NEWSLETTER 
Vol. 7, No. 15
April 12th, 2018

Saturday, April 14th @ 9 am
Kehilla Shalom San Miguel de Allende's
Conservative Shabbat Shacharit Service

Parashat Sh'mini
Shabbat Mevarchim
Lev. Chapters 9-11

Our parashah begins with the last day of the consecration sacrifices marking the inauguration of the Tabernacle. On this, the eighth day (sh'mini in Hebrew) disaster befalls 2 of Aaron's sons, who take it upon themselves to bring additional, un-required incense offerings: they are consumed by heavenly fire. Aaron and his remaining sons must continue with the Priestly Service despite this tragedy, and Moses is upset that they didn't eat their part of offerings (allotted to the Kohanim), even though they were in deep mourning. Moses seems to be saying "The show must go on!", while Aaron answers something to the effect that "surely God would understand that we can't eat at a time like this". Rules are rules, but exceptions must be made in times of emergency. Yeah, I get that, and at the end of the chapter, even Moses approves .Chapter 11  deals with the laws of kashrut (since we're talking about eating, I assume.) Details of which animals are kosher, and which animals are forbidden to us, are explained: land animals must have fully-split hooves and be ruminants, sea creatures must have fins and scales, and creepy-crawlies are out. Yes, even free shrimp (it's a joke, lighten up!)

Many modern Jews look upon kashrut as antiquated or unnecessary ("we have the FDA, so the risk of trichinosis is negligible nowadays".) The reasons for the kosher laws are many, however, and health concerns are the least of them (pastrami is certainly no more healthy than a well-cooked pork chop). Most rabbis feel that the kosher laws are chukkim: laws that don't really make logical sense to us, nor do they have to (like not wearing garments made of linen and wool together. We are to follow these laws because God said so; certainly God knows better than we!) Alternatively, we follow these laws because it is our tradition to do so; it is what keeps us a "people apart" from the other nations of the Earth (the Canaanites feasted on baby goat boiled in its mother's milk, so let's not do that.) Moreover, as old saying goes,"You are what you eat": cows, goats, lambs, and chickens are generally docile, while lions and tigers and bears (oh my!) are not. Pigs are domesticated, but are deemed as dirty, eating pretty much anything. Perhaps by ingesting only domesticated/clean creatures we are trying to rid ourselves of literally internalizing predatory, gluttonous, aggressive/killer tendencies. According to the Sefer Chinuch, the harm caused by eating non-kosher animals is not physical, but rather that they impede the heart from attaining the higher values of the soul. Eating more-spiritually-uplifting foods after taking a moment to reflect on and/or thank our Creator for the gifts we are given daily can transform mundane, merely physical sustenance into something holy and special--something kadosh: food for your soul.

Shabbat shalom u-m'vorach!


If you are in SMA during our "slow season" (now through June), please make every effort to join us for our weekly traditional/egalitarian Sabbath morning service--we didn't have a minyan last week and couldn't say Kaddish/Yizkor;a shande for a community of this size! Ten adult Jews are needed by about 10 am, for those who can't make the 'preliminary part' starting at 9 am.
Thank you.
 

Come learn with us! Torah Study / Discussion Groups   Following Saturday Morning Services and Kiddush  approx. 12:15-12:30 pm, (give or take 15 minutes), separate groups in English or Spanish. Volunteers are needed to lead the English-language group.   All are welcome!

Yom Ha-Shoah

Holocaust Memorial Day is commemorated in different ways, and even on different days. The last Board of CHESMA voted to commemorate this solemn event in January ("International Holocaust Remembrance Day"), coinciding with the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz by the Red Army on Jan. 27th, 1945. Many thanks to Gerardo Schwarz who arranged this past January's Holocaust Remembrance Program at the Bellas Artes.

After the creation of the State of Israel, Yom Ha-Shoah was set to occur after Passover, to coincide with the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising (never again will be go quietly into the night!) It is an day of national commemoration in the State of Israel, much like next week's Yom Ha-Zikkaron (Israeli Memorial Day) and the festive Yom Ha-Atz'maut (Israeli Independence Day). 

Kehilla Shalom SMA will include special prayers for these days during its weekly Shabbat morning services.

We don't need to tell you that reading to your children is important. Study after study has shown it impacts a child’s development. Even the mere presence of books in a home increases the level of education they can reach. But finding the right books and making the time to read as a family can be hard. That’s where PJ Library comes in. 

PJ Library sends free Jewish children's books to families across the world every month. We know that something magical happens when parents sit down together to read with their children. PJ Library shares Jewish stories that can help your family talk together about values and traditions that are important to you. 

A program of the Harold Grinspoon Foundation, PJ Library is made possible through partnerships with philanthropists and local Jewish organizations. Families with kids ages 6 months through 8 years old with Judaism as part of their lives, are welcome to sign up. PJ Library welcomes all Jewish families, whatever your background, knowledge, or family make-up, or observance may be.  https://pjlibrary.org/home.aspx 
 

To offer this fine program to the children of members of CHESMA, AC, we need to pay only $50 USD/child/year (the books are free to the children, but the local community must sponsor them along with the PJ Library.)

Yes, we have at least 10 kids in our community, children of the many "new Jews" who have joined with us in past several years, as well as the children of conversion candidates now in the process of formal conversion/return. Finding quality Jewish books for children in Spanish has been quite challenging, until now.

Please sponsor a child (or 2, or more...) by donating to the new "Books for Kids Fund" today! Thank you.
 

January was membership month, and those who have not paid their 2018 dues will no longer be eligible to receive the discounts and other benefits of membership.

To all of you who have already paid your 2018 dues, thank you!
If you have not yet done so, please contact the office at your earliest convenience, or just click below.

Now is the time to get the most out of your membership.
Please support the JC3 by joining or renewing your membership today. We need your financial and moral support to keep going and growing!

Call (415) 185-9191 or email shalomsanmiguel@yahoo.com.mx for more information, or simply click on the button below:
 

KIDDUSH FUND
There has been a long tradition for people to celebrate birthdays, anniversaries and other simchas, as well as to commemorate yahrtzeits, by sponsoring the kiddush luncheon after Saturday morning services. Although some folks enjoy preparing the food themselves to bring, others would prefer to have the goodies catered in. We are fortunate to have a kosher chef, Zajar Campos, now in our community who is willing to prepare a delicious spread for us at a very reasonable cost.

If you would like to sponsor a kiddush or donate to our new Kiddush Fund, please contact the office at (415) 185-9191 or shalomsanmiguel@yahoo.com.mx  to arrange it.

Or, just click on the icon below:

Mi Shebeirach: Prayers for Healing
 

NEWSLETTER 
Vol. 7, No. 14
April 5th, 2018

Friday, April 6th @ 5:30 pm 
       A Special First Friday Live Shabbat Service @ the JC3

Join us for our FIRST FRIDAY – LIVE!  Kabbalat Shabbat service, Friday, April 6 at the JC3. This will be the last First Friday Live celebration for the season.

