Lifelong Learning at Shomrei Torah

Torah Study

and Breakfast for the Hungry Hearted is held every Shabbat morning at 8:45AM in our Kolbo. All are welcome, of any age, including beginners to Torah study. Sessions are led by Rabbi George and by lay leaders. The best opportunity for ongoing in-depth discussion of Torah and related writings.

Visit the URJ's weekly D'Var Torah commentary

Adult Classes

How to Celebrate the High Holy Days

Wednesday, September 1 7:00 pm in the Kolbo Room
What do the head of a fish and learning to juggle have to do with the four fall Jewish holidays? Join family educator Sherry Knazan as we explore the customs, traditions, community and home celebrations of Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot and Simchat Torah. Non-members welcome, as well as those exploring conversion. No prior knowledge needed—just interest and curiosity. Led by Sherry Knazan, a Diller and Grinspoon Award-winning educator who has taught Bay Area congregations and families for more than 30 years. RSVP to the Temple office at 707-578-5519.

Learning to Lead Shabbat Morning Services

Three Wednesdays, October 13–October 27 | 7:00 pm
Would you like to learn how to create a joyous, warm Shabbat service experience for yourself and others? Deepen your understanding of the format and content of the Saturday morning service and become better prepared to lead a service with this class led by Rabbi George and Liturgical Soloist Leira Satlof.

Introduction to Conversion

Wednesday, October 6 | 7:00 pm
Anyone interested in learning about the conversion process can join this conversation with Rabbi George. No previous knowledge necessary. All you need to bring is an open mind and your questions.

How to Celebrate Chanukah

Wednesday, November 3 | 7:00 pm
O Chanukah! It’s more than candles, dreidels and latkes! Join award-winning educator Sherry Knazan to learn the whole story. Explore traditional and modern traditions that will help make your celebration sparkle! No prior knowledge necessary—just interest and curiosity. Non members welcome, as well as those exploring conversion.

Shabbat at Home: Blessings and Songs

Saturday, November 6 | 7:00 pm
Shoshanah Leibowitz will show you how to enrich your family’s celebration of Shabbat by learning the music for both prayers and celebratory songs! Great for parents and anyone wanting to brush up their b’rachas!

A Taste of Trope

Sunday, November 21 | 10:30 am – Noon
Shoshanah Leibowitz will help you learn some basics for chanting from the Torah. Most know Shoshanah from her stirring Torah chanting on Yom Kippur morning.

Hanukkah, the Maccabees and Image of the Jew

Wednesday, December 8 and 15 | 7:00 pm
Early Zionists consciously challenged the stereotype of Jews as a studious, physically weak people, recasting them as muscle bound farmers, tradesmen and even warriors like Judah The Maccabee or the last hold outs on Masada. Explore with Rabbi George the changes in Jew’s self image brought about by the creation of the modern State of Israel.

The ‘Other’ in Jewish Tradition: Challenges and Opportunities

Wednesdays, January 19–March 9
The Hartman Lecture Series, Volume 2
Rabbi George Gittleman, a Senior Rabbinic Fellow of the Shalom Hartman Institute, will lead our discussions of talks from leading scholars from Jerusalem exploring the way “others”—women, minorities, non-Jews—have been treated in true, pluralistic Jewish tradition.

How to Celebrate Passover

Wednesday, April 6 | 7:00 pm
Why is this night different from all others? From finding the last little crumb of hametz (leavened food) to joyous Passover Seders, Family educator Sherry Knazan will fill you in on the meaning of the Seder. No prior knowledge necessary—just interest and curiosity. Non members welcome, as well as those exploring conversion.

GLUE: God, Life, the Universe and Everything
Study and Discuss Jewish Ideas from throughout our history. Now in its 5th year, GLUE studies and discusses Jewish beliefs and ideas throughout history. This fall, we will be exploring great Jewish thinkers of the Middle Ages, considered the height of traditional Judaism. How long will we study this era? As long as it takes. We don’t leave a topic until we’re done with it. Check out the Shomrei Torah calendar for meeting times and please join us at our monthly meetings. Contact the Temple Office for more information.

Recent Guest Speakers

Upcoming Speakers, Authors and Musicians

Andi Milens: Friends and Enemies: Ignore Them and They’ll Go Away

Erev Shabbat Service | October 8 | 7:30 pm
Vice President for the Jewish Council for Public Affairs will share her many years of experience in Jewish community relations.

Music from the Concentration Camps

Wednesday, November 10 | 7:00pm
Shirley Hunt, Musician
Remember Kristalnacht with this stirring performance and talk. Shirley, a winner of the 2010 Voices of Music Young Artist Competition, plays cello and viola da gamba. She also serves as Program Manager for Listening for a Change.

