Tahara Training
Tahara, preparing the body by the Chevra Kaddisha for its final rest, is a simple, yet dignified ritual that includes cleansing, ritually washing, and dressing the deceased's body.
Learn to perform this Chesed Shel Emet (true act of kindness).
Ruth Chevion provides Taharah training as performed by a Chevra Kadisha.
Ruth Chevron recommends obtaining this useful reference book: To Midwife a Soul: Guidelines for Performing Tahara by Richard A. Light.
Request more information or register here
Virtual Conversation: "Living Jewish Art"—The Life and Work of Itshak Holtz, with BHC member Aliza Holtz
Explore diverse aspects of artist Itshak Holtz’s life and work with those who knew him, accompanied by a slideshow of some of his finest work, in a Zoom conversation hosted by the Museum at Eldridge Street, to be streamed on Thursday, January 9, 2025 at 6:00 pm.
“The colors he used are from an Impressionist palette: the shaded pinks and beiges of Jerusalem’s ancient stones, the perfection of its azure skies, the verdancy of its trees and grasses dappled by sunlight. Holtz’s greatest power was in recreating the everyday life and scenes that he loved, his almost mystical ability to invoke the neshama - the inner spiritual soul of the scene and its characters.”
Richard McBee, noted expert on Jewish art and author of Living Jewish Art: The Work of Itshak Holtz (Abbeville Press, 2024) will discuss the artist’s career in conversation with Sylvia Herskowitz, director emerita of Yeshiva University Museum, and BHC member and artist-photographer Dr. Aliza Holtz, daughter of Itshak Holtz.
The online discussion accompanies Abbeville Press’ publication of Living Jewish Art: The Work of Itshak Holtz (Hardcover, Dec. 10th), the first comprehensive book on the foremost painter of contemporary Jewish life.
From the beginning of his artistic career, Holtz was drawn to depict the life of the Orthodox communities of which he himself was a part, in both New York and Jerusalem. This lavishly illustrated volume surveys Holtz’s incomparable paintings, drawings, and prints of Jewish life. Organized by subject matter, it presents his scenes of worship, celebration, work, and everyday life, as well as his landscapes and portraits
A beautiful volume that will be cherished by Holtz’s admirers and collectors, it also makes a handsome Hanukkah gift for this holiday season.
Learn more about the webinar and register here.
Learn more about Living Jewish Art: The Work of Itshak Hotz here.
First Night of Chanukah
Festivities at Bethlehem Town Hall feature the Sue Friedman menorah, traditional and silly songs, and good company.
Donuts and hot drinks to celebrate the first candle.
Snow, stars, cold, less cold - we will be there.
One Zoom link is good for the entire holiday. Request the Zoom link here.
Download the song book here.
BHC Annual Zoom-only Members Meeting
We look forward to seeing all of our members at BHC’s virtual, Zoom-only annual meeting. You don't even have to leave your home.
Hear from your BHC board members and committee chairs about what was done in 2024 and what’s coming in 2025.
Members vote to approve our annual budget
Ask questions and make recommendations.
Please help create our community's future and attend. Bring your favorite variety of bagels and lox, or whatever you prefer for Sunday brunch. No worries about the weather or waiting in buffet lines this year.
If you are not currently a member or friend, but would be interested in seeing what we do, we would love to include you among our guests for the annual meeting!
Members will receive their Zoom link by email. Guests may request a Zoom link here
CPR and AED Training
Nina Chandler, NREMT, AHA BLS Heartsaver, FA CPR Instructor returns to BHC to help us refresh our emergency response skills, and teach new attendees lo perform CPR and use BHC’s Automated External Defibrillator (AED) equipment.
During this CPR class, students can expect to learn the proper techniques for administering CPR and using an AED, as well as how to recognize the signs of a heart attack or stroke.
Ms. Chandler will demonstrate the proper steps and then help us practice and refine our skills.
The class is limited to 10 students. The fee is $100; financial aid is available.
Find details on event and register here.
Shabbat Morning: Services and Torah Study In the Sanctuary and by Zoom
10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. Shabbat Morning Services
11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. Torah Study with Rabbi Kirshbaum
Torah services September 7 and October 5.
Request Zoom link here.
Shabbat in the Sanctuary - and by Zoom
Join us for Kabbalat Shabbat in the sancutary and by Zoom, so that all of our devoted regulars can be there!
Look for more details in our email messages.
White Mountain Jewish Film Festival - The Producers
6:00 pm Patio Party | 6:30 pm Guest Speaker | 7:00 pm Film Begins
The Producers
A 1967 American satirical dark comedy cult classic movie written and directed by Mel Brooks. The movie tells the story of a theatrical producer and an accountant who want to produce a Broadway musical, but they want it to fail. They take more money from investors than they need and plan to abscond to Brazil as soon as the play closes, only to see the show turn out to be a hit.
Speaker - Rick Winston
Rick Winston was the co-owner of Montpelier’s Savoy Theater for 29 years, and was Programming Director for the Green Mountain Film Festival for 14 years. He has taught film history at Burlington College, Community College of Vermont, Goddard College, and the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, and has made presentations throughout Vermont on film history.
Patio Party Hosts - Lucy Goodhart and Gordon Bennett
Shabbat Morning: Services and Torah Study In the Sanctuary and by Zoom
10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. Shabbat Morning Services
11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. Torah Study with Rabbi Kirshbaum
Torah services held July 6, July 10, August 17, September 7 and October 5.
Request Zoom link here.
