This Week at Yavneh

In this week's update:

• Erev Christmas Dinner at Peking Garden
  
• Year-end donations
  
• Upcoming worship services
  
• Rabbi Lynn Claire Feinberg
  
• On the Yavneh calendar
  
• In the community
  

 
Erev Christmas Dinner
Yavneh “Erev Christmas” Dinner Social, Peking Garden (Colony Shopping Center, corner of Millbrook and Six Forks), Wednesday, December 24, 6:30 pm. Fulfill the mitzvah of eating Chinese food at Christmas time with a delicious meal in a private room with lively conversation. Plus a two-screen movie theater in the shopping center to enjoy before the meal. What’s not to like?  RSVP by 5:00 pm, Tuesday, December 23 to rabbi@yavneh-raleigh.org.

Year-end donations
Please remember Yavneh when it comes time to make your end-of-the year donations. Send checks to Yavneh at 4030 Wake Forest Road, Suite 300, Raleigh, NC 27609 or donate online here. 

Upcoming worship services

• Kabbalat Shabbat, Friday, January 2, 7:45 pm, “Settling in to Exile: at Ease in Egypt.”
  
• Shabbat morning worship, Saturday, January 10, 10:30 am.  Spiritual teacher Rinah Rachel Galper will offer a d’var Torah on the opening portion of the book of Exodus, “Sh’mot.”
  

Please remember to bring donations for the Food Basket or school supplies for Wilburn Elementary when you attend services.  NOTE - Wilburn is currently well-stocked with clothing supplies and does not need any more at this time. THANK YOU!

Rabbi Lynn Claire Feinberg
Mark your calendar now - on Saturday, January 24th, services will be led by Renewal Rabbi Lynn Claire Feinberg, the first (and only) female rabbi in Norway. Afterwards, join the Rabbi for lunch and a broad ranging discussion.  Born in Oslo, Rabbi Feinberg is the founder and spiritual leader of Havurat Kol haLev, the first Jewish Renewal havurah in Oslo. She is also a historian of religion, specializing in women and Judaism. (If you're interested in sponsoring Saturday's lunch, contact Lewis.)  

Also On the Yavneh calendar in January

• Yavneh Men's Spirituality Group meets Wednesday evening, January 7, 7:30 - 9:00 pm. Contact Lewis Copulsky for information/RSVP.
  
• Mitzvah Study Group meets January 21, 7:30 - 9:00 pm. Contact Lewis Copulsky for information/RSVP.
  
• Reb Raachel to offer OLLI course at NCSU: “How Judaism Reads Scripture.”  If you’re interested in how sacred text is read and understood within the Jewish tradition, these sessions will provide you with an appreciation of Hebrew scripture on its own terms, rather than through the lens of largely Christian Western culture.  Questions addressed include: What is Jewish scripture? How do Jews read and interpret biblical text? What is the range of interpretive freedom?  Who has authority to determine meaning? What are some of the principles governing how ethical and imaginative lessons are drawn from the text? How do we continue the tradition of wrestling with the words begun thousands of years ago? We will explore these questions in an informal, no-prerequisite, interactive learning environment. Course #: LLI-1-048-001; six sessions: 3:00 - 4:30 pm; Jan. 21, 28, Feb. 4, 11, 18, 25; Limit: 58 Room: 11/12 Fee: $50. Registration information here.
  

Learn more about these and other Yavneh programs here.
 
In the community

• Jewish Cultural Festival - presented by The Jewish Federation of Raleigh-Cary, Beth Shalom, Chabad of Cary & The Town of Cary, Monday, December 22 4:30-8:00 pm (THAT'S TODAY) at Cary Arts Center. Join us to celebrate Jewish culture! Come out to Cary and enjoy traditional Jewish and Kosher foods, Jewish crafts and family friendly entertainment including a Camp JCC style sing-a-long, a Klezmer band, performances by the Beth Shalom choir and puppet shows.  The festival will be kicked off by the lighting of the a 9 foot menorah!   We will also be a collecting hats and gloves to be donated to Note in the Pocket. For more information contact The Jewish Federation of Raleigh-Cary at 919-676-2200.
  

Exciting programs from Melton School of Adult Jewish Learning, open to the community (click on title for flyer):

• The Real Surprising Talmud, a course taught by Rabbi Ariel Edery, starts January 7th.
  
• Award winning Israeli film "Fill the Void" on January 25th.
  
• The film "Six Days in June: The War that Redefined the Middle East" on February 15th.
  

Coming up at the Raleigh-Cary JCC (12804 Norwood Road, Raleigh) in January:

• The Maccabiah Movement, Zionism and the Jewish Identity of Israel. Rabbi Daniel Greyber of Beth El Synagogue, Durham will speak on Wednesday, January 14th. Middle Eastern lunch provided by Nurse Care of NC. Lunch at 12:00 pm, speaker 12:45 pm .
  
• The documentary film "Dancing in Jaffa" on Sunday January 11, 2 pm.
  
• Scott Blumenthal will lead a discussion of his novel, The Kiss on Monday, January 5, at 12:30 pm.