Hazon: Jews and Sustainability

Erev Shabbat Service | November 12 | 7:30 pm
Explore the connection between Jews, ethics and food with Deborah Newbrun, the new Bay Area director of Hazon, a non-profit that works to create a healthier Jewish community, and world. Part of Shomrei Torah’s recognition of Just Table/Green Table, a URJ Biennial Initiative.

Making a Difference in Haiti, One Step at a Time

Erev Shabbat Service | December 10 | 7:30 pm
Shomrei Torah member Jon Batzdorf, certified prosthetist and orthotist, founded ProsthetiKa to help tackle the universal challenge of physical disability. Learn about their work in Haiti.

Book Night: You Say Tomato, I Say Shut Up: A Love Story

Wednesday, January 12
Authors Annabelle Gurwitch and Jeff Kahn
After thirteen years of marriage, comedians/writers Annabelle Gurwitch and Jeff Kahn discovered “We’re just not that into us.” The good news is a hilarious memoir, a moving chronicle of marriage told in a raw, honest, and humorous way. Annabelle and Jeff believe that in marriage, all you need is love—and a healthy dose of complaining, codependence, and Pinot Noir.

Disorienting Diaspora: A Bisl Yiddish Language, Culture

and Gender Politics

Erev Shabbat Service | January 14 | 7:30 pm
Zohar Weiman Kelman will share some Yiddish poetry written by women and talk about formulating alternative approaches Yiddish history, opening new possibilities for imagining a Yiddish future. Born and raised in West Jerusalem, she is currently finishing her doctorate in Comparative Literature at UC Berkeley.

Rick Recht in Concert

Saturday, January 29
Rick Recht, the top touring Jewish rock musician in America, has revolutionized and elevated the genre of Jewish rock music as a powerful and effective tool for developing Jewish pride and identity in Jewish youth and adults. He is not only an exceptional singer/songwriter and entertainer, but a role model for involvement in Jewish life.
A concert for all ages!

Gertrude Stein, Curious George and More

Erev Shabbat Service | February 11 | 7:30 pm
Fraidy Aber, Director of Education at the Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco, will review 25 years of the museum’s successes and introduce current and up-coming exhibitions, including “Curious George Saves the Day: The Art of Margret and H.A. Rey” and “Gertrude Stein: Five Stories.”

Who Are We? What Are We?

Erev Shabbat Service | March 11 | 7:30 pm
Is “Jewish” a religion, culture, nationality, or culinary category? Join us for a panel discussion on Jewish Identity facilitated by Rabbi George.

Book Night: The Three Weissmanns of Westport

Wednesday, March 16
A evening with author Cathleen Schine Jane Austen’s beloved Sense and Sensibility has moved to Westport, Connecticut, in this enchanting modernday homage to the classic novel. Sisters Miranda, an impulsive but successful literary agent, and Annie, a pragmatic library director, quite unexpectedly find themselves the middle-aged products of a broken home.

Tel Aviv at 100

Erev Shabbat Service | April 8 | 7:30 pm
The first modern Hebrew city, Tel Aviv is the cultural center of Israel, from its Bauhaus architecture to its cafes to its museums and galleries. Vavi Toran, who was raised in Tel Aviv by a theatrical and artistic family and eventually became a designer and arts educator herself, will share her insights on Israeli arts, culture and education.

Israel Today

Wednesday, April 13
Israeli Consul General Akiva Tor Akiva Tor is the Consul General of Israel for the Pacific Northwest region. Formerly World Jewish Affairs Adviser to the President of Israel, he has written and lectured extensively on Jewish values in the foreign policy of Israel and on ethical considerations in international relations.

Book Night: Station Identification - A Cultural History of Yiddish Radio in the United States

Wednesday, May 11
Author Ari Y. Kelman
In his book, a finalist for the 2010 Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature, Professor Ari Y. Kelman of UC Davis explores how Yiddish radio directly addressed the everyday lives of Jewish immigrants, while providing them with invaluable guidance as they struggled to become American.

Revitalizing the Jewish Community

Erev Shabbat Service | May 13 | 7:30pm
Jennifer Gorovitz will reflect on her first year as CEO of the San Francisco Jewish Community Federation. The Federation works to protect and enhance Jewish life in our community, and to foster Jewish renaissance at home, in Israel and around the world.

Book Night - Bargain Junkie: Living the Good Life on the Cheap

Wednesday, June 1
Author Annie Korzen
As we continue to follow this roller-coaster ride we call the economy, skills in the art of penny-pinching have become a necessity. Comedian and frugalista extraordinaire Annie Korzen shows that living on a budget doesn’t mean abandoning expensive tastes, a love of culture, or a sense of humor!

L’Taken Social Justice Seminar in Washington D.C. January 6–10 2010

Teens 10th–12th grade can spend a weekend with the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism exploring public policy and social activism through a Jewish lens. Tour the Holocaust Memorial Museum, celebrate Havdallah at a National Memorial, and lobby your congressional representatives on “the hill.” Reserve your space soon! Payment in full due October 1.