Crafts and Conversation, with Wendy Lauter.

Crafts and Conversation is a community crafting circle. Just come and craft whatever you'd like and schmooze and have a good time. Crochet, sketch, whatever … or just join us without being crafty.

We will meet in a Ravenswood location.

RSVP to Wendy by e-mail lausho343@gmail.com

Happy New Years by Maya Arad is a story told by a lifelong collection of letters by an Israeli woman who emigrates to the United States. As the author goes through different stages of her life she shares many valuable insightful observations. And there's so much to be derived from reading between the lines.

We will meet Sunday morning June 21, 10:30 AM, at a home in the Hollywood Park area of Chicago (near NEIU). Write to Joan Minsky to RSVP or for more information: chicagomakom@gmail.com

Come join us at Loyola Beach Park as we welcome Shabbat on Friday evening.

Services will be led by Rabbi Menachem, with Leah Shoshanah as cantorial soloist.

A vegetarian potluck oneg/kiddush will be served after services. Please feel free to bring a dish. Fish will be OK to bring. Paper plates and tableware will be provided.

Bring a blanket or chair. We will meet on the grass.

Enter the Loyola Beach parking lot at Greenleaf, east of Sheridan. We will be in the grassy area at the end of Lunt Ave, near the south end of the parking lot (which runs parallel to the lake between Greenleaf and Lunt)

On June 5 we will meet for dinner

Our Shabbat Dinner Group will meet Friday, June 5, at Cumin, 1039 W Belmont, Chicago, at 6:00 PM.

Cumin is an Indian and Nepali restaurant with a wide variety of meat based and meatless dishes. There's something on the menu for meat lovers, vegetarians, vegans and the gluten free.

There is metered street parking and the CTA Red Line/Brown Line station is nearby.

Members and non-members are welcome to join us as we bentch licht and chow down and visit with each other.

We know that not everyone can make it by 6:00 pm, so get there whenever you can and and if you RSVP we'll save you a place. And please do RSVP so that we can be sure to have enough room for everyone at the table.

RSVP to Ina Marks via text messaging, 773-350-2127.

Crafts and Conversation, with Wendy Lauter.

Crafts and Conversation is a community crafting circle. Just come and craft whatever you'd like and schmooze and have a good time. Crochet, sketch, whatever … or just join us without being crafty.

We will meet in a Ravenswood location.

RSVP to Wendy by e-mail lausho343@gmail.com

On the night of Shavuot we will reconvene online for a mid-night meditation.
It is said the channels between us and the InfiniteEternal are open wider at that time than any other time, making it easier than usual to commune with the Divine. To ask questions and state intentions. 

Zoom:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88641542795?pwd=LzdOalZsaEJoL2NTb1VKS2xOL1JwUT09

Meeting ID: 886 4154 2795, Passcode: 950181, 312-626-6799

Shavuot is z’man simchateinu/time of our happiness and z’man matan Torah/time of the giving of Torah. In days such as these, it can be difficult to find happiness. 

How do you find and keep joy in difficult times? 

Rabbi Menachem will lead teachings and discussions about happiness and joy, as well as help us prepare to receive Torah. 

Teaching, discussion, and meditation will be followed by a dairy potluck. Why? No one really knows. It’s simply Jewish tradition. Please bring something to share and your lactaid pills. 

Later that evening we will reconvene online for a mid-night meditation. It is said the channels between us and the InfiniteEternal are open wider at that time than any other time, making it easier than usual to commune with the Divine. To ask questions and state intentions. 

Zoom:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88641542795?pwd=LzdOalZsaEJoL2NTb1VKS2xOL1JwUT09

Meeting ID: 886 4154 2795, Passcode: 950181, 312-626-6799

Our next Rosh Chodesh Affiliation Group meeting will take place via Zoom. It will be the first day of Sivan, the month of the harvest and the month during which Shavuot arrives.

For more information contact Ascher Levy, ascher1@ameritech.net.

Join us for our very special Shabbat Service on Friday, May 8, at 7:30 pm. Rabbi Menachem Cohen and canorial soloist Leah Shoshanah will lead us as we leave our troubles of the week at the door.

