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Sunday, September 13, 2009



Editor's Note: Events are listed in alphabetical order of the organization sponsoring them.

Chabad at La Costa—
Barbecue and Telethon -- The Lubavitcher congregation will barbecue hot dogs and hamburgers and have a television screen set up to watch the progress of the annual Chabad Telethon, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., 1980 La Costa Ave, Carlsbad. More information call (760) 943-8891 or visit the website www.chabadatlacosta.com


Christians United for Israel
—Rally and Dennis Prager Speech~(By Donald H. Harrison) In the wake of the recent controversy over the cancellation of the Sept. 13 Walk for Israel, I received a telephone call from Pastor Greg Stephens, who is both the spiritual leader of Father's House in La Mesa and Southern California director for Christians United for Israel (CUFI). Stephens explained to me that CUFI is a "non-conversionary" organization, meaning that it does not seek to use its support for Israel as a gateway for proselytizing Jews. The CUFI director said that independent of the now-cancelled walk, CUFI is continuing with its plans to hold an event on the evening of Sunday, September 13, to honor Israel. The featured speaker at the $18-per-person gathering will be Dennis Prager. Stephens told me he is aware that some in the Jewish community are suspicious of CUFI, but he said he would like the community to be aware that he and like-thinking Christians believe they have a theological imperative to financially support Israel. "If you have received spiritual things, give of your material things to them," he paraphrased the apostle, Paul, from Christian Scriptures.It is assumed that most of the people who will be in attendance at 7 p.m. in the Golden Ballroom of the Town & Country Hotel Sunday, September 13, will be Stephens' fellow Christians, but the organized Jewish community is also participating in the dinner, Stephens said. All the money raised that night will be donated to the United Jewish Federation in support of its efforts to help underwrite a rocket-proof educational complex in Sha'ar Hanegev, UJF's Israeli partnership region which is located right next to Gaza. Stephens said the receipts will be counted by a combined team from CUFI and the United Jewish Federation, and a check for 100 percent of the proceeds will be written to UJF that very evening. ... (Read more)

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Congregation Beth Israel--Hebrew language and Jewish culture—Dr. Al Ray teaches a course in Hebrew literacy and Jewish culture on eight Sundays from today through December 13 at Congregation Beth Israel, 9001 Towne Centre Drive. Fee: $60 members, $90 nonmembers. Information at (858) 535-1111 or via the congregation's website, www.cbisd.org



Hatikvah Hadassah Study Group
—Author night—Author Laurel Corona (right)—will be featured speaker at the next study session of the Hatikvah Hadassah Study Group  at the home of Joan Yelles at 10 a.m., Sunday,  September 13. For information and directions, call Joan at (619) 562-0761.
Corona has combined her love of writing and teaching for more than three decades. She has taught in the San Diego area since 1975, and is currently a professor of Humanities at San Diego City College as well as a regular contributor to San Diego Jewish World. She began her career as a published author in 1999 with a book on Kenya for Lucent Books, and went on to write seventeen Young Adult titles for that company before turning her attention to books for adults. In 2008 she had award-winning debuts with major publishers in both fiction and non-fiction.  The Four Seasons: A Novel of Vivaldi’s Venice was one of the first books published by Hyperion Books' VOICE imprint, established to provide high quality books of interest to women. It has already been translated into French, German, Spanish, Portuguese,
 Romanian, and Turkish. The Four Seasons is in paperback and available at all the online  merchants, new and used, plus it appears to be in stock at most Borders and Barnes & Noble stores in the area.

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Jewish Family Service/ Congregation Beth Israel/ Congregation Beth El ~ Mindful Meditation~ Sylvia Boorstein, who practices “mindful meditation” and is the author of  That’s Funny, You Don’t Look Buddhist: On Being a Faithful Jew and a Passionate Buddhist, will deliver three lectures Saturday and  Sunday, Sept. 12-13,  under Jewish Family Service auspices.  The first from 1:30 p.m. to 4: 30 pm., Saturday, Sept. 12, will explore meditative practices of forgiveness and reconciliation, at Congregation Beth Israel, 9001 Towne Centre Drive in San Diego.  That evening there will be a reception and havdalah at 7 p.m. following a teaching and selichot service at 8 p.m. featuring Boorsteen. The scene will switch on Sunday to Congregation Beth El at 8660 Gilman Drive in La Jolla, when Boorsteen leads a 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. mini-retreat focusing on “mindfulness meditation, the act of seeing things the way they are and not as we imagine them to be,” according to the JFS announcement.  “Special emphasis on learning how to resolve old difficulties, create new intentions and develop self-awareness.”   A kosher vegetarian lunch will be served. Open to people of all faiths, the Saturday events cost $30; the Sunday mini-retreat $60, and the price for people attending all events is $85.   Registration may be accomplished online at www.jfssd.org
Preceding based on material provided by Jewish Family Service

