Calendar

Jun
22
Thu
MJCC Day Camp Kick-off Party! @ Mittleman Jewish Community Center
Jun 22 @ 4:00 pm

Summer Day Camp party!
Thursday, June 22
4:00 pm

Mar
18
Sun
“Living While Dying” – March Movie Night @ Havurah Shalom
Mar 18 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm

During March Movie Night on Sunday, March 18, Havurah Shalom’s Ma’avar Committee will show “Living While Dying,” a film made by P’nai Or member Cathy Zheutlin.

Here is a brief description of the film: Death is a big mystery, and yet the outcome is 100 percent certain. How do you plan for the unknown? Filmmaker Cathy Zheutlin tells the stories of four friends with terminal illness who chose to live out their final days at home with creativity humor and courage. One might think that it would be depressing or morose. In fact, just the opposite – it is loving, hopeful and and full of joy. Despite cultural norms that death is meant to be vanquished, “Living While Dying” transforms sorrow and fear into inspiration and beauty. It honors what University of California San Francisco palliative care physician BJ Miller says, that “dying is a human act, not just a medical one.”

The film will be followed by a panel discussion with some experts in end-of-life care, many of whom are Havurah members.

Panelists include:

  • Rabbi Benjamin
  • Charles Blanke – Havurah member and OHSU oncologist specializing in end-of-life care and death with dignity
  • Karen Erde -Havurah member and palliative care physician
  • Susan Hedlund – Manager of Patient and Family Support Services at the OHSU Knight Cancer Institute. She has over 30 years of experience in oncology and hospice care, and worked on the original task force to legalize death with dignity.

A suggested donation of $10 will directly help the filmmaker so she can continue to pay for the production of this very beautiful and important film.

Please RSVP at tinyurl.com/Live-HS.

Oct
11
Thu
HUMANS @ Newmark Theater
Oct 11 @ 7:30 pm – Oct 13 @ 8:30 pm

(Photo by Pedro Greig)

White Bird welcomes Australian contemporary circus company, Circa, with their program HUMANS.

After an absence of five years, White Bird is delighted to present the return of the world-famous Australian contemporary circus company, Circa, with the West Coast premiere of their astonishing new work HUMANS. Since 2004, from its base in Brisbane, Australia, Circa has toured the world—performing in 39 countries to over a million people. As was the case in Portland in 2013, with their White Bird debut, Circa’s movement-based circus works have been greeted with standing ovations, rave reviews and sold-out houses across six continents. Under the direction of circus visionary Yaron Lifschitz, Circa’s HUMANS features an ensemble of 10 exceptional, multi-skilled circus artists whose physicality and artistry are put to the test in Lifschitz’ newest work.

Yaron Lifschitz

An article in the Australian Jewish News says: Lifschitz looks back on his career with lots of pride, as do his Jewish parents who may initially have preferred him to be a doctor.

Circa is at the forefront of the new wave of contemporary Australian circus—pioneering how extreme physicality can create powerful and moving performances. Circa pushes the boundaries of the art form, blurs the lines between movement, dance, theatre and circus, and leads the way with a diverse range of thrilling creations that ‘redraw the limits to which circus can aspire“ (The Age).

Over the course of 70 nail-biting minutes, HUMANS explores the limits of human physicality and perseverance. The stage remains stripped bare as the vulnerability of the artists is left exposed throughout this thrilling work. Seamlessly moving from one breathtaking acrobatic act to the next, HUMANS challenges both the artists and the audience members to answer the questions “what does it mean to be human? How can you express the very essence of this experience with your body, with the group and with the audience? Where are your limits, what extraordinary things can you achieve and how can you find grace in your inevitable defeat?” Lifschitz uses this work to report on what it means to be human. “In our limitations are our possibilities,” he says. It is “precisely because we are human that our physical achievements acquire dignity, meaning and poetry. It is in connection to our vulnerability that our strength finds its true articulation.”

In its glowing review, The Guardian (UK) sums up the power and beauty of HUMANS: “Circa’s brand new production Humans is the five-star favorite: a clear demonstration of the artistry of circus and its potential to draw together multiple theatrical forms. What I adored was its fluid take on humanity and gender roles: women caught men falling backwards; men leapt towards and were caught by men. As the ensemble moved themselves into sculptural, abstract shapes, reaching higher to the ceiling for the denouement, I felt moved by their vulnerable, collective humanity.”

Circa’s Artistic Director Yaron Lifschitz is a graduate of the University of New South Wales, University of Queensland, and National Institute of Dramatic Arts (NIDA), where he was the youngest director ever accepted into its prestigious graduate director’s course. Since graduating, Yaron has directed over 60 productions including large-scale events, opera, theatre, physical theatre, and circus. His work has been seen in 39 countries and across six continents by over one million people and has won numerous awards including six Helpmann awards and the Australia Council Theatre Award. He is currently Artistic Director and CEO of Circa, and was the Creative Director of Festival 2018: the arts and cultural program of the 21st Commonwealth Games. In 2018, Yaron directed four new Circa creations, and a new production of Idomeneo which opened in Lisbon at The Teatro Nacional de São Carlos.