We begin at 5:30 with a “meet and greet” time with refreshments. The Shabbat service begins at 5:50 p.m. The service is a lively, brief musical Shabbat service. We honor the traditions of Judaism by using  familiar songs and readings. We also include contemporary poetry, songs, stories and other readings. This evening will also include a “Yizkor” or a service of remembrance. 

Services are co-led by Maxine Graboyes and Judith Jenya. Maxine is an experienced Cantorial soloist who led services for 23 years in Vail, Colorado.  She has been a professional singer on Broadway and beyond. She brings grace and enthusiasm to the music. You will want to join in song with Maxine.  

Judith Jenya co-leads the service. Judith is an accomplished inspirational speaker and explorer of many streams of Judaism. Judith takes on the role of darshonit (the person who gives a short meaningful  talk based on the Torah.)  Judith is the former director of a large Reform synagogue in northern California. 

Jordan Saturen will join us as a special musical guest. 

Yizkor services are held four times a year: Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Passover and Shavuot. We renew and strengthen the connection between ourselves and our loved ones as we recite the Yizkor prayers, remembering our loved ones. We will read their names and acknowledge donations to charities given in loved one’s names. It is also customary to light a memorial candle at home to embrace their memory. 

We look forward to sharing this uplifting service with you as we are building a community and creating  a spiritual home for non-traditional Jews and those who may not have participated in other Jewish observances in San Miguel. Come see what the JC3 has to offer and hopefully you will want to become a member of the umbrella organization, the Comunidad Hebrea En San Miguel de Allende (CHESMA, AC) to support our efforts to provide a home away from home for all Jews in our lovely town.

Saturday, April 7th @ 9 am
Kehilla Shalom San Miguel de Allende's
Conservative Shabbat Shacharit Service

Shabbat /EighthDay of Pesach
Deut. 14:22-16:17; Nu. 28:19-25

Please join us for our weekly traditional/egalitarian Sabbath morning service. Although Hebrew is the predominant language of worship, our prayer books have been completely translated and transliterated phonetically into both English and Spanish. Everyone is more than welcome!

Wishing you all a healthy, happy, peaceful, loving, spiritually uplifting and "sweet" Passover!

Come learn with us! Torah Study / Discussion Groups   Following Saturday Morning Services and Kiddush  approx. 12:15-12:30 pm, (give or take 15 minutes), separate groups in English or Spanish. Volunteers are needed to lead the English-language group.   All are welcome!

What is Yizkor?

4 times a year we remember our dearly departed with special prayers called the Yizkor service: on Yom Kippur and the last days of the 3 "pilgrimage festivals" (Passover, Shavuot and Sukkot). The service is short and solemn, often with a few appropriate psalms, and then the actual Yizkor prayer.
The following example is for a parent; the words differ somewhat for a child or spouse:
May God remember the soul of my mother/father who has gone to his/her eternal home. In loving testimony to her/his life I pledge charity to help perpetuate ideals important to him/her. Through such deeds, and through prayer and memory, is her/his soul bound up in the bond of life. May I prove myself worthy of the gift of life and the many other gifts with which he/she has blessed me. May these moments of meditation link me more strongly with her/his memory and with our entire family. May he/she rest eternally in dignity and peace. Amen.

The haunting El Malei Rachamim is then chanted:
Exalted, compassionate God, grant perfect peace among the holy and the pure, in Your sheltering Presence, to the souls of all our beloved who have gone to their eternal home. May their memory endure as inspiration for deeds of charity and goodness in our lives. May their souls be bound up in the bond of life. May they rest in peace. And let us say: Amen.

We end by reciting the Mourner's Kaddish. Although there is a common custom that those who are not saying Yizkor for a parent, child or spouse leave the room during these prayers (perhaps not to tempt the evil eye-- ptui, ptui, ptui), our local custom is to extend the Yizkor prayers for friends and other loved ones who have passed away and whom we wish to remember.

Both the monthly First Friday Live! and Kehilla Shalom SMA's weekly Saturday Morning services will be commemorating Yizkor this weekend. Please join us, especially if you have lost a parent, spouse or child, to ensure that our loved ones continue to live on in our memories.

We don't need to tell you that reading to your children is important. Study after study has shown it impacts a child’s development. Even the mere presence of books in a home increases the level of education they can reach. But finding the right books and making the time to read as a family can be hard. That’s where PJ Library comes in. 

PJ Library sends free Jewish children's books to families across the world every month. We know that something magical happens when parents sit down together to read with their children. PJ Library shares Jewish stories that can help your family talk together about values and traditions that are important to you. 

A program of the Harold Grinspoon Foundation, PJ Library is made possible through partnerships with philanthropists and local Jewish organizations. Families with kids ages 6 months through 8 years old with Judaism as part of their lives, are welcome to sign up. PJ Library welcomes all Jewish families, whatever your background, knowledge, or family make-up, or observance may be.  https://pjlibrary.org/home.aspx 
 

To offer this fine program to the children of members of CHESMA, AC, we need to pay only $50 USD/child/year (the books are free to the children, but the local community must sponsor them along with the PJ Library.)

Yes, we have at least 10 kids in our community, children of the many "new Jews" who have joined with us in past several years, as well as the children of conversion candidates now in the process of formal conversion/return. Finding quality Jewish books for children in Spanish has been quite challenging, until now.

Please sponsor a child (or 2, or more...) by donating to the new "Books for Kids Fund" today! Thank you.
 

January was membership month, and those who have not paid their 2018 dues will no longer be eligible to receive the discounts and other benefits of membership.

To all of you who have already paid your 2018 dues, thank you!
If you have not yet done so, please contact the office at your earliest convenience, or just click below.

Now is the time to get the most out of your membership.
Please support the JC3 by joining or renewing your membership today. We need your financial and moral support to keep going and growing!

Call (415) 185-9191 or email shalomsanmiguel@yahoo.com.mx for more information, or simply click on the button below:
 

KIDDUSH FUND
There has been a long tradition for people to celebrate birthdays, anniversaries and other simchas, as well as to commemorate yahrtzeits, by sponsoring the kiddush luncheon after Saturday morning services. Although some folks enjoy preparing the food themselves to bring, others would prefer to have the goodies catered in. We are fortunate to have a kosher chef, Zajar Campos, now in our community who is willing to prepare a delicious spread for us at a very reasonable cost.

If you would like to sponsor a kiddush or donate to our new Kiddush Fund, please contact the office at (415) 185-9191 or shalomsanmiguel@yahoo.com.mx  to arrange it.

Or, just click on the icon below:

Mi Shebeirach: Prayers for Healing
 

NEWSLETTER Vol. 7, No. 13
March 29th, 2018

SOLD OUT!
 
