Kolot Mayim Reform Temple
3636 Shelbourne St. Victoria, BC, Canada

Here is a taste of what you might hear at our upcoming May 2nd lecture, Worship with Joy with Len Udow, musician and Cantorial Soloist from Winnipeg. He will weave musical performance into his talk. Rabbi Lynn describes his voice as "like velvet". Register now at https://zoom.us//regi/tJYvdu-rrzgoGNficqIleqD1g8nPFYbDmj7O https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1sncsp

Saturday, April 24, 5:30 pm PST on Zoom. For information on registration visit this link: https://www.jewishwinnipeg.org//temple-shalom-rabbi-allans "The Rebel and the Rabbi: Bob Dylan Bringing it Back Home" There is a true story obout Bob Dylan going back to the shul where he had his Bar Mitzvah (an oral story in his wife's family)...and a not comfortable conversation that ensued. This play imagines that meeting (done, because of the times, on Zoom). The play itself is 25-30 minutes, then interviews with the participants and author and audience questions, then a 30 minute "Bob Dylan Hootenany."

JOURNEYS IN JEWISH MUSIC - Six Conversations Jewish Music tells the story of diverse times and places from Jerusalem's Temple to the wider Middle East, then Spain and Eastern Europe. It is rich with the flavours of these cultures. In a series of six conversations moderated by Choir Co-director Carol Sokoloff, artists and leaders share information and music on various stations of this remarkable journey. All are welcome to take part (at no charge) in these fascinating sessions... which will include a time for questions. To register for one or all of these sessions press the email button on this page. Here is the itinerary: Sunday, April 25 - 7:30 pm (PDT) Biblical Cantillation and Modes of Prayer with Moshe Denburg of Tzimmes (www.tzimmes.net) Sunday, May 9 - 7:30 pm (PDT) Songs of Sefarad with Canada's renowned Sephardic music specialist Dr. Judith Cohen of York University (www.judithcohen.ca) Sunday, May 23 - 7:30 pm (PDT) Call from the East: The Mizrahi Tradition with Gary Cohen and Amber Woods of Kouskous (www.kouskousmusic.com) Sunday, May 30 - 7:30 pm (PDT) Niggunim: Chassidic Meditative Melodies with Rabbi Matt Ponak of Congregation Emmanuel (Rabbi Matthew Ponak) Sunday, June 6 - 7:30 pm (PDT) Sing a New Song to G!d: New Prayer Compositions with Rabbi Hanna Tiferet Siegel (www.hannatiferet.com) Sunday, June 20 - 7:30 pm (PDT) The Way of the Klezmer: Klezmer and Yiddish Song, with Moshe Denburg of Tzimmes (www.tzimmes.net) The Victoria Jewish Community Choir acknowledges the support of the Jewish Federation of Victoria and Vancouver Island in making this program possible. Please share this information with friends. To register and receive a Zoom link email: [email protected] See more

Exposure of Israeli Culture Panel Discussion: Welcome to Theatre-Land: Israel's Theatrical Scene Sunday, April 11, 2021 at 2:00 PM Sponsored by Israel Consulat...e General Toronto and Western Canada https://www.hgjewishtheatre.com/2020-2021-ExposureofIsraliC #IsrealiCulture #theatre #scene #Israel #jewishtheatre #Jewish

THURSDAY, APRIL 8, 3:30 pm: Please join the Honourable John Horgan, Premier of BC, for a Holocaust Memorial Day service live streamed from the BC Legislature in Victoria. Organized in partnership with the Vancouver Holocaust Education Centre (VHEC) and the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) Pacific Region. Watch online here: youtu.be/lyfLKQ0XmvU

Congregation Emanu-El’s Avodah Social Action Group invites you to participate in a powerful workshop offered for our congregation by The Existence Project on Tuesday, April 27, 2021 from 6-8 pm. The "project" uses storytelling to connect housed and unhoused people: we will hear Serafina’s story as she shares her journey with us, and will witness her joy as she moves towards understanding and positive change. Participants in this workshop will leave with: Understanding and com...passion for the homeless experience Baseline knowledge of what is working and what is not An opportunity to reflect on what needs to change A way forward for individuals and the group they represent to act When supporting this workshop, Rabbi Harry wrote, It is important for us to begin highlighting issues of local poverty Avodah believes this workshop can serve as a catalyst to looking more closely at the issues of poverty and homelessness. Please visit The Existence Project website to learn more. See more

The Victoria Shoah Project invites you to attend a Virtual Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day) service on Sunday April 11, 2021 at 11 am. Those who perished in the Holocaust will be remembered as real individuals, as we also honour the strength and resilience of survivors.