White Bird’s 21st season (2018-19) is supported by the Regional Arts & Culture Council, including support from the City of Portland, Multnomah County and the Arts Education & Access Fund; Work for Art; The James F. and Marion L. Miller Foundation, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust, and Oregon Arts Commission.

Feb
10
Sun
MJCC Summer Day Camp Info Fair @ Mittleman Jewish Community Center
Feb 10 @ 10:00 am – 1:00 pm

MJCC Summer Day Camp Info Fair

Learn about the MJCC Summer Day Camp programs, register, and meet camp staff!
Sunday, February 10
10:00 am – 1:00 pm

Mar
3
Sun
2019 Friends of the Center Brunch featuring Michael Twitty @ Mittleman Jewish Community Center
Mar 3 @ 10:00 am – 12:00 pm
2019 Friends of the Center Brunch featuring Michael Twitty
Michael W. Twitty: Kosher Soul and The Cooking Gene
Join us for our 2019 Friends of the Center Brunch, the MJCC’s biggest fundraiser of the year. Come hear Michael W. Twitty, a James Beard Winning food writer, independent scholar, culinary historian, and historical interpreter personally charged with preparing, preserving, and promoting African American foodways and its parent traditions in Africa and her Diaspora and its legacy in the food culture of the American South. Michael is a Judaic studies teacher from the Washington D.C. Metropolitan area. The Cooking Gene is Michael’s personal mission to document the connection between food history and family history from Africa to America, from slavery to freedom. Initiated in 2011, the project successfully garnered funding and significant media attention in 2012 to initiate a journey known as The Southern Discomfort Tour. Follow him on twitter @koshersoul, and meet him at the MJCC on Sunday, March 3, 2019.
Individual Tickets: $54. Age 36 and under: $36. Table of Eight: $432.
Sponsorships available.
oregonjcc.org/brunch
Jul
19
Fri
Shaba-lah Family Shabbat BBQ @ Mittleman Jewish Community Center
Jul 19 @ 3:30 pm

Shaba-lah Family Shabbat BBQ

Bring your family or join your child at camp for a special Shabbat. Enjoy a Shabbat set to the theme of camp this week with stories, songs, and more.
Friday, July 19
3:30 pm

Cost: MJCC Camp Families: $10 per family.
Community Members: $15 per family.
Register at: oregonjcc.org/shabbatbbq

Nov
23
Sat
Guest presenter Dr. Rachel Adelman @ Congregation Neveh Shalom
Nov 23 @ 9:00 am – 2:30 pm

Guest presenter Dr. Rachel Adelman

Saturday Nov 23, 2019, at Services AND at 1:00-2:30pm

Join us for a special presentation with feminist Jewish writer and teacher, Dr. Rachel Adelman. She will offer the D’var Torah during Shabbat morning services and will be guest teaching on the topic “Hanukkah Heroines of Yore” in the afternoon. Dr. Adelman teaches Hebrew Bible in the rabbinical program at Hebrew College in Boston. Her most recent book is The Female Ruse — Women’s Deception and Divine Sanction in the Hebrew Bible.

Please note: Programs are subject to change; please contact the office for more information: 503.246.8831 or visit the website at: www.nevehshalom.org.

Jan
13
Mon
Gates of Light with Rabbi Joshua Rose @ Mittleman Jewish Community Center
Jan 13 @ 2:30 pm – 3:30 pm

Gates of Light: A New-Old Approach to Torah and Kabbalah
Jewish mysticism helps us understand the Torah, the world, and ourselves. Delve into the core teachings of the majestic Kabbalistic tradition. Red bracelets aren’t going to do it – dig deep into the texts and into ourselves. Join Rabbi Joshua Rose for a look into the book Sha’arei Orah – Gates of Light.

Monday, January 13
Monday, February 3
Monday, March 16
2:30 – 3:25 pm
Free and open to the community.
In partnership with Congregation Shaarie Torah

Feb
3
Mon
Gates of Light with Rabbi Joshua Rose @ Mittleman Jewish Community Center
Feb 3 @ 2:30 pm – 3:30 pm

Gates of Light: A New-Old Approach to Torah and Kabbalah
Jewish mysticism helps us understand the Torah, the world, and ourselves. Delve into the core teachings of the majestic Kabbalistic tradition. Red bracelets aren’t going to do it – dig deep into the texts and into ourselves. Join Rabbi Joshua Rose for a look into the book Sha’arei Orah – Gates of Light.

Monday, January 13
Monday, February 3
Monday, March 16
2:30 – 3:25 pm
Free and open to the community.
In partnership with Congregation Shaarie Torah

Mar
16
Mon
Gates of Light with Rabbi Joshua Rose @ Mittleman Jewish Community Center
Mar 16 @ 2:30 pm – 3:30 pm

Gates of Light: A New-Old Approach to Torah and Kabbalah
Jewish mysticism helps us understand the Torah, the world, and ourselves. Delve into the core teachings of the majestic Kabbalistic tradition. Red bracelets aren’t going to do it – dig deep into the texts and into ourselves. Join Rabbi Joshua Rose for a look into the book Sha’arei Orah – Gates of Light.

Monday, January 13
Monday, February 3
Monday, March 16
2:30 – 3:25 pm
Free and open to the community.
In partnership with Congregation Shaarie Torah