Friday, March 30 @ 6pm 

CHESMA, AC will host its
Annual Community Seder
at the Hotel Imperio de Angeles
(Carretera a Celaya km 2.2, just past Fracc. Villa de Los Frailes)
 

 Charles (Carlos) Soberman will lead the Seder. A deliciouskosher holiday dinner will be prepared by our own chef Zajar Campos, and will feature salmon or a vegetarian option (as well as soup with matza balls, kugel, and dessert.)

 

 We are sorry but we cannot take any more reservations. 
Thanks to all who made their paid reservations on time!
Hope to see you there.

NB: The hotel has already been paid; if you need to cancel for any reason, we regret we cannot refund your money.

Also, please note that the lovely Haggadot we are using (available in either English/Hebrew or Spanish/Hebrew) are not to be taken home--they are somewhat hard to get and we need them for next year.

Thank you for your understanding.
Chag sameach!

Saturday, Mar. 31st @ 9 am
Kehilla Shalom San Miguel de Allende's
Conservative Shabbat Shacharit Service

Shabbat /First Day of Pesach
Ex. 12:21-51; Nu. 28:16-25

Please join us for our weekly traditional/egalitarian Sabbath morning service. Although Hebrew is the predominant language of worship, our prayer books have been completely translated and transliterated phonetically into both English and Spanish. Everyone is more than welcome!

This Shabbat we are honored to welcome Rabbi Andrew Sacks, Director of the Masorti [Conservative] movement's Rabbinical Assembly in Israel (the organization of Masorti/Conservative rabbis) and the Masorti movement's Bureau of Religious Affairs.  

Wishing you all a healthy, happy, peaceful, loving, spiritually uplifting and "sweet" Passover!

This Shabbat's Kiddush sponsored by
David Lieberman
to thank the community for our Mi Shebeirach prayers for his swift and complete recovery.
כן יהי רצון

Come learn with us! Torah Study / Discussion Groups   Following Saturday Morning Services and Kiddush  approx. 12:15-12:30 pm, (give or take 15 minutes), separate groups in English or Spanish. Volunteers are needed to lead the English-language group.   All are welcome!

"Where can I buy Passover foods in SMA"?

Looking to buy Kosher for Passover food in SMA? We are very fortunate that Luna de Queso now carries a decent supply of basic items. No more shlepping all the way to Mexico City to buy a box of matzah! Did I mention they actually carry shmurah matzah, as well as whole wheat and even gluten-free products, gefilte fish, macaroons, kosher wine and grape juice?  Yay.

Members of CHESMA, AC are entitled to a 10% discount--just ask for it.
(They do tend to sell out quickly, so don't wait until the last minute--for example, the Gold's horseradish is gone; you'll have to use wasabi!)

http://lunadequeso.com.mx/en/

We don't need to tell you that reading to your children is important. Study after study has shown it impacts a child’s development. Even the mere presence of books in a home increases the level of education they can reach. But finding the right books and making the time to read as a family can be hard. That’s where PJ Library comes in. 

PJ Library sends free Jewish children's books to families across the world every month. We know that something magical happens when parents sit down together to read with their children. PJ Library shares Jewish stories that can help your family talk together about values and traditions that are important to you. 

A program of the Harold Grinspoon Foundation, PJ Library is made possible through partnerships with philanthropists and local Jewish organizations. Families with kids ages 6 months through 8 years old with Judaism as part of their lives, are welcome to sign up. PJ Library welcomes all Jewish families, whatever your background, knowledge, or family make-up, or observance may be.  https://pjlibrary.org/home.aspx 
 

To offer this fine program to the children of members of CHESMA, AC, we need to pay only $50 USD/child/year (the books are free to the children, but the local community must sponsor them along with the PJ Library.)

Yes, we have at least 10 kids in our community, children of the many "new Jews" who have joined with us in past several years, as well as the children of conversion candidates now in the process of formal conversion/return. Finding quality Jewish books for children in Spanish has been quite challenging, until now.

Please sponsor a child (or 2, or more...) by donating to the new "Books for Kids Fund" today! Thank you.
 

January was membership month, and those who have not paid their 2018 dues will no longer be eligible to receive the discounts and other benefits of membership.

To all of you who have already paid your 2018 dues, thank you!
If you have not yet done so, please contact the office at your earliest convenience, or just click below.

Now is the time to get the most out of your membership.
Please support the JC3 by joining or renewing your membership today. We need your financial and moral support to keep going and growing!

Call (415) 185-9191 or email shalomsanmiguel@yahoo.com.mx for more information, or simply click on the button below:
 

KIDDUSH FUND
There has been a long tradition for people to celebrate birthdays, anniversaries and other simchas, as well as to commemorate yahrtzeits, by sponsoring the kiddush luncheon after Saturday morning services. Although some folks enjoy preparing the food themselves to bring, others would prefer to have the goodies catered in. We are fortunate to have a kosher chef, Zajar Campos, now in our community who is willing to prepare a delicious spread for us at a very reasonable cost.

If you would like to sponsor a kiddush or donate to our new Kiddush Fund, please contact the office at (415) 185-9191 or shalomsanmiguel@yahoo.com.mx  to arrange it.

Or, just click on the icon below:

Mi Shebeirach: Prayers for Healing
 

NEWSLETTER Vol. 7, No. 12
Mar. 21st, 2018
Happy Vernal Equinox!!

Saturday, Mar. 24th @ 9 am
Kehilla Shalom San Miguel de Allende's
Conservative Shabbat Shacharit Service

Parashat Tzav
Shabbat Ha-Gadol
Leviticus, chapters 6-8

Please join us for our weekly traditional/egalitarian Sabbath morning service. Although Hebrew is the predominant language of worship, our prayer books have been completely translated and transliterated phonetically into both English and Spanish. Everyone is more than welcome!

This Shabbat is called Shabbat Ha-Gadol, or "the Great/Big Shabbat", since it's the Saturday before the start of Passover--the last large public gathering  before the seders. The importance of Pesach in our lives as Jews must never be minimized: liberation from all types of bondage, our beginnings as one united "people", the road the Revelation at Sinai (no matter how we understand that), the rebirth of springtime and its promise of better days ahead...

Wishing you all a healthy, happy, peaceful, loving, spiritually uplifting and "sweet" Passover!

Come learn with us! Torah Study / Discussion Groups   Following Saturday Morning Services and Kiddush  approx. 12:15-12:30 pm, (give or take 15 minutes), separate groups in English or Spanish. Volunteers are needed to lead the English-language group.   All are welcome!

PLEASE SIGN UP TODAY!!
Cut-off date is Mar. 28th, one week from now, and we are filling up quickly(don't say you haven't been warned!)

 
Friday, March 30 @ 6pm 

CHESMA, AC will host its
Annual Community Seder
at the Hotel Imperio de Angeles
on the Carretera a Celaya km 2.2, just past Fracc. Villa de Los Frailes
 

 Charles (Carlos) Soberman will lead the Seder. A deliciouskosher holiday dinner will be prepared by our own chef Zajar Campos, and will feature salmon or a vegetarian option (as well as soup with matza balls, kugel, and dessert.)