This just in from the VIJFF... Planning is now underway for the 7th annual Victoria International Jewish Film Festival. Based on the success of the 2020 virtual film festival, and assuming Covid will still be with us, the VIJFF will be continuing with our virtual cinema in 2021.... In the Spring, we will present a mini comedy Jewish film festival, with a special selection of feel-good films. The mini festival will open with an interactive, live-streamed comedy event you won’t want to miss. In the Fall, the main VIJFF festival will continue our showcasing of a broad range of Jewish-themed films from around the world. The festival’s innovative programming will also feature panel discussions and Q&A sessions with filmmakers and others. Should COVID restrictions change, and we consider it to be safe, holding in-person film events will be among options explored. We hope to see everyone at this year’s VIJFF! More information coming soon

In case you missed Moshe Denburg's talk yesterday on Jewish Music as an Intercultural Bridge, here is a recording: https://kolotmayimreformtemple.com/jewish-music-as-an-inte/

Our February lecture: Moshe Denburg explores the global tributaries of Jewish music through live vocals and guitar and recordings of his famous Vancouver-based band, Tzimmes. As that name suggests, the music you will learn about and hear is a sweet stew that reflects our guest’s worldwide travels, especially his studies in Israel, India and Japan. Moshe is committed to presenting Jewish Music in its many styles and languages incorporating European Klezmer, Mid-Eastern Seph...ardi, and North American Folk influences in Hebrew, Yiddish, Ladino, and English. Hailing from a well-known Montreal rabbinical family, Moshe Denburg moved to the West Coast in 1982. He started Tzimmes in 1986 after studying composition at the University of Victoria. He also founded the Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra (VICO) and has written many large scale compositions that bring together the instrumental and musical resources of many cultures.

He is a man of many facets. With degrees from York and Simon Fraser in tow at the time (and, shortly afterwards, a PhD in sociology from the University of Washington), Devor began work at UVic in 1989 as an associate professor of sociology. He would later take positions as the first associate dean of social sciences, later the dean of graduate studies, and now serves as the Chair in Transgender Studies.

You don’t want to miss this Sunday’s (February 7, 11am) lecture/performance with Moshe Denburg. Our Adult Education team had an opportunity to meet with Moshe this morning to firm up some details for Sunday and now we can’t wait for more words and music from this very talented speaker and artist. Educational and entertaining! How can you miss if you follow this registration link: https://zoom.us//regi/tJwvcOmoqjIsGdRL35PsGg-2tgsejlvurxbK

A reminder of our upcoming lecture on March 7, 11 am: Is There Such a Thing As Canadian Jewish Art? https://kolotmayimreformtemple.com//is-there-such-a-thing/

From Hillel BC, tomorrow, January 27, at 1 pm.

Zooming through the ganze Megillah...

Bma Productions invites you to a reading of a captivating new play by Karen Fix Curry about a remarkable woman, The Wendy Chronicles, directed by Zelda Dean with Christine Upright performing as Wendy Wasserstein. The live performance will be available on Zoom on Sunday, March 7 at 2 pm PST and Wednesday, March 10 at 7 pm PST. The play lasts for about an hour. You are welcome to stay & chat with Karen, Zelda and Christine following the reading.

Free classes at My Jewish Learning.

A sample of Moshe Denburg's work. Moshe will be speaking at the Kolot Mayim Lecture Series on February 7 at 11 am. To register for this talk, please follow this link: https://zoom.us//regi/tJwvcOmoqjIsGdRL35PsGg-2tgsejlvurxbK

Coming up first Sunday of December!!