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La Jolla Landmark Theatres—Play The Game screening— (Story by Sara Appel-Lennon):The San Diego Jewish Film Festival recently previewed Play the Game, written and directed by Marc Fienberg. The movie is based on Fienberg’s late grandfather, Joe Ward, a former La Mesa widower who had been married for 54 years to the same woman.Ward kept active and drove a car well into his 90s. He exercised regularly and bragged about his leg bench pressing abilities.Ward, better known as Papa Joe, served as the family comedian. He was of average height with a pot belly that he covered by wearing his pants almost up to his chest. Ward, like George Burns, liked to have fun and make people laugh. He was 89 when Fienberg wrote the script, which brought him to tears when he attended the script reading.Ward will be portrayed by Andy Griffith who starred in TV's Andy Griffith Show, and in Matlock, which, fittingly, was Ward’s favorite TV show. His heart-throb will be performed by Doris Roberts, who won five Emmy Awards for her role as Raymond’s mom on the nine year TV series, Everybody Loves Raymond. Roberts recently performed as Mrs. Darnell in Unusual Acts of Devotion at the La Jolla Playhouse.Ward’s girlfriend Edna will be acted by Liz Sheridan who played Jerry’s mom, Helen Seinfeld, in the Jerry Seinfeld TV show.Both Paul Campbell and Marla Sokoloff auditioned for the parts. Campbell played David, Joe’s grandson. He previously played the role of Billy Keikeya in Battlestar Galactica. Sokoloff played Julie, Rose’s granddaughter. She also acted as Lucy Hatcher in the TV series The Practice. Fienberg kidded that he got the actors the same way anyone gets actors in Hollywood, by sleeping with them. He said that Andy Griffith agreed to the part because he had a bedroom scene and he didn’t die at the end. Fienberg explained that both Griffith and Roberts liked the roles since they lead vibrant lives off stage, and wanted to show their vibrancy on screen. The movie begins when David visits his grandfather, Joe. David realizes that Joe hasn’t talked to anyone at the retirement home for the past two years since his wife died. Joe talks about giving up on life. David convinces Joe it’s time to meet women. He proceeds to teach his grand-father his own six steps to dating. The movie unfolds as David and Joe get back in the dating game and learn from each other along the way. Fienberg told the audience that he originally met his current wife in high school. He pursued her for twelve years using his tricks of the dating trade. Seven months after he stopped playing games, he and his wife became engaged. Two years ago they both quit their jobs in Chicago and moved to Los Angeles for Play the Game. Like their courtship the movie took twelve years. I laughed several times during this film. There are anecdotes of wisdom sandwiched with the humor. One example is when David asks Joe what kind of woman he wants to meet. Joe says that companionship is the real McCoy. He explains that you know if she’s the one when you
meet her or when you lose her. She’s a woman whose hand you want to hold.The film is a light romantic comedy which shows a senior’s slice of life. The film could bring a smile to your face and a realization that seniors need to feel loved and appreciated too.Play the Game will be screened on Friday September 11th-Thursday, September 17 in La Jolla at La Jolla Landmark Theatres, 8879 Villa La Jolla Drive, La Jolla 92037
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Lawrence Family JCC—Art exhibit—The Gotthelf Art Gallery, part of the San Diego Center for Jewish Culture at the Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center, JACOBS FAMILY CAMPUS, is pleased to announce the new exhibition Like Water on Rock: Exhibit by the Jewish Women Artists’ Network, running September 10, 2009 – October 30, 2009. Art is for sale, with all proceeds benefiting the artists and the Gotthelf Art Gallery. The title of this exhibit relates the phenomenon of the soft continuous drip of water that eventually erodes a hard rock to personal, familial, communal or global challenge and change. The poetry and image of Like Water on Rock provoke a variety of responses and suggests a relationship between time, the human process, the persistence of change and the many layers of meaning that speak to each artist in her own way Dr. Barbara Gilbert, Senior Curator Emerita of The Skirball Cultural Center, Los Angeles, selected the work for this exhibition. Dr Gilbert points out the great diversity in this exhibition as well as the wide range of personal expression: “Beginning in the nineteen-sixties when artists in greater numbers began to explore the potential of their Jewish heritage, most efforts were identity-based. Like Water on Rock provides an opportunity for artists to transcend this earlier approach, challenging them to think expansively and take ideas and values inherent to Jewish tradition, adapting them to concerns of the larger society.” The participating artists are: Linda Arreola, Ruth Askren, Madeleine Avirov, Helene Aylon, Carol Buchman, Emily Corbato, Anne Doris-Eisner, Harriet Finck, Karen Frostig, Teresa Gale, Sari Gilbert-Batchelor, Fay Grajower, Beth Haber, Katherine Janus Kahn, Rachel Kanter, Julie Klaper, Wendy Sue Lamm, Elaine Langerman, Aline Mare, Freyda Miller, Priscilla Otani, Margaret Parker, Roxanne Phillips, Cindy Rinne, Launa D. Romoff, Dawn Saks, Masha Schweitzer, Margaret Silverman, Simone Soltan and Marian Yap.Thirty artists from across the United States were selected to comprise this exhibit. "To have thirty talented Jewish women artists exploring the theme of change is exciting to see, "says Randy Savarese, Gotthelf Art Gallery Committee Chair. "We are excited to give these artists a platform to exhibit their diverse work and the San Diego community an opportunity share art from around the country." The Jewish Women Artist’s Network is a special interest group within the National Women’s Caucus for Art (WCA) and is the only organization of professional Jewish women artists in the United States. The Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center, JACOBS FAMILY CAMPUS, is located at 4126 Executive Drive, La Jolla. Gallery hours are Sunday-Friday, 9 a.m.—5 p.m. For more information about the Gotthelf Art Gallery and other programs of the San Diego Center for Jewish Culture, visit the web site at www.sdcjc.org or call (858) 457-3030.

