How do you transform a dreary January into a month of light and laughter? Find someone who’s very funny and put that person on stage. The Jewish Community Center is doing just that, presenting Moshe Waldoks, rabbi, standup comedian and co-editor of the “Big Book of Jewish Humor.” Waldoks will present “A Very Funny, Historically Comprehensive and Deeply Moving Overview of Jewish Humor” at 4 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 6, followed by a book signing and sale. The event, taking place in the White Theatre, is free and the community is invited. He will make a second presentation at noon on Monday, Jan. 7.
The child of Holocaust survivors, Waldoks approached comedy through the serious enterprise of studying Eastern European Jewish intellectual history in pursuit of a doctorate from Brandeis University.
“I chose to concentrate on where modern Jewish life came from,” he says. “I once wrote of a mystical Polish Jew who had no sense of humor. That made me look for the other side of the Polish Jewish personality, and I came to humor.”
Waldoks will provide a historical context to Jewish wit and what it reveals about Jews and Judaism. He will be attending the 2 p.m. matinee of the JCC production of “Laughter on the 23rd Floor” in the White Theatre and is expected to make references to the Neil Simon comedy in his presentation. It is not necessary to attend the performance to come to the rabbi’s presentation. (The play is showing at the White Theatre from Jan. 5–13. Call 913-327-8054 for more information.)
As a self described “advocate of joy,” Waldoks is also passionate about providing accessible gateways into Judaism and deepening the experience of Jewish prayer. In 2005, he founded Nishmat Hayyim, the Jewish Meditation Collaboration of New England. He will draw on his personal experiences and the wisdom of this organization to present a free presentation at noon Monday, Jan. 7, “Discovering the Divine Within Us: Redefining Prayer.” This presentation, taking place in the Multi-Activity Room of the Campus, is also free and open to the public. Those attending may bring lunch.
Waldoks combines intellectual rigor, an infectious happiness, and an experimental style to his role as the spiritual leader of Temple Beth Zion in Brookline, Mass. Known affectionately as “Reb Moshe,” he has grown the congregation from a few dozen adults into a diverse and vibrant community of more than 750 individuals and families.
In addition to meeting the needs of congregants, teaching and lecturing throughout the country, Waldoks has a long history of building bridges between faiths and cultures, what he calls “people-building relationships.” Highlights include a historic Jewish-Catholic Pilgrimage to Israel and Rome in the fall of 1999 during which he initiated a discussion about anti-Semitic teachings of the pre-Vatican II Polish church. In addition, he participated in the first Jewish-Tibetan Buddhist encounter with the Dalai Lama, a journey described by Rodger Kamenetz in his best-selling book, “The Jew in the Lotus: a Poet’s Rediscovery of Jewish Identity in Buddhist India.” Waldoks remains active in promoting Jewish-Muslim Relations in Boston and has initiated and supported Temple Beth Zion’s affiliation with the Greater Boston Interfaith Organization.
Both events are free and open to the community. For more information contact Jill Maidhof at or 913-327-8077.