We now have the Zoom link to our December 6, 11 am lecture. Please share with anyone you think may be interested in attending. Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us//tZwoduitrDwqGdU2oxn6uWZtKLo4vzZJP Acclaimed local author, translator and editor Jonathan Orr-Stav will offer a lecture on Arabic Hebrew: How Modern Israelis Really Speak on Sunday, Dec. 6 at 11 am. Orr-Stav, a compelling speaker who blends humour with his extensive knowledge of the Hebrew language will disc...uss the historyand likely futureof Arabic among Hebrew speakers in Israel. Listeners, he promises, will learn everything they want to know about modern spoken Hebrew (but won’t get from Hebrew textbooks), about the Thirteen Tribes of modern Israel, and why Israelis hardly ever greet each other by saying, Shalom! The son and grandson of noted Israeli translators and editors, Orr-Stav maintains the family tradition. He is the author of Aleph Through the Looking Glass (Learn to Write the Hebrew Script) (Yale University Press), lauded for making the Hebrew script more accessible to non-Hebrew speakers. The author of a best-selling series of books on computer-aided-design, and a former technical writer in the Israeli high-tech sector, Orr-Stav has an abiding passion for facilitating clear and compelling communication of ideas in writing, for the history of the Hebrew script, and for computer applications in Hebrew. Raised in Israel, London, and New York, he has lived with his family in Victoria since 2002. Kolot Mayim Reform Temple is offering a six-part series of speakers on the theme of Building Bridges: Language, song and story. All talks will be held by Zoom from 11:00 AM -12:15 PM on the first Sunday of each month from November to May (excluding April). Kolot Mayim has been active for 20 years and this is the third year offering this speaker series. More information and registration may be found at the Kolot Mayim website at https://kolotmayimreformtemple.com/

Kafka, Nachman, Kabbalah and Neuroses Sunday, November 15, 2020 at 7:00 pm Congregation Emanu-El Synagogue Adult Education Team invites you to the first of our 2020/21 one-of sessions on Sunday, November 15, 2020 at 7 pm featuring a discussion of Kafka, Nachman, Kabbalah and Neuroses by Lee Henderson, an Associate Professor of Writing at the University of Victoria.... Lee will discuss Franz Kafka, his writing, his life, and the influence of Jewish mysticism and kabbalah on his themes and style, and in particular, Kafka’s familiarity with the great asidic storyteller from a century earlier, Rabbi Nachman. Gershon Scholem was first to identify the common ground between Kafka’s stories and Nachman’s. And there are parallels between their lives, too, worth observing. Nachman, the great spiritualist. Kafka, the great existentialist. They had much in common. The presentation will be on Zoom. For information and the zoom link please contact [email protected].

Live this Sunday! Leading composers perform original works being honored for advancing gender-inclusion in Jewish song and musical liturgy. HER HOLY NAMES: A Groundbreaking Concert of Jewish Music is possibly the first concert on this divine theme ever. Over 55 feminine and other alternative divine names are among the songs and prayers from 22 composers/performers across 4 decades and 50 years of Jewish feminist music!

Who, What, Where, When and Why: Judaism 101 These classes are designed to provide very basic information about the practices, rituals, history and values of Jews and Judaism. The three-week overview introduces some of the basic concepts that will be discussed in greater depth in subsequent classes. The sequential courses are primarily designed for non-Jews who are interested in Judaism because of inter-family connections or personal interest, although Jews are certainly welco...me to join the classes. There is a persistent and continuing interest in Judaism in the larger non-Jewish world, and as rabbi of a small Reform kehillah, I take our obligation to bring greater understanding of who we are into that world very seriously. The classes will be offered online on Zoom to allow for geographical and personal accessibility. Classes begin with three overview classes in December and then continue January through May. Weekly classes will be held Sunday mornings from 10-12 noon. Cost is $300. Please contact Kolot Mayim Reform Temple if you interested in registering for these classes: [email protected] Rabbi Lynn Greenhough is the instructor.