Lawrence Family JCC--Chamber music—Musicians bring your instruments after reserving a chair with Ted Parker at (858) 792-2492.

Nefesh B'Nefesh—Jewish blogging—In response to the overwhelming interest in last year’s event, Nefesh B'Nefesh (an organization dedicated to revitalizing Aliyah from North America and the UK, in cooperation with the Jewish Agency and the government of Israel) is hosting the second International Jewish Bloggers Convention at Beit Avi Chai in Jerusalem on Sunday, September 13.This year’s convention, which is powered by Webads, will focus on ‘Uniting the Jewish Community through Social Media’ and will feature Senior Adviser to the Prime Minister of Israel Mr. Ron Dermer as keynote speaker. The event will be broadcasted live on the web to thousands of Jewish bloggers worldwide. The convention will include workshops on various topics on blogging, twitter and social media tools; panel discussions on Aliyah and Social Media; and a comedy performance by renowned humorous blogger Benji Lovitt. “The tremendous response to last year’s convention showed us that there was a huge demand for this kind of event” noted Danny Oberman, Nefesh B’Nefesh’s Executive VP of Israel Operations. “This is a great opportunity to enhance our relationship with the blogging and twittering community, and enhance the presence of Aliyah in that media.” To register visit www.jbloggers.org To watch the live webcast visit: www.nbn.org.il/bloggers

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Oceanside Museum of ArtFabric of Survival: The Art of Esther Nisenthal Krinitz— Esther Nisenthal Krinitz was a teenager in rural Poland when the Nazis invaded her quiet village, changing her life forever. Separated from their family, young Esther and her sister survived the Holocaust pretending to be Polish Catholics, eventually coming to America after the war. Several programs are planned throughout the exhibition that celebrate Jewish culture and honor Holocaust memories. In New York, Esther continued the sewing and embroidery she learned as a child. She was an avid storyteller and throughout their lives, shared with her daughters the story of her harrowing days as a youth in Nazi occupied Poland. A gifted seamstress, Esther decided, at age 50, to tell her story in cloth, stitching thirty-six beautiful and poignant appliqué and embroidered panels which comprise the exhibition, Fabric of Survival: The Art of Esther Nisenthal Krinitz. It will be shown through October 25, except Mondays. Tuesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.to 4 p.m., Sundays 1 p.m.-4 p.m. For more information call the museum at (760) 435-3720, or visit its website at www.oma-online.org

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Ohr Shalom Synagogue—Reading with Rabbi—Rabbi Scott Meltzer conducts a dicussion on Simon Wiesenthal's The Sunflower: On the Possibilities and Limits of Forgiveness,
at 9:30 a.m. at 2512 Third Avenue, San Diego. More information at (619)-231-1456, or www.ohrshalom.org

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Tifereth Israel Synagogue —Basic Judaism—Rabbi Leonard Rosenthal leads a 34-meeting course, on Sundays through April 25, at 9:30 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. at the synagogue at 6660 Cowles Mountain Blvd. Course helps fulfill requirements for conversion to Judaism. Fee $40 members, $150 non-members. Information: (619) 697-6001, or via website www.tiferethisrael.com

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Tifereth Israel Synagogue--Recycling--In partnership with One Earth Recycling, Tifereth Israel will accept electronic scrap material free of charge, including televisions, computers, cell phones, stereos, and printers from 8:45 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., Sunday, September 13. One Earth Recycling guarantees data destruction/identity security in the cases of storage devices like hard drives and mobile phones. The organization will also make sure that 100% of the material received is spared from the waste stream.Tifereth Israel will also accept clean and dry plastic, aluminum, and glass containers including non-CRV containers such as wine bottles, milk bottles, aluminum cat food cans, and food jars.Tifereth Israel Synagogue will participate in revenues generated by this event. The congregation extends a very special thank you to Josh Turchin and his crew at One Earth Recycling. More information from the synagogue at (619) 697-6001, or via its website at www.tiferethisrael.com





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