help me put on a special
shabbat event in Israel

Hi Loved Ones,

I am co-hosting a special Shabbat event in Tel Aviv this May and would be grateful for your support to put this event on. (Scroll down for more details).

A little about what this is, how I got involved, and what it means to me:

In November of last year, feeling lost and lonely in the throes of war and searching for something to connect to, a friend brought me into a community called SHIUR. Micki Weinberg, the mind behind it all, is an American Jew who is based in Berlin but has, since the war began, spent a large chunk of his time in Israel. Micki founded SHIUR as a means to connect Torah discussion to contemporary theory and thus to a larger crowd outside of the non-secular Jewish community. During the weekly SHIUR sessions, we read through the Parsha interspersed with excerpts and quotes from famous Jewish and non-Jewish minds throughout history.

To me, SHIUR has become a core part of my existence in Israel, as an American-Israeli, and as a secular Jewish person. It allows me to tap into a part of my youth that I glossed over (the forced bi-weekly Hebrew school classes that I would and did do anything to skip) in a way that connects back to the world around me, those who came before me, and the world that we’re creating for those who come after us. We discuss how the subjects of the Torah relate to humanity and the human experience as a whole. And it’s done in a way that is welcoming and safe for everyone. SHIUR does not happen without the direct participation and collaboration of Jews and non-Jews, Israelis, Arabs, and visitors from around the world alike.

I’ve found a community where I’m able to learn from and with people I am not normally surrounded by in an environment where we foster and cultivate one another’s curiosity and intellect. There are no wrong answers and in fact, any answer is encouraged, as it opens up the door to further conversation, continuing to foster and cultivate this environment and shared experience.

Micki works hard to ensure that our sessions are intriguing and inviting, both through the content and through the physical environment. We’ve had sessions in wide ranges of places throughout Tel Aviv, like Beit Radical, Sommer Contemporary Art Gallery, and Cafe Ivri, to name a few. The experience is all-encompassing, and has exposed me to people and places that I don’t know if I’d ever be exposed to, which I believe have enhanced my human experience.

If you’re still reading, first, thank you. I wanted to explain all of this because as I become more involved in SHIUR, I’m hoping to help Micki be able to continue to enhance the SHIUR experience moving forward, continuing to bring the community to different locations in and around Tel Aviv and expanding the programming to help the community grow. We’re looking to continue the weekly Thursday sessions as well as Shabbat dinners and programming with interesting individuals and communities around Israel.

I would be grateful for your support as we work to make this Shabbat dinner I am co-hosting and further programming happen. This is a community that I believe in that brings value to me and my fellow SHIUR-niks in a way that we need, in general, but especially now.

AND! SHIUR is a 501-c-3 not-for-profit organization (EIN: 86-3431923) so any donations are tax-deductible for US tax-payers. Please see below for ways you can donate to support us, as well as photos from previous events. If you’re interested, there is also the option to support us via a corporate matching program, which I can provide further details for. To give with your Donor Advised Fund, click here.

Thank you,

Daniella