Congregation Beth Torah’s (CBT) Adult Education Committee has announced three upcoming projects and events that are open to the community.
The events are a kiddush cup-making workshop, a class about Israel and the Middle East taught by Rabbi Scott White and an interfaith conversations group.
Advance registration is required for the kiddush cup-making workshop and Rabbi White’s class by visiting beth-torah.org/adult-education or calling the CBT office at (913) 498-2212.
All three programs will be held at CBT (6100 West 127th Street, Overland Park, Kansas 66209).
Kiddush Cup Workshop
CBT will first hold a Kiddush Cup Workshop, where attendees can paint ceramic kiddush cups after games and Havdalah. The community is welcome to the event on Saturday, Oct. 21, from 7:15 to 10 p.m. at CBT. The event is for adults only.
The evening will open with a Havdalah service led by CBT Music Coordinator Lezlie Zucker. Her husband, Dave Zucker, will serve as master of ceremonies for a “Laugh and Learn Kiddush Cup Trivia Kahoot” online game played on cell phones.
Following the music and game, participants will paint ceramic kiddush cups which will be fired by Ceramic Café in Overland Park, Kansas. Finished cups will be displayed in the main lobby of CBT until Dec. 8, when they will be retrieved by the makers and used during the congregation’s L’Dor V’Dor Hanukkah Shabbat.
Participation is limited.
“A Fresh Look at Israel and the Mideast”
Rabbi Scott White will begin teaching a monthly class, “A Fresh Look at Israel and the Mideast,” at CBT. The first class will be on Oct. 24 and is designed to enable participants to make informed judgments regarding Israeli and Middle Eastern policies, politics and actions.
Classes will meet on the fourth Tuesday of the month from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at CBT. Rabbi White invites participants to bring a box dinner that need not be kosher.
“The group will break bread and schmooze about current events for 30 minutes,” he said, “and then we’ll immerse ourselves in the history of the 100-year debacle.”
CBT referred to Rabbi White as “a passionate but clear-eyed Zionist,” and that the class reflects his belief that at 75 years old, Israel is strong and secure enough for an objective assessment of its handling of the ongoing conflict with Arabs inside of its borders and out.
Rabbi White taught about and advocated for Israel as the spiritual leader of Congregation Ohev Shalom for 14 years and more recently to students at the Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy.
The class is free and open to the community.
Interfaith Conversations group
Starting on Nov. 5, CBT will begin a new Interfaith Conversations group aimed at interfaith couples, Jews-by-choice and Jewish-adjacent people. Participants who are planning an interfaith wedding, integrating family traditions or negotiating life as a new Jew are welcome.
An open-ended, peer-led discussion is intended to provide a safe space for people to ask questions, compare notes and find community.
The group will meet from 10 to 11 a.m. on the first Sunday of the month CBT. The group is open to the community, and drop-ins are invited. To enhance security, participants will be required to provide their name and contact information upon arrival.
Questions about the group can be sent to Emily Albano at .
