PEOPLE OF THE LIBRETTO: A History and Celebration of Jews in Musical Theater"
For almost a century, American musical theater has been created primarily by Jews: composers like Rodgers, Gershwin, Arlen, Kern, and Bernstein; lyricists like Hart, Lerner, Harburg, Harnick, and Ebb; and composer-lyricists like Berlin, Loesser, Herman, Sondheim, and Schwartz. How did this happen, and why? In this program, presented by TCC members, Jack Lechner and Peter Mones will review the colorful history of Jews in American musical theater, while Trudy Elins, Michelle Lang Zalph, Anne Shonbrun, and Dan Wyman will perform musical selections to illustrate significant developments, accompanied on piano by Louise Moed. Come enjoy this wonderful music!
This same production will also be performed at our Shabbat celebration on Friday, January 22.
Sunday, February 7, SAJ, 3:30pm
ISRAELI FOLK DANCING with Steve Zalph
No experience needed. We'll teach all the dances, so come join the fun!
TCC member Steve Zalph taught international folk dancing for 23 years, including leading a Tuesday night folk dance session for 20 years that drew an average of 225 folk dancers each week. He also taught folk dancing at the 92nd Street Y, in a class held every Saturday night for 15 years. Note: from 3:00-3:30, in place of Kehillah Circle, Steve will give instruction to kids and parents together.
Sunday, March 7, SAJ, 3:30pm
“THE TCC BAR/BAT MITZVAH EXPERIENCE”
Learn about our exciting and creative Bar/Bat Mitzvah program from the people who have lived it – our parents and mentors. Find out what lies ahead.
A panel presentation with TCC parents who have gone through the TCC Bar/Bat Mitzvah program with their children or as mentors.
Sunday, March 21, SAJ, 3:30pm
“TAKING CARE OF OUR AGING PARENTS: A Responsibility? An Opportunity? A Challenge? A Burden?"
How do we obtain the care our parents need? What if they live far away? How do we manage our own lives while managing theirs?
A panel discussion with TCC members Myrna Baron, Bob Liebeskind, Carol Sternhell, and Rabbi Peter Schweitzer. Moderated by Helene Lauffer.
Sunday, April 11, SAJ, 3:30pm
“NOTHING MAKES YOU FREE: Reflections on the Writing of Jewish Descendants of Holocaust Survivors”
Melvin Jules Bukiet is the author of seven books of fiction, including Signs and Wonders and A Faker's Dozen, as well as the editor of three anthologies, Nothing Makes You Free: Writings by Descendants of Jewish Holocaust Survivors, Scribblers on the Roof: Contemporary Jewish Fiction, and Neurotica: Jewish Writers on Sex. He teaches at Sarah Lawrence College.
Sunday, April 25, SAJ, 3:30pm
“SEX ON THE BRAIN: Should the Bible be R-Rated?”
What were those Biblical writers and rabbinic commentators thinking? Does it all come down to fertility rituals, procreation and illicit desire? Find out about the serpent in the garden, Lot and his daughters, David and Bathsheba, and much more.
Rabbi Peter Schweitzer will examine Biblical texts and rabbinic commentary that reveal the nature of this literature, its authors, and our culture.
Sunday, May 16, SAJ, 3:30pm
“SMALL DECENCIES – And Do They Matter?”
In a tiny Black Forest village, Christian and Jewish neighbors "all got along before Hitler." What happened to those relationships during and after Nazi times is the focus of Mimi Schwartz's talk and reading from Good Neighbors, Bad Times: Echoes of My Father's German Village, a winner of the 2008 ForeWord Book of the Year Award in Memoir.
Mimi Schwartz is the author of five books. Besides Good Neighbors, Bad Times, her other books include Writing True, the Art and Craft of Creative Nonfiction (with Sondra Perl), used in over 200 colleges and university writing programs; and Thoughts from a Queen-Sized Bed, a JCC Book Club pick for nonfiction of 2002. She is Professor Emerita of the Writing Program of Richard Stockton College in New Jersey and lives in Princeton, New Jersey.
