The OZ Monthly Book Club meets monthly and welcomes adult readers. Book selections are determined by the group, with topics that are related to Jewish themes and concepts. Join these casual discussions about the book.

The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker

Chava is a golem, a creature made of clay, brought to life by a disgraced rabbi who dabbles in dark Kabbalistic magic, created to be the wife of a man who dies at sea on the voyage from Poland. Chava is unmoored and adrift as the ship arrives in New York harbor in 1899.

Ahmad is a jinni, a being of fire born in the ancient Syrian desert, trapped in an old copper flask, and released in New York City, though still not entirely free.

Ahmad and Chava become unlikely friends and soul mates with a mystical connection. Marvelous and compulsively readable, Helene Wecker’s debut novel The Golem and the Jinni weaves strands of Yiddish and Middle Eastern literature, historical fiction and magical fable, into a wondrously inventive and unforgettable tale.

Burlington Clergy are working together to offer an interfaith book group to build community and reflect on ways to respond to crisis with moral and faith-full clarity.

The Book: Nonviolence: The History of a Dangerous Idea by Mark Kurlansky

Adult discussion led by Peggy Kasden

Join with R’ Ariel in a weekly class and discussion on Jewish belief– topics will include G-d, revelation, the covenant, interfaith relations, social justice, and living a life of Torah. We welcome all to join and delve into these topics (and more), all sources in English and no background needed!

Join Rabbi David Edleson for an evening exploring how Israel is processing the events of the last two years through the lens of popular music and music videos. 

On Zoom Only.

Register Here

In this session, co-hosted with ADL, we will explore age-appropriate and practical ways to engage tween and teen grandchildren in meaningful conversations about the realities of antisemitism today. 

We will include: 

• How grandparents can be their adult children’s partners in supporting grandchildren who experience or witness antisemitism. 

• Scenarios and perspective-taking to practice talking to grandchildren about antisemitism. 

• Shared personal experiences of confronting antisemitism. 

Please fill out the this form and you will receive the Zoom Join link in the Confirmation page and email after you register.

Join JCOGS for a meaningful discussion of "Just Mercy," by Bryan Stevenson, led by Rabbi David alongside community members who took part in an interfaith civil rights trip

Info

Come learn about the Druze and what they experienced last August in Syria when pogrom-like massacres of Druze villages occurred in the area know as Sweida.    

The Druze are heirs to a fascinating religious and cultural tradition.  They trace their close connection to the Jewish people all the way back to Jethro, Moses' father-in-law and mentor.  In modern times, the Druze have been an integral part of Israeli society, standing with Jews during Arab violence in pre-state Palestine and then as leaders in the Israeli Defense Forces. Most recently, Israeli has stood as a strong ally with the Druze of Syria, intervening to reduce the violence against them. 

Ashraf Alamantouri is a Syrian Druze from Sweida who relocated to Vermont and now works in Higher Education.  His extended family experienced the recent attacks in Sweida and Mr. Alamantouri will be sharing those experiences with us.  He will also answer some of our questions about the Druze tradition.  

This is rare opportunity to hear directly from a local Druze about recent events in Syria and Israel's role in defending this religious minority against Islamist militias.  

In Person Only.

Join with R’ Ariel in a weekly class and discussion on Jewish belief– topics will include G-d, revelation, the covenant, interfaith relations, social justice, and living a life of Torah. We welcome all to join and delve into these topics (and more), all sources in English and no background needed!

The Chittenden Asylum Seekers Assistance Network (CASAN) is a volunteer group that welcomes people seeking asylum who are in our local communities.

Lunch and learn about the challenges these new neighbors of ours face, and how you can help.

The award-winning novel from Alan Gratz tells the timely and timeless story of three different kids seeking refuge.

As powerful and poignant as it is action-packed and page-turning, this highly acclaimed novel was on the New York Times bestseller list for more than four years and continues to change readers' lives with its meaningful takes on survival, courage, and the quest for home.

The OZ Book Club meets monthly and welcomes adult readers. Book selections are determined by the group, with topics that are related to Jewish themes and concepts. Join these casual discussions about the book.

All Jewish identified adults to explore our feelings and reactions to the tensions in Israel/ Palestine today. We will use Jewish values, and Jewish and Palestinian writings as a basis for holding courageous conversations together. Coffee and goodies included.

