Friday, June 26, 2020

Book Discussion via Zoom: Spies of No Country by Matti Friedman (Sun, Jun 28)

Cover of Spies of No Country by Matti Friedman

About Spies of No Country: Israel's Secret Agents at the Birth of the Mossad by Matti Friedman

(Available via paperback, hardback, Kindle, Audible audiobook, CD)

From the Publisher:

Award-winning writer Matti Friedman’s tale of Israel’s first spies has all the tropes of an espionage novel, including duplicity, betrayal, disguise, clandestine meetings, the bluff, and the double bluff—but it’s all true.

The four spies were young, Jewish, and born in Arab countries. In 1948, at the outbreak of war in Palestine, they went undercover in Beirut, spending two years running sabotage operations and sending crucial intelligence back home. It was dangerous work. Of the dozen members of their ragtag unit, five would be caught and executed—but the remainder would emerge as the nucleus of the Mossad, Israel’s vaunted intelligence agency.

Journalist and award-winning author Matti Friedman’s masterfully told and meticulously researched tale of Israel’s first spies reads like an espionage novel—but it’s all true. Spies of No Country is about the slippery identities of these spies, but it’s also about the complicated identity of Israel, a country that presents itself as Western but in fact has more citizens with Middle Eastern roots, just like the spies of this fascinating narrative.

Discussion Details

Join us by Zoom for an engaging discussion of Matti Friedman's book Spies of No Country.

Time:  Sunday, June 28, at 3:00 p.m. Central
Zoom Link: https://zoom.us/j/974051878
Password:  Zoom may ask you for a password;
    email Ed, Susan, or bethshalomauburn@gmail.com for the password
Meeting ID:  (to type into Zoom if the link isn’t working): 974 051 878



Read about us and follow us on Facebook. Join us for regular events (Friday services, Torah study, men's breakfasts) and special events (High Holy Days, holiday celebrations, book discussions, special programs, and visiting rabbis, educators, and speakers). Parents, contact us to learn about our religious school.

Week's Activities (beginning Fri, June 26)

This week, we will have the following activities:
  • Fri, June 26, 7:00 p.m. — Services
  • Sat, June 27, 9:00 a.m. — Torah study 
  • Sat, June 27, 8:15 p.m. — Alabama Community Virtual Havdalah (see email) 
    • Multi-congregation. This week, we welcome Selma! 
    • Bring your candle, spices, and juice or wine. Prepare to dim your lights. 
  • Sun, June 28, 9:30 a.m. — ISJL Education Conference begins. 
  • Sun, June 28, 3:00 p.m. — Book discussion: Spies of No Country
    • If you registered, you should have gotten an email from Rabbi Dreffin this Thursday. 
  • Tue, June 30, 5:00 p.m. — Meet Rabbi Caroline Sim with the ISJL (see email)

Friday, June 19, 2020

Week's Activities (beginning Fri, June 19)

This week, we will have the following activities:
  • Services on Friday, June 19, at 7 p.m.
  • Torah study on Saturday, June 20, at 9 a.m.
  • Alabama Community Virtual Havdalah (see email) on Saturday, June 20, at 8:15 p.m. (multi-congregation) 
  • The Rabbi Goes West (flexible watching times) and Q&A with the filmmakers on Monday, June 21, 8:30 p.m. 
    • Sponsorship and region: The Jewish Federation of MS has partnered with the Oxford Film Festival to bring the documentary The Rabbi Goes West, to viewers in Mississippi, Tennessee, and Alabama.
    • Price: Pay what you can: $3 - 10 for the ticket to watch the film before the and take part in the conversation. 
    • Tickets: https://watch.eventive.org/2020oxff/play/5ea34352f3aee6003072dc2f
    • Film rental details: The film can be pre-ordered and watched anytime June 19-26. Rentals last for 24 hours and 50% of the ticket goes to the filmmakers. 

Friday, June 12, 2020

Book Discussion via Zoom: The Book of V. by Anna Solomon (Thu, Jun 18)

Book of V. coverThis book discussion is sponsored by our Hadassah discussion group.

About The Book of V.: A Novel by Anna Solomon

(Available via paperback, hardback, kindle, Audible audiobook, CD)

From the Publisher:

Lily is a mother and a daughter. And a second wife. And a writer, maybe? Or she was going to be, before she had children. Now, in her rented Brooklyn apartment she’s grappling with her sexual and intellectual desires, while also trying to manage her roles as a mother and a wife in 2016.

Vivian Barr seems to be the perfect political wife, dedicated to helping her charismatic and ambitious husband find success in Watergate-era Washington D.C. But one night he demands a humiliating favor, and her refusal to obey changes the course of her life—along with the lives of others.

Esther is a fiercely independent young woman in ancient Persia, where she and her uncle’s tribe live a tenuous existence outside the palace walls. When an innocent mistake results in devastating consequences for her people, she is offered up as a sacrifice to please the King, in the hopes that she will save them all.

In Anna Solomon's The Book of V., these three characters' riveting stories overlap and ultimately collide, illuminating how women’s lives have and have not changed over thousands of years.

Discussion Details

Join us by Zoom for an engaging discussion of Anna Solomon's book The Book of V: A Novel.

Time:  Thursday, June 18, at 7:00 p.m. Central
Zoom Link: https://zoom.us/j/974051878
Password:  Zoom may ask you for a password;
    email Ed, Susan, or bethshalomauburn@gmail.com for the password
Meeting ID:  (to type into Zoom if the link isn’t working): 974 051 878



Read about us and follow us on Facebook. Join us for regular events (Friday services, Torah study, men's breakfasts) and special events (High Holy Days, holiday celebrations, book discussions, special programs, and visiting rabbis, educators, and speakers). Parents, contact us to learn about our religious school.

Week's Activities (beginning Fri, June 12)

This week, we will have the following activities:
  • Services on Friday, June 12, at 7 p.m.
  • Torah study on Saturday, June 13, at 9 a.m.
  • Alabama Community Virtual Havdalah (see email) on Saturday, June 13, at 8:15 p.m. (multi-congregation) 
  • Board meeting (see email) on Sunday, June 14, at 5:30 p.m.
  • Hadassah Book Group's discussion of The Book of V: A Novel by Anna Solomon--Thursday, June 18, at 7 p.m.

Friday, June 5, 2020

Week's Activities (beginning Fri, June 5)

This week, we will have the following activities:
  • Services on Friday, June 5, at 7 p.m.
  • Torah study on Saturday, June 6, at 9 a.m.
  • Board meeting (see email) on Sunday, June 7, at 5:30 p.m.
In the upcoming weeks, look for
  • the Hadassah Book Group's discussion of The Book of V: A Novel by Anna Solomon--Thursday, June 18, at 7 p.m.