 

Cost will be 600 pesos for members 
700 pesos for non-members
Children 3-13 half-price; free for younger kids. 

As always, scholarships are available upon request.

 

YOU MUST RESERVE AND PAY IN ADVANCE! Cut off date will be Wed., Mar. 28th (or sooner if we sell out)...so please make your paid reservations ASAP. Thank you for your understanding.

 

Contact the office at (415) 185-9191 during regular business hours for more information, or email us at shalomsanmiguel@yahoo.com.mx.

You may pay by PayPal (including all credit card transactions) or at the office (cash or checks) at the time you make your reservations. 
 

To register and pay online (recommended) 
please click on the tab below:

"Where can I buy Passover foods in SMA"?

Looking to buy Kosher for Passover food in SMA? We are very fortunate that Luna de Queso now carries a decent supply of basic items. No more shlepping all the way to Mexico City to buy a box of matzah! Did I mention they actually carry shmurah matzah, as well as whole wheat and even gluten-free products, gefilte fish, Gold's horseradish, macaroons, kosher wine and grape juice?  Yay.

Members of CHESMA, AC are entitled to a 10% discount--just ask for it.
(They do tend to sell out quickly, so don't wait until the last minute.)

http://lunadequeso.com.mx/en/

We don't need to tell you that reading to your children is important. Study after study has shown it impacts a child’s development. Even the mere presence of books in a home increases the level of education they can reach. But finding the right books and making the time to read as a family can be hard. That’s where PJ Library comes in. 

PJ Library sends free Jewish children's books to families across the world every month. We know that something magical happens when parents sit down together to read with their children. PJ Library shares Jewish stories that can help your family talk together about values and traditions that are important to you. 

A program of the Harold Grinspoon Foundation, PJ Library is made possible through partnerships with philanthropists and local Jewish organizations. Families with kids ages 6 months through 8 years old with Judaism as part of their lives, are welcome to sign up. PJ Library welcomes all Jewish families, whatever your background, knowledge, or family make-up, or observance may be.  https://pjlibrary.org/home.aspx 
 

To offer this fine program to the children of members of CHESMA, AC, we need to pay only $50 USD/child/year (the books are free to the children, but the local community must sponsor them along with the PJ Library.)

Yes, we have at least 10 kids in our community, children of the many "new Jews" who have joined with us in past several years, as well as the children of conversion candidates now in the process of formal conversion/"return". Finding quality Jewish books for children in Spanish has been quite challenging, until now.

Please sponsor a child (or 2, or more...) by donating to the new "Books for Kids Fund" today! Thank you.
 

January was membership month, and those who have not paid their 2018 dues will no longer be eligible to receive the discounts and other benefits of membership.

To all of you who have already paid your 2018 dues, thank you!
If you have not yet done so, please contact the office at your earliest convenience, or just click below.

Now is the time to get the most out of your membership.
Please support the JC3 by joining or renewing your membership today. We need your financial and moral support to keep going and growing!

Call (415) 185-9191 or email shalomsanmiguel@yahoo.com.mx for more information, or simply click on the button below:
 

KIDDUSH FUND
There has been a long tradition for people to celebrate birthdays, anniversaries and other simchas, as well as to commemorate yahrtzeits, by sponsoring the kiddush luncheon after Saturday morning services. Although some folks enjoy preparing the food themselves to bring, others would prefer to have the goodies catered in. We are fortunate to have a kosher chef, Zajar Campos, now in our community who is willing to prepare a delicious spread for us at a very reasonable cost.

If you would like to sponsor a kiddush or donate to our new Kiddush Fund, please contact the office at (415) 185-9191 or shalomsanmiguel@yahoo.com.mx  to arrange it.

Or, just click on the icon below:

Mi Shebeirach: Prayers for Healing
 

NEWSLETTER Vol. 7, No. 11
Mar. 14th, 2018
 

Thursday, March 15th @ 4 pm
Rabbi Steven Carr Reuben at the JC3 

Rabbi Steven Carr Reuben knows a lot about the stream of present day Judaism called Reconstructionism. He led his congregation, Kehillat Israel (Pacific Palisades, CA) into becoming the largest Reconstructionist congregation in the world. Since his retirement he has become Rabbi Emeritus and now continues his work free of the duties of daily congregational leadership. His focus is on spiritual and moral education, the raising of caring men, and helping people in need.
 

Rabbi Reuben is a much sought after speaker around the world. His presentation in San Miguel on March 15 will be an opportunity for you to learn about this growing branch of the larger Jewish family.

 

He has written many books, writes a regular column in LA Family magazine and contributes to the Huffington Post. Because of his work in the community, he has received many awards. Rabbi Reuben is also a jazz drummer and performs with groups in and around Los Angeles.

 

Please join us for this presentation and the opportunity to engage with Rabbi Reuben in the question and answer time.

 

Suggested voluntary donation of 100 pesos/member or
150 pesos/non-member (or as your heart moves you) is requested
to support the Jewish Cultural and Community Center of SMA

 

Please RVSP by calling the office (415) 185-9191 or reserve online by clicking on the link below.

Saturday, Mar. 17th @ 9 am
Kehilla Shalom San Miguel de Allende's
Conservative Shabbat Shacharit Service

Parashat Vayikra
Rosh Chodesh Nissan
Shabbat Ha-Chodesh
Leviticus, chapters 1-5

Please join us for our weekly traditional/egalitarian Sabbath morning service. Although Hebrew is the predominant language of worship, our prayer books have been completely translated and transliterated phonetically into both English and Spanish. All are welcome.

Happy New Year!
(Yes, it is.)

Come learn with us! Torah Study / Discussion Groups   Following Saturday Morning Services and Kiddush  approx. 12:15-12:30 pm, (give or take 15 minutes), separate groups in English or Spanish. Volunteers are needed to lead the English-language group.   All are welcome!

Sunday, March 18th @ 4 pm

Due to popular demand, we will be presenting a special repeat performance of February's wonderful sold-out Yiddish Concert:

"Reflections From the Heart: Yiddish music from the Shtetl to Broadway ", featuring Maxine Graboyes and the Tzigane Colectivo band.

Members, advance purchase: 250 pesos
at the door: 300 pesos
Non-members, advance purchase: 300 pesos
at the door: 350 pesos

Please reserve early to avoid disappointment yet again!!
 

 
Friday, March 30 @ 6pm 

CHESMA, AC will host its
Annual Community Seder
at the Hotel Imperio de Angeles, on the Carretera a Celaya, Km 2.2 just past Fracc. Villa de Los Frailes.
 

 Charles (Carlos) Soberman will lead the Seder. A delicious kosher holiday dinner will be prepared by our own chef Zajar Campos, and will feature salmon or a vegetarian option (as well as soup with matza balls, kugel, and dessert.)