These 5 conversations will build on each other. Come to as many as you can. In person at Ohavi Zedek, monthly on Sunday mornings. Please register so we can send you materials ahead of each session.

Sundays from 9:15 – 11:00 in the OZ Sanctuary & Social Hall

Click to Register

Creating Spiritual Journeys workshop will be focusing on Spiritually Navigating Uncertainty. In our text study, we will explore how the Jewish calendar is a living system, shaped by human responsibility. 

We’re looking forward to being together! The next session will be March 22 on Jewish Prayer: Journeys of the Heart and Soul.

Please click this link to register for this class. Please let me know if you are planning to attend.

Musical Shabbat and special talk by Rabbi Michael Cohen. After the service, stay for a catered oneg (RSVP below) and Q&A with Rabbi Cohen.

6-7:15pm Musical Shabbat Service with special talk by Rabbi Michael Cohen

7:15-8:30pm Catered Oneg Dinner and Q&A with Rabbi Michael Cohen. Menu highlights: Rubbed Salmon and Winter Salads

30 years ago the doors of the Arava Institute opend on Kibbutz Ketura. Since then it has brought together Israelis (Jews & Arabs), Palestinians, Jordanians, Moroccans and other college age students from around the world to study and live together.

Register by January 19

All Jewish identified adults to explore our feelings and reactions to the tensions in Israel/ Palestine today. We will use Jewish values, and Jewish and Palestinian writings as a basis for holding courageous conversations together. Coffee and goodies included.

These 5 conversations will build on each other. Come to as many as you can. In person at Ohavi Zedek, monthly on Sunday mornings. Please register so we can send you materials ahead of each session.

Sundays from 9:15 – 11:00 in the OZ Sanctuary & Social Hall

Click to Register

Join Rabbi Tobie Weisman of YFL Creating Soulful Journeys in Cultivating Spiritual Attunement is the third of 8 monthly sessions, we will explore how Torah (Jewish wisdom) frames time as a sacred dimension of Jewish life, engaging classical and modern sources to examine how days, seasons, and cycles shape consciousness, community, and covenant. Together we will consider how marking time with awareness can nurture balance, resilience, and joy. You can sign up for all 8 sessions or just one at a time.

Join CBE for a day of Shabbat learning and discussion on the history, current crisis and hope for the future of Israel/Palestine with CBE Scholar-in-Residence, Jared Goldfarb. Two sessions with a break for brunch. Learn more and register by Dec. 11.

Course participants will explore this deeply troubling but deeply fascinating history of American antisemitism, paying particular attention to the present rise of antisemitism and trying to make historical sense of this moment. Even the antisemitism seen today from those who would decry Israel as an illegitimate state and decry Jews as imperial colonialists that should be shunned, even this idea has its own history which we will explore.

Besides an exploration of history, this course will also be an opportunity to share and reflect on our present experiences in what feels like an old-new moment in America’s relationship with Jews and Judaism.

• JCOGS members receive a discounted cost for this course: $90. Regular: $180. In addition, financial aid is available and should not be a barrier to participation.

• For Registration please click HERE.

Course participants will explore this deeply troubling but deeply fascinating history of American antisemitism, paying particular attention to the present rise of antisemitism and trying to make historical sense of this moment. Even the antisemitism seen today from those who would decry Israel as an illegitimate state and decry Jews as imperial colonialists that should be shunned, even this idea has its own history which we will explore.

Besides an exploration of history, this course will also be an opportunity to share and reflect on our present experiences in what feels like an old-new moment in America’s relationship with Jews and Judaism.

• JCOGS members receive a discounted cost for this course: $90. Regular: $180. In addition, financial aid is available and should not be a barrier to participation.

• For Registration please click HERE.

Following our outdoor “Talmud al Fresco” session, join Rabbi David for an evening of text, food, and conversation inspired by The Boy on the Door on the Ox: An Unusual Spiritual Journey Through the Strangest Jewish Texts. Together, we’ll taste some of the most surprising, puzzling, and playful passages in Jewish tradition—stories that stretch the imagination and invite us to see holiness through encounters with text. Dinner will be provided.