Sichot Beyn Achayot – Conversations Between Sisters – Session 1

Monday, September 23, 2024

12:00 pm EDT - 1:30 pm EDT

שיחןת בין אחיות, Sichot beyn Achayot, means “Conversations between Sisters.” This program is designed to foster a deeper mutual understanding between the members of WLCJ in North America and the Masorti women from Israel. It is designed to address the question, “How are we the same, and how are we different?” The theme of this year’s program is:

בכל מקום בו שאנו שוכנים הלב של כולנו נח בישראל

No Matter Where We Live Our Hearts are in Israel

The three sessions will each concentrate on one specific aspect of the important connections we all have with the land of Israel and will include presentations from speakers from both sides of the Atlantic. Each workshop will also include an opportunity for all attendees to become part of the conversation.

Monday, September 23 — 19:00 Israel Time | 12:00 PM ET | 11:00 AM CT | 10:00 AM MT | 9:00 AM PT

Title: ושמחת בחגך והיית אך שמח, “You shall rejoice on your festivals, and should be fully happy.” How do we live these words after October 7, 2023?

The Torah commands us to “rejoice in your holiday”—but how do we do that, when our celebrations are tainted by the memories of the brutal events of Shemini Atzeret/Simchat Torah that occurred last year? And at the same time how do we find appropriate ways to mark the first anniversary of October 7?

Guest Speakers:

Rabbi Beth Naditch was ordained by the Jewish Theological Seminary in 1999. She is a board certified chaplain and an ACPE Certified Educator (CPE Supervisor). Since 2012, Beth has taught students the art and skills of spiritual care at Hebrew SeniorLife in Boston, MA, where she will take over as Director of CPE in October, 2024. Beth has a passion for geriatrics, and has developed a specialty in teaching about trauma-informed care in the face of communal disaster. She teaches widely in the Boston Jewish community and beyond, including a long running Women’s Torah Study class at Mayyim Hayyim Mikveh and Education Center. Beth is the co-editor of Halleli Nafshi, a siddur for children and youth, and has been the Yamim Noraim spiritual leader of the Havurah of the Capital District, in Albany, NY, for over twenty years. When she is not teaching, Beth is an avid reader and loves to sing. She and her husband have one child at Brandeis, one son at Columbia/JTS, and they live with their youngest son in Newton, MA. They have many extended family members and friends in Israel, where their hearts partially reside.

Rabbi Nathalie Lastreger was ordained by the Schechter Rabbinical School, is serving as Rabbi of the Masorti Minyan of Kfar Vradim in the Upper Galilee for over six years, from summer 2016. Before that she served in Masorti Rabbinical and educational positions in Israel and abroad and pre-Army academies. She is active in organizations for social change with emphasis on the rights of women and minorities. Rabbi Lastreger has a B.A. in Life Sciences and an M.A. in Political Science, from the Hebrew University and has completed studies for an advanced degree in Midrash, Halacha and Talmud at the Schechter Institute. She is on the staff of the Masorti Women’s Study Days teaching classes in Hebrew, English and French.

REGISTER

Registration is only open to WL members, you must log in (https://www.wlcjmembers.org/member_login.php) to register. If you need assistance, please contact the office (405) 870-1260.

Registration is open to International Sister Friends (outside of the USA and Canada), through here: https://wlcj2.org/u/?I1c6464d

This registration link is ONLY for International friends of Women’s League outside the USA and Canada.

Other two sessions coming up:

Session Two: How has our relationship with Israel changed after October 7, 2024?
Sunday, November 24, 2024 at 12:00 PM ET

Session Three: Making Aliyah: Exploring the Changing Family Dynamics Involved in Moving to [or from] Israel
Thursday, December 19, 2024 at 12:00 PM ET