 

Cost will be 600 pesos for members, and 700 pesos for non-members. Children 3-13 half-price, free for younger kids. As always, scholarships are available upon request.

YOU MUST RESERVE AND PAY IN ADVANCE! Cut off date will be Wed., Mar. 28th (or sooner if we sell out)...so please make your paid reservations ASAP. Thank you for your understanding.

Contact the office at (415) 185-9191 during regular business hours for more information, or email us at shalomsanmiguel@yahoo.com.mx.

You may pay by PayPal (including all credit card transactions) or at the office (cash or checks) at the time you make your reservations. 
 

To register and pay online (recommended), please click on the tab below:

We don't need to tell you that reading to your children is important. Study after study has shown it impacts a child’s development. Even the mere presence of books in a home increases the level of education they can reach. But finding the right books and making the time to read as a family can be hard. That’s where PJ Library comes in. 

PJ Library sends free Jewish children's books to families across the world every month. We know that something magical happens when parents sit down together to read with their children. PJ Library shares Jewish stories that can help your family talk together about values and traditions that are important to you. 

A program of the Harold Grinspoon Foundation, PJ Library is made possible through partnerships with philanthropists and local Jewish organizations. Families with kids ages 6 months through 8 years old with Judaism as part of their lives, are welcome to sign up. PJ Library welcomes all Jewish families, whatever your background, knowledge, or family make-up, or observance may be.  https://pjlibrary.org/home.aspx 
 

To offer this fine program to the children of members of CHESMA, AC, we need to pay only $50 USD/child/year (the books are free to the children, but the local community must sponsor them along with the PJ Library.)

Yes, we have at least 10 kids in our community, children of the many "new Jews" who have joined with us in past several years, as well as the children of conversion candidates now in the process of formal conversion/"return". Finding quality Jewish books for children in Spanish has been quite challenging, until now.

Please sponsor a child (or 2, or more...) by donating to the new "Books for Kids Fund" today! Thank you.
 

January was membership month, and those who have not paid their 2018 dues will no longer be eligible to receive the discounts and other benefits of membership.

To all of you who have already paid your 2018 dues, thank you!
If you have not yet done so, please contact the office at your earliest convenience, or just click below.

Now is the time to get the most out of your membership.
Please support the JC3 by joining or renewing your membership today. We need your financial and moral support to keep going and growing!

Call (415) 185-9191 or email shalomsanmiguel@yahoo.com.mx for more information, or simply click on the button below:
 

KIDDUSH FUND
There has been a long tradition for people to celebrate birthdays, anniversaries and other simchas, as well as to commemorate yahrtzeits, by sponsoring the kiddush luncheon after Saturday morning services. Although some folks enjoy preparing the food themselves to bring, others would prefer to have the goodies catered in. We are fortunate to have a kosher chef, Zajar Campos, now in our community who is willing to prepare a delicious spread for us at a very reasonable cost.

If you would like to sponsor a kiddush or donate to our new Kiddush Fund, please contact the office at (415) 185-9191 or shalomsanmiguel@yahoo.com.mx  to arrange it.

Or, just click on the icon below:

Mi Shebeirach: Prayers for Healing
 

NEWSLETTER Vol. 7, No. 10
Mar. 8th, 2018
 

Saturday, Mar. 10th @ 9 am
Kehilla Shalom San Miguel de Allende's
Conservative Shabbat Shacharit Service

Parashat Vayachel/Pekudei
Exodus 35:1 - 40:38

Please join us for our weekly traditional/egalitarian Sabbath morning service. Although Hebrew is the predominant language of worship, our prayer books have been completely translated and transliterated phonetically into both English and Spanish. All are welcome.

Come learn with us! Torah Study / Discussion Groups   Following Saturday Morning Services and Kiddush  approx. 12:15-12:30 pm, (give or take 15 minutes), separate groups in English or Spanish. Volunteers are needed to lead the English-language group.   All are welcome!

Sunday, March 11th, from 11 am -2 pm

Bagel and Lox Brunch

The kosher-style menu includes: Bagels and Lox Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice Homemade Coffee Cake   and Sweet Rolls (baked by the Shalom San Miguel "Balabustas") Gourmet coffee $180 pesos for members and $220 pesos for non-members   To reserve, please call (415) 185-9191, email shalomsanmiguel@yahoo.com.mx,  or simply click below:

Sunday, March 11th @ 4 pm

GREAT TRIALS THAT CHANGED THE COURSE OF HISTORY
 

- THE DREYFUS AFFAIR -

Interactive Lectures for Learners 

Dr. Sylvia Solomon  

For many of us, Dreyfus is a familiar name that echoes down through time.  Why? Because the debates that arose from this famous case changed forever the course of Western civilization.
 

The Dreyfus Affair took place in late 19th Century France – the vanguard of the movement that gave civic and legal equality to Jews.  It was a reflection of a “new antisemitism” that had a racial rather than religious character, as the French people decried the existence in their midst of “alien” Jewish elements.  Dreyfus was only the tip of the iceberg.  What happened to him would happen again and again – until it happened to all European Jewry. No one could imagine how powerful the whirlwind would be when it came.  In today’s fractious world it is important that we understand what happened to Dreyfus so that we are cautious that it doesn’t happen again.
 

Dr. Sylvia Solomon is a retired educator with over thirty years in elementary schools, secondary schools, and several universities including the University of Western Ontario, University of Toronto, and York, Trent and Queen’s University.. The last fourteen years of her career she worked at the Ontario Ministry of Education developing curriculum policy and resources that changed teaching and learning in Ontario and embedded Holocaust Education learning expectations in a number of courses. Her focus has always been social justice in education.

 

                Tickets 100 pesos members, 150 pesos non-members.

Bea Aaronson
Art Lecture Series
Tuesday, Mar. 13th @ 3:30 pm
(and Wednesday, Mar. 14th if Tuesday is sold out!)

  Next session (the last for this season) will be:

JEAN COCTEAU:  THE ELUSIVE DANDY OF MODERN ART

Please make your reservations by contacting Bea directly atbea_aaronson@hotmail.com

Cost: 130 pesos members; 150 pesos non-members

(Exact change would be greatly appreciated! Please come 15 minutes early so you can choose your seats without rushing, and so she can start on time.)

Thursday, March 15th @ 4 pm
Rabbi Steven Carr Reuben at the JC3 

Rabbi Steven Carr Reuben knows a lot about the stream of present day Judaism called Reconstructionism. He led his congregation, Kehillat Israel (Pacific Palisades, CA) into becoming the largest Reconstructionist congregation in the world. Since his retirement he has become Rabbi Emeritus and now continues his work free of the duties of daily congregational leadership. His focus is on spiritual and moral education, the raising of caring men, and helping people in need.
 

Rabbi Reuben is a much sought after speaker around the world. His presentation in San Miguel on March 15 will be an opportunity for you to learn about this growing branch of the larger Jewish family.