The service will be followed by an Oneg. We'll recite our blessings over the wine and bread, and then we'll do some serious shmoozing and noshing.

The service will be at the Rudolph Steiner Center, 4249 N. Lincoln in Chicago. This will give us an opportunity to see whether this new location will meet our needs. There is ample metered and non-metered street parking nearby. There are also buses and a Brown Line stop four blocks away.

See newsletter for Zoom information

We Would Never by Tova Mirvis, meeting at a home in the Hollywood Park neighborhood in Chicago. Information and RSVP to Joan Minsky: chicagomakom@gmail.com

At Ruth's kitchen, Near North Side. The topic is mandel bread! (Which isn't bread, it is dessert.) Information and RSVP to Ruth Kaan: ruthkaan@ameritech.net.

Leah Shoshanah's sing-along circles combine Jewish mysticism with song.

The songs are meant for group singing:

• Songs with few lyrics to help you get in the groove.

• Songs that layer on top of each other in beautiful harmonies.

• Open to all levels of musical experience.

Whether you come to harmonize, hum, or simply rest in the sound, you’re welcome here.

We will observe April yahrzeits at this event.

This song circle will be at a home in Rogers Park. Space is limited.

RSVP to Ascher Levy: ascher1@ameritech.net

Our next Rosh Chodesh Affiliation Group meeting will take place via Zoom. It will be toward the end of the Hebrew month of Nisan and a few days before the start of Iyar, the month of healing and self-refinement. Lag B'Omer comes during this month.

For more information contact Ascher Levy, ascher1@ameritech.net.

Crafts and conversation with Wendy, contact her at lausho343@gmail.com

Crafts and Conversation is a community crafting circle. Participation does not require being a professional artist or crafter. Just come and craft whatever you'd like and have a good time.

Meets at a Ravenswood location

Join Rabbi Menachem Cohen on his spiritual journey as he celebrates a 2nd Bar Mitzvah as an adult.

More information here.

A seder for Tu B’Shevat, the birthday of trees. We will practice mindful eating.

Let's take a mystical journey through the most grounded of acts, eating. Together we will climb the Tree of Life and navigate the Four Worlds of Existence, in a contemplative Kabbalistic Seder. Tu B’Shevat is a time to celebrate and love trees and the Tree of Life! Our tradition guides us to have a mindful eating practice with a variety of fruits and nuts as we integrate practices of the sages, the kabbalists, the Zionists and the modern environmentalists.  

Tickets required.

More information and tickets here.

Crafts and Conversation group, led by Wendy Lauter.

Crafts and Conversation is a community crafting circle. Participation does not require being a professional artist or crafter. Just come and craft whatever you'd like and have a good time.

E-mail to Wendy for details: lausho343@gmail.com

Get out your silly hats again, or just pick one up, because it’s time for some deep, personal Torah. While wearing silly hats. 

Our December meeting was the Build-A-Blessing Workshop. What better way to spend a rainy Sunday morning than to study Torah, learn about ourselves through art, and craft personalized blessings for our loved ones inspired by the text

But, why silly hats? Because sometimes the best way to go deep is to put aside seriousness and embrace silliness. We will not be studying the great Torah commentators of the ages. Rather, we will go inside to find what the stories we revere mean to each of us. We promise, the Torah we will study together is real and will be treated with respect. Some silly hats will be provided but you are encouraged to bring your own!

We welcome each new Jewish month with intention, creativity, and community.

Through a Jewish framework, this is a place to explore spiritual expression and personal growth.

Everyone is welcome no matter gender, member or not a member.

Write to Ascher for zoom link: ascher1@ameritech.net

The Yid, by Paul Goldberg.
A plot to assassinate Stalin in 1953, after he attempts a pogrom to exterminate all of the Jews in Russia. Surprising twists and turns that will keep you reading, and the dark humor is masterful.

We will meet on zoom.

Please write to chicagomakom@gmail.com if interested and to get the zoom link.