Shabbat in the Sanctuary - and by Zoom
Join us for Kabbalat Shabbat in the sancutary and by Zoom, so that all of our devoted regulars can be there!
Look for more details in our email messages.
Friday Walking Group: Mount Agassiz
Get the bug spray and sunscreen out so we can start enjoying nature!
August 30: Mount Agassiz, Bethlehem
Mount Agassiz is a short, steep hike (1.5 miles round trip) that leads to a stunning view from the summit. (We might choose to explore a different route to the top. The dirt bike trail is slightly longer but not as steep. Details will follow.)
We will meet at 9:30 AM
Everyone is welcome. We’re looking forward to seeing both old and new faces!!!
Sharon Heyman leads the walks. Contact her here.
White Mountain Jewish Film Festival- No Name Restaurant
Patio Party Hosts: Lucy Goodhart and Gordon Bennett
No Name Restaurant
To save the synagogue of the once largest Jewish community in the world from being shut down, Ben, an ultra-Orthodox Brooklyn Jew visiting Jerusalem, is sent to Egypt to be the desperately needed tenth man for the ceremonies of Pesach. Having missed his plane and been kicked off the bus in the Sinai Desert, his last hope is Adel, a grumpy Bedouin looking for his camel.
Guest Speaker Luzer Twersky is the Star of "No Name Restaurant"
Luzer Twersky is an American film and television actor. He is best known for his role in the film Felix and Meira, for which he garnered a Jutra Award nomination as Best Supporting Actor and won the Best Actor award at the Amiens International Film Festival[3] and the Torino International Film Festival.[4]
Luzer Twersky, Guest Speaker
Born and raised in Brooklyn as a Hasidic Jew, Twersky left the community in 2008, after struggling with his faith.[
He began acting in 2010, later appearing in Where Is Joel Baum?, the television series Transparent, the HBO show High Maintenance, and the Netflix documentary One of Us, where directors follow him years after he leaves his Hasidic community in Brooklyn, New York. Twersky has played the Baal Shem Tov in the Ukrainian film «Dovbush»
Shabbat Morning: Services and Torah Study In the Sanctuary and by Zoom
10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. Shabbat Morning Services
11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. Torah Study with Rabbi Kirshbaum
Torah services held July 6, July 10, August 17, September 7 and October 5.
Request Zoom link here.
Shabbat in the Sanctuary - and by Zoom
Services following Sounds in the Sanctuary concerts begin at 6:30 pm.
For local congregants who would like to get together before the start of our summer season, we are offering an in-person, Kabbalat Shabbat service on Friday, June 7th at 5pm in the shul.
The service will be hybrid, so that all of our devoted regulars can be there! If the experiment works, we will hold a second in-person service on June 21st.
Look for more details in our email messages.
Sounds in the Sanctuary 2024 - Michael Arnowitt
Mr. Arnowitt will peform:
Johannes Brahms: Intermezzo in B minor, Op. 119 No. 1
Gyorgy Ligeti: Étude No. 2, Cordes à vide (Open strings) and Étude No. 10, Der Zauberlehrling (The sorcerer’s apprentice)
Victoria Poleva: Ischia Island
Igor Stravinsky: Two selections from the music to his ballet Petrushka
Ludwig van Beethoven: Sonata no. 32 in C minor, Op. 11
Michael Aronwitt
Returning pianist Michael Arnowitt will present the closing performance of the series on August 23rd.
Michael’s musical landscapes and sense of touch at the keyboard have delighted audiences around the world, from his home in Vermont to Canada, Korea, Russia, and many European countries.
His life and music are the subjects of a documentary film, “Beyond 88 Keys” (2004), which has been broadcast on public television and shown at festivals in Europe and the United States.
His many unique creative projects include “If Music Be the Food of Love,” a program of classical and jazz music about food, simultaneously serving to the audience the food tastes that inspired the composers. For another intriguing collaboration, he combines his piano improvisations with the live creation of paintings on stage by visual artists.
As a distinguished event organizer, he directed the Vermont Millennium Music Festival chronicling music from the year 1000 to 2000, and a number of large-scale fundraisers for humanitarian aid for Balkan and Syrian war refugees
Books of Jewish Interest: All About Me! by Mel Brooks
All About Me! moderated by Dave Goldstone
IFor anyone who loves American comedy, the long wait is over. Here are the never-before-told, behind-the-scenes anecdotes and remembrances from a master storyteller, filmmaker, and creator of all things funny.
All About Me! charts Mel Brooks’s meteoric rise from a Depression-era kid in Brooklyn to the recipient of the National Medal of Arts. Whether serving in the United States Army in World War II, or during his burgeoning career as a teenage comedian in the Catskills, Mel was always mining his experiences for material, always looking for the perfect joke. His iconic career began with Sid Caesar’s Your Show of Shows, where he was part of the greatest writers’ room in history, which included Carl Reiner, Neil Simon, and Larry Gelbart. After co-creating both the mega-hit 2000 Year Old Man comedy albums and the classic television series Get Smart, Brooks’s stellar film career took off. He would go on to write, direct, and star in The Producers, The Twelve Chairs, Blazing Saddles, Young Frankenstein, Silent Movie, High Anxiety, and Spaceballs, as well as produce groundbreaking and eclectic films, including The Elephant Man, The Fly, and My Favorite Year. Brooks then went on to conquer Broadway with his record-breaking, Tony-winning musical, The Producers.
Meetings are open to anyone, and everyone interested in participating in a reading group. Join by Zoom here