 

He has written many books, writes a regular column in LA Family magazine and contributes to the Huffington Post. Because of his work in the community, he has received many awards. Rabbi Reuben is also a jazz drummer and performs with groups in and around Los Angeles.

 

Please join us for this presentation and the opportunity to engage with Rabbi Reuben in the question and answer time.

 

Suggested donation of 100 pesos/member and 150 pesos/non-member is requested to support the Jewish Cultural and Community Center of SMA

 

Please RVSP by calling the office (415) 185-9191 or reserve online by clicking on the link below.

Sunday, March 18th @ 4 pm

Due to popular demand, we will be presenting a special repeat performance of February's wonderful sold-out Yiddish Concert:

"Reflections From the Heart: Yiddish music from the Shtetl to Broadway ", featuring Maxine Graboyes and the Tzigane Colectivo band.

Members, advance purchase: 250 pesos
at the door: 300 pesos
Non-members, advance purchase: 300 pesos
at the door: 350 pesos

Please reserve early to avoid disappointment yet again!!
 

Passover is coming already; can you believe it?!

           
Friday, March 30 @ 6pm 

CHESMA, AC will host its
Annual Community Seder
at the Hotel Imperio de Angeles, on the Salida a Celaya, Km 2.2 just past Fracc. Villa de Los Frailes.
 

 Charles (Carlos) Soberman will lead the Seder. A delicious kosher holiday dinner will be prepared by our own chef Zajar Campos, and will feature salmon or a vegetarian option (as well as soup with matza balls, kugel, and dessert.)

 

Cost will be 600 pesos for members, and 700 pesos for non-members. Children 3-13 half-price, free for younger kids. As always, scholarships are available upon request.

YOU MUST RESERVE AND PAY IN ADVANCE! Cut off date will be Wed., Mar. 28th (or sooner if we sell out)...so please make your paidreservations ASAP. Thank you for your understanding.

Contact the office at (415) 185-9191 during regular business hours for more information, or email us at shalomsanmiguel@yahoo.com.mx.

You may pay by PayPal (including all credit card transactions) or at the office (cash or checks) at the time you make your reservations. 
 

To register and pay online, please click on the tab below:

We don't need to tell you that reading to your children is important. Study after study has shown it impacts a child’s development. Even the mere presence of books in a home increases the level of education they can reach. But finding the right books and making the time to read as a family can be hard. That’s where PJ Library comes in. 

PJ Library sends free Jewish children's books to families across the world every month. We know that something magical happens when parents sit down together to read with their children. PJ Library shares Jewish stories that can help your family talk together about values and traditions that are important to you. 

A program of the Harold Grinspoon Foundation, PJ Library is made possible through partnerships with philanthropists and local Jewish organizations. Families with kids ages 6 months through 8 years old with Judaism as part of their lives, are welcome to sign up. PJ Library welcomes all Jewish families, whatever your background, knowledge, or family make-up, or observance may be.  https://pjlibrary.org/home.aspx 
 

To offer this fine program to the children of members of CHESMA, AC, we need to pay only $50 USD/child/year (the books are free to the children, but the local community must sponsor them along with the PJ Library.)

Yes, we have at least 10 kids in our community, children of the many "new Jews" who have joined with us in past several years, as well as the children of conversion candidates now in the process of formal conversion/"return". Finding quality Jewish books for children in Spanish has been quite challenging, until now.

Please sponsor a child (or 2, or more...) by donating to the new "Books for Kids Fund" today! Thank you.
 

January was membership month, and those who have not paid their 2018 dues will no longer be eligible to receive the discounts and other benefits of membership.

To all of you who have already paid your 2018 dues, thank you!
If you have not yet done so, please contact the office at your earliest convenience, or just click below.

Now is the time to get the most out of your membership.
Please support the JC3 by joining or renewing your membership today. We need your financial and moral support to keep going and growing!

Call (415) 185-9191 or email shalomsanmiguel@yahoo.com.mx for more information, or simply click on the button below:
 

KIDDUSH FUND
There has been a long tradition for people to celebrate birthdays, anniversaries and other simchas, as well as to commemorate yahrtzeits, by sponsoring the kiddush luncheon after Saturday morning services. Although some folks enjoy preparing the food themselves to bring, others would prefer to have the goodies catered in. We are fortunate to have a kosher chef, Zajar Campos, now in our community who is willing to prepare a delicious spread for us at a very reasonable cost.

If you would like to sponsor a kiddush or donate to our new Kiddush Fund, please contact the office at (415) 185-9191 or shalomsanmiguel@yahoo.com.mx  to arrange it.

Or, just click on the icon below:

Mi Shebeirach

NEWSLETTER Vol. 7, No. 9
Mar. 2nd, 2018
 

Friday, Mar. 2rd @ 5:30 pm
First Friday -- LIVE! Musical Shabbat

Saturday, Mar. 3rd @ 9 am
Kehilla Shalom San Miguel de Allende's
Conservative Shabbat Shacharit Service

Parashat Ki Tissa
Exodus 30:11 - 34:35

Please join us for our weekly traditional/egalitarian Sabbath morning service. Although Hebrew is the predominant language of worship, our prayer books have been completely translated and transliterated phonetically into both English and Spanish. All are welcome.

Come learn with us! Torah Study / Discussion Groups   Following Saturday Morning Services and Kiddush  approx. 12:15-12:30 pm, (give or take 15 minutes), separate groups in English or Spanish. Volunteers are needed to lead the English-language group.   All are welcome!

A wordsmith seeking wisdom, a psalmist, a lover and servant of
the senses, the late Leonard Cohen, proudly Jewish, was among
the great poets/songwriters of our age.
We will explore the Jewish and Judaic influences
         on Cohen's poetic and musical legacy.
 
Bruce Sarbit, a (retired) counselling psychologist, writes plays and essays, searching for lives worth living in the face of limitations, alienation and absurdity, suffering and death. Leonard Cohen's poetry and songs inspire, inform and guide much of his work.

Members: 200 pesos in advance; 250 pesos at the door.
Non-Members: 250 pesos in advance; 300 pesos at the door.

Bea Aaronson
Art Lecture Series
Tuesday, Mar. 6th @ 3:30 pm
(and Wednesday, Mar. 7th if Tuesday is sold out!)

We are delighted to announce that Bea has re-started her ever-popular Art Lecture Series here at the JC3 on Tuesday afternoons at 3:30 pm* (but she asks that folks arrive at least 15 minutes before so that she might start on time).  Next session will be:

CHAIM SOUTINE:  LE PEINTRE MAUDIT

EXPRESSIONISM AND THE FEVER OF DISTORTION

Please make your reservations by contacting Bea directly atbea_aaronson@hotmail.com

*If sold out, Bea will add a presentation on Wednesday afternoons.