Join us for our very special Shabbat Service on Friday, January 9, at 7:30 pm led by Rabbi Menachem Cohen and singing led by Adam Gottlieb. We will pray and welcome Shabbat together in a circle of friendship.

The Service will be followed by an oneg. We'll recite our blessings over the wine and bread, and then we'll do some serious shmoozing and noshing.

At Broadway United Methodist Church, 3338 N Broadway in Chicago.

Get out your silly hats again, or just pick one up, because it’s time for some deep, personal Torah. While wearing silly hats. 

But, why silly hats? Because sometimes the best way to go deep is to put aside seriousness and embrace silliness. We will not be studying the great Torah commentators of the ages. Rather, we will go inside to find what the stories we revere mean to each of us. We promise, the Torah we will study together is real and will be treated with respect.

Some silly hats will be provided but you are encouraged to bring your own!

The first Silly Hat Torah, a Havdalah cabaret, was a resounding success. The adult themed discussion about hospitality and making oaths surprised everyone with what we discovered in our souls.

This time Silly Hat Torah is for all ages.

We welcome each new Jewish month with intention, creativity, and community.

Through a Jewish framework, this is a place to explore spiritual expression and personal growth.

Everyone is welcome no matter gender, member or not a member.

Write to Ascher for zoom link: ascher1@ameritech.net

United Church of Rogers Park, Morse at Ashland in Chicago

Makom Shalom Mitziut is partnering with our friends Leah Shoshanah & The Flames to create an unforgettable evening of nosh, music, and celebration of miracles!

We will do a mass menorah lighting. Feel free to bring your menorah and candles and let's bring abundant light to the world! Rabbi Menachem will lead us in a brief Chanukah meditation. Havdalah will precede the menorah lighting.

The Latke Laboratory will provide a latke bar with multiple styles of latke and a dazzling array of toppings. What is you favorite, unexpected topping for latkes?

If you are an oil aficionado or potato professor and want to prepare the latkes in the Latke Lab prior to the party that evening, see the comments on the FB event to let Rabbinic Intern Ezra, our Latke Lab Leader, know.

Leah Shoshanah and the Flames is a community band Leah Shoshanah is forming. This will be their debut performance! If you are a musician and interested in joining the band, see the sign up sheet in the FB event comments.

Admission is $20 for non-members, $10 for members. If that’s too much, please come anyway! And if you feel like contributing a little more, that’s great.

Sacred Hands is a communal crafting circle where members will gather to create new art, from ritual items like kipot to silly hats to wear to our Silly Hat Torah study meetings.

We will meet at a location in Albany Park.

For more information and instructions contact Wendy Lauter, lausho343@gmail.com.

Our next Shabbat Group dinner will be held Friday, December 5, at 6:00 pm at Euroasia Restaurant, 351 W. Oak, Chicago, IL.

Members and non-members are welcome to join us.

Come and tantalize your taste buds with eastern European dishes like goulash and cabbage rolls or central Asian dishes like beshbarmak (lamb based) and steamed pelmeni (beef filled dumplings). There are also gluten free, vegetarian and vegan selections.

Please rsvp to chicagomakom@gmail.com so we know to reserve space at the table.

Leah Shoshanah will lead us in singing and joy and conviviality. At the home of Ascher and Marla.
To be followed by Havadlah and dinner (pot luck).

RSVP to Ascher: Ascher Levy ascher1@ameritech.net

You can see Leah Shoshanah’s web site: https://www.leahshoshanah.com/

We welcome each new Jewish month with intention, creativity, and community. Through a Jewish framework, this will be a place to explore spiritual expression and personal growth.

Everyone is welcome no matter gender, member or not a member!

Write to Ascher for zoom link: ascher1@ameritech.net

Come be our guests as we celebrate the tail end of Sukkot week in a sukkah!

Of course we will have dinner, as commanded. With artwork and stories and shaking lulav and etrog and a ceremony to welcome the ushpizin.

Led by Magid Al Goldberg, with Rabbi Menachem.

We will meet at the Bagel restaurant for a convivial dinner, complete with a symbolic lighting of the (electric) Shabbat candles.