Cost: 130 pesos members; 150 pesos non-members
(a portion of the proceeds will benefit the JC3)

Sunday, March 11th, from 11 am -2 pm

Bagel and Lox Brunch

The kosher-style menu includes: Bagels and Lox Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice Homemade Coffee Cake   and Sweet Rolls (baked by the Shalom San Miguel "Balabustas") Gourmet coffee $180 pesos for members and $220 pesos for non-members   To reserve, please call (415) 185-9191, email shalomsanmiguel@yahoo.com.mx,  or simply click below:

Sunday, March 11th @ 4 pm

GREAT TRIALS THAT CHANGED THE COURSE OF HISTORY
 

- THE DREYFUS AFFAIR -

Interactive Lectures for Learners 

Dr. Sylvia Solomon  

For many of us, Dreyfus is a familiar name that echoes down through time.  Why? Because the debates that arose from this famous case changed forever the course of Western civilization.
 

The Dreyfus Affair took place in late 19th Century France – the vanguard of the movement that gave civic and legal equality to Jews.  It was a reflection of a “new antisemitism” that had a racial rather than religious character, as the French people decried the existence in their midst of “alien” Jewish elements.  Dreyfus was only the tip of the iceberg.  What happened to him would happen again and again – until it happened to all European Jewry. No one could imagine how powerful the whirlwind would be when it came.  In today’s fractious world it is important that we understand what happened to Dreyfus so that we are cautious that it doesn’t happen again.
 

Dr. Sylvia Solomon is a retired educator with over thirty years in elementary schools, secondary schools, and several universities including the University of Western Ontario, University of Toronto, and York, Trent and Queen’s University.. The last fourteen years of her career she worked at the Ontario Ministry of Education developing curriculum policy and resources that changed teaching and learning in Ontario and embedded Holocaust Education learning expectations in a number of courses. Her focus has always been social justice in education.

 

                Tickets 100 pesos members, 150 pesos non-members.

Thursday, March 15th, 4 pm
Rabbi Steven Carr Reuben @ the JC3 

Rabbi Emeritus of Kehillat Israel Reconstructionist Congregation in Pacific Palisades, California
Many thanks to Judith Jenya for arranging his visit. She relates that Rabbi Reuben is "a gifted writer, speaker, author musician, sought after speaker and delightful man". 

More details to follow.

Sunday, March 18th, 4 pm

Encore Yiddish Concert!

Due to popular demand, we will be presenting a special repeat performance of February's wonderful sold-out Yiddish Concert: "Reflections of the Heart", featuring Maxine Graboyes and theTzigane Colectivo band.

Members, advance purchase: 250 pesos
at the door: 300 pesos
Non-members, advance purchase: 300 pesos
at the door: 350 pesos

Please reserve early to avoid disappointment yet again!!

Passover is coming already, can you believe it?! 
We're working on our annual community seder plans, tentatively scheduled for the First Seder night, Friday, March 30th.

Stay tuned for more info as it becomes available.

We don't need to tell you that reading to your children is important. Study after study has shown it impacts a child’s development. Even the mere presence of books in a home increases the level of education they can reach. But finding the right books and making the time to read as a family can be hard. That’s where PJ Library comes in. 

PJ Library sends free Jewish children's books to families across the world every month. We know that something magical happens when parents sit down together to read with their children. PJ Library shares Jewish stories that can help your family talk together about values and traditions that are important to you. 

A program of the Harold Grinspoon Foundation, PJ Library is made possible through partnerships with philanthropists and local Jewish organizations. Families with kids ages 6 months through 8 years old with Judaism as part of their lives, are welcome to sign up. PJ Library welcomes all Jewish families, whatever your background, knowledge, or family make-up, or observance may be.  https://pjlibrary.org/home.aspx 
 

To offer this fine program to the children of members of CHESMA, AC, we need to pay only $50 USD/child/year (the books are free to the children, but the local community must sponsor them along with the PJ Library.)

Yes, we have at least 10 kids in our community, children of the many "new Jews" who have joined with us in past several years, as well as the children of conversion candidates now in the process of formal conversion/"return". Finding quality Jewish books for children in Spanish has been quite challenging, until now.

Please sponsor a child (or 2, or more...) by donating to the new "Books for Kids Fund" today! Thank you.

January was membership month, and those who have not paid their 2018 dues will no longer be eligible to receive the discounts and other benefits of membership.

To all of you who have already paid your 2018 dues, thank you!
If you have not yet done so, please contact the office at your earliest convenience, or just click below.

Now is the time to get the most out of your membership.
Please support the JC3 by joining or renewing your membership today. We need your financial and moral support to keep going and growing!

Call (415) 185-9191 or email shalomsanmiguel@yahoo.com.mx for more information, or simply click on the button below:

KIDDUSH FUND
There has been a long tradition for people to celebrate birthdays, anniversaries and other simchas, as well as to commemorate yahrtzeits, by sponsoring the kiddush luncheon after Saturday morning services. Although some folks enjoy preparing the food themselves to bring, others would prefer to have the goodies catered in. We are fortunate to have a kosher chef, Zajar Campos, now in our community who is willing to prepare a delicious spread for us at a very reasonable cost.

If you would like to sponsor a kiddush or donate to our new Kiddush Fund, please contact the office at (415) 185-9191 or shalomsanmiguel@yahoo.com.mx  to arrange it.

Or, just click on the icon below:

Mi Shebeirach

NEWSLETTER Vol. 7, No. 8
February 21st, 2018
Just one more week until Purim!

Saturday, Feb. 3rd @ 9 am
Kehilla Shalom San Miguel de Allende's
Conservative Shabbat Shacharit Service

Parashat Tetzaveh
Exodus 27:20-30:10
Shabbat Zachor

Please join us for our weekly traditional/egalitarian Sabbath morning service. Although Hebrew is the predominant language of worship, our prayer books have been completely translated and transliterated phonetically into both English and Spanish. All are welcome.
 

Come learn with us! Torah Study / Discussion Groups   Following Saturday Morning Services and Kiddush  approx. 12:15-12:30 pm, (give or take 15 minutes), separate groups in English or Spanish. Volunteers are needed to lead the English-language group.   All are welcome!

Literary Event:
Author Bernard Beck @ the JC3
Sunday, February 25th @ 4 pm

We are honored to have Bernie and his lovely wife, Judy, visiting SMA this month. He has graciously offered to talk to our community about his most recent work, a novel, "One American Dream: a Family History" (2017). 

"The only thing Jack Rubin ever wanted was to be a real American. A Jewish immigrant from Poland, he arrives in New York City in the late 1800s and begins his American journey by pulling himself up by the bootstraps. But his success doesn't satisfy him, and when he struggles while raising a headstrong daughter through the roaring twenties, he feels like a failure. Only when he finds himself helping those less fortunate during the Great Depression does Jack realize that he's been a real American all along."
 

Other books written by Bernard Beck--                                        The Bible: The Greatest Marketing Tool Ever Written    True Jew: Challenging The Stereotype

 

Come join us!
Tickets 100 pesos members, 150 pesos non-members

Bea Aaronson
Art Lecture Series
Tuesday, February 27th @ 3:30 pm

We are delighted to announce that Bea has re-started her ever-popular                      Art Lecture Series here at the JC3 on Tuesday afternoons at3:30 pm* (but she asks that folks arrive at least 15 minutes before so that she might start on time).  Next session will be:

THE POWER OF HAIR
SYMBOLS AND METAMORPHOSES

Please make your reservations by contacting Bea directly atbea_aaronson@hotmail.com

*If sold out, Bea will add a presentation on Wednesday afternoons.

Cost: 130 pesos members; 150 pesos non-members
(a portion of the proceeds will benefit the JC3)

Purim in Paradise (SMA)
 Wed., Feb. 28th & Thurs., Mar. 1st

1st Megillah reading Wed. night at 7 pm with "mini-party" to follow
 

2nd Megillah reading Thurs. morning @ 11, followed by our Annual Community Purim Bash, featuring the klezmer band Tzigane Colectivo!

To keep this popular event affordable for all, we ask that everyone please bringdairy/vegetarian/vegan food and/or beverages to share. If you're not into cooking, please bring chips, totopos, other snacks, soda, cake...easy! Or, if you can't shlep, cash donations are always an option.

We will supply the Hamentashen, not to fret.

Costumes play an important role in Purim festivities. We urge you to let loose and dress up (don't worry, tequila will be served; what happens on Purim in the JC3 stays in the JC3!)

Donations for the band are additionally requested
(suggested: 50-100 pesos per person).
Thank you.

We don't need to tell you that reading to your children is important. Study after study has shown it impacts a child’s development. Even the mere presence of books in a home increases the level of education they can reach. But finding the right books and making the time to read as a family can be hard. That’s where PJ Library comes in. 

PJ Library sends free Jewish children's books to families across the world every month. We know that something magical happens when parents sit down together to read with their children. PJ Library shares Jewish stories that can help your family talk together about values and traditions that are important to you. 

A program of the Harold Grinspoon Foundation, PJ Library is made possible through partnerships with philanthropists and local Jewish organizations. Families with kids ages 6 months through 8 years old with Judaism as part of their lives, are welcome to sign up. PJ Library welcomes all Jewish families, whatever your background, knowledge, or family make-up, or observance may be.  https://pjlibrary.org/home.aspx 
 

To offer this fine program to the children of members of CHESMA, AC, we need to pay only $50 USD/child/year (the books are free to the children, but the local community must sponsor them along with the PJ Library.)

Yes, we have at least 10 kids in our community, children of the many "new Jews" who have joined with us in past several years, as well as the children of conversion candidates now in the process of formal conversion/"return". Finding quality Jewish books for children in Spanish has been quite challenging, until now.

Please sponsor a child (or 2, or more...) by donating to the new "Books for Kids Fund" today! Thank you.

A wordsmith seeking wisdom, a psalmist, a lover and servant of
the senses, the late Leonard Cohen, proudly Jewish, was among
the great poets/songwriters of our age.
We will explore the Jewish and Judaic influences
         on Cohen's poetic and musical legacy.
 
Bruce Sarbit, a (retired) counselling psychologist, writes plays and essays, searching for lives worth living in the face of limitations, alienation and absurdity, suffering and death. Leonard Cohen's poetry and songs inspire, inform and guide much of his work.

Members: 200 pesos in advance; 250 pesos at the door.
Non-Members: 250 pesos in advance; 300 pesos at the door.

Sunday, March 11th, from 11 am -2 pm

Bagel and Lox Brunch

The kosher-style menu includes: Bagels and Lox Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice Homemade Coffee Cake   and Sweet Rolls (baked by the Shalom San Miguel "Balabustas") Gourmet coffee $180 pesos for members and $220 pesos for non-members   To reserve, please call (415) 185-9191, email shalomsanmiguel@yahoo.com.mx,  or simply click below:

Sunday, March 11th @ 4 pm

GREAT TRIALS THAT CHANGED THE COURSE OF HISTORY
 

- THE DREYFUS AFFAIR -

Interactive Lectures for Learners 

Dr. Sylvia Solomon  

For many of us, Dreyfus is a familiar name that echoes down through time.  Why? Because the debates that arose from this famous case changed forever the course of Western civilization.
 

The Dreyfus Affair took place in late 19th Century France – the vanguard of the movement that gave civic and legal equality to Jews.  It was a reflection of a “new antisemitism” that had a racial rather than religious character, as the French people decried the existence in their midst of “alien” Jewish elements.  Dreyfus was only the tip of the iceberg.  What happened to him would happen again and again – until it happened to all European Jewry. No one could imagine how powerful the whirlwind would be when it came.  In today’s fractious world it is important that we understand what happened to Dreyfus so that we are cautious that it doesn’t happen again.
 

Dr. Sylvia Solomon is a retired educator with over thirty years in elementary schools, secondary schools, and several universities including the University of Western Ontario, University of Toronto, and York, Trent and Queen’s University.. The last fourteen years of her career she worked at the Ontario Ministry of Education developing curriculum policy and resources that changed teaching and learning in Ontario and embedded Holocaust Education learning expectations in a number of courses. Her focus has always been social justice in education.

 

                Tickets 100 pesos members, 150 pesos non-members.

Thursday, March 15th, 4 pm
Rabbi Steven Carr Reuben @ the JC3 

Rabbi Emeritus of Kehillat Israel Reconstructionist Congregation in Pacific Palisades, California
Many thanks to Judith Jenya for arranging his visit. She relates that Rabbi Reuben is "a gifted writer, speaker, author musician, sought after speaker and delightful man". 

More details to follow.

Sunday, March 18th, 4 pm

Encore Yiddish Concert!

Due to popular demand, we will be presenting a special repeat performance of February's wonderful sold-out Yiddish Concert: "Reflections of the Heart", featuring Maxine Graboyes and theTzigane Colectivo band.

Members, advance purchase: 250 pesos
at the door: 300 pesos
Non-members, advance purchase: 300 pesos
at the door: 350 pesos

Please reserve early to avoid disappointment yet again!!

Passover is coming already, can you believe it?! 
We're working on our annual community seder plans, tentatively scheduled for the First Seder night, Friday, March 30th.

Stay tuned for more info as it becomes available.

January was membership month, and those who have not paid their 2018 dues will no longer be eligible to receive the discounts and other benefits of membership.

To all of you who have already paid your 2018 dues, thank you!
If you have not yet done so, please contact the office at your earliest convenience, or just click below.

Now is the time to get the most out of your membership.
Please support the JC3 by joining or renewing your membership today. We need your financial and moral support to keep going and growing!

Call (415) 185-9191 or email shalomsanmiguel@yahoo.com.mx for more information, or simply click on the button below: