Thursday, May 25th, 6:30 p.m.
It is traditional to stay up late, or even all night, on Erev Shavuot in celebration of our ancestors staying up all night at Mt. Sinai in anticipation of receiving the Torah. Dairy foods (cheesecake!) are part of the celebration.
Our evening will include three learning opportunities, candle lighting, and a Ma’ariv service to usher in the holiday. Of course, an array of delicious foods will be enjoyed.
Our educators and their presentations are as follows:
- Marcia Wollner - I’m With the Banned! Are We the People of the Book or People of the Banned Book?
- Dr. Aaron Elkins – Artificial Intelligence and Torah: Can Robots be Jewish?
- Rabbi Mathew Marko - What REALLY Happened at Sinai? – Eyewitness Accounts
RSVP by Monday, May 22nd
The evening is complimentary but your emailed RSVP will assist us in being properly prepared. You may also call the office at 619 697-6001. Please let us know you’ll join us!
About our guest educators:
Marcia Tatz Wollner is currently the Western Region Director of the March of the Living. She has a Masters in Social Work from the University of Maryland and a Masters in Jewish History from the Baltimore Hebrew College. Marcia has worked in Jewish educational capacities at the Lawerence Family JCC, the former Agency for Jewish Education, and various congregations in San Diego.
Dr. Aaron Elkins is an Associate Professor in the Department of Management Information Systems and the Director of the James Silberrad Brown Center for Artificial Intelligence at San Diego State University. Aaron is an active member of Tifereth Israel Synagogue and may often be found at Shabbat services and a variety of events.
Shavuot Candle Lightings and Services
Thursday, May 25th
- Candle lighting is at 7:29 p.m.
Friday, May 26th
- Shavuot services begin at 9:30 a.m.
- Shabbat services are at 6:15 p.m.
- Shavuot/Shabbat Candle lighting is at 7:29 p.m.
Saturday, May 27th
- Shavuot/Shabbat services begin at 9:30 a.m. and Yizkor Memorial Prayers will be recited.
- Havdalah is at 8:38 p.m.
About Shavuot:
Shavuot, known as the Feast of Weeks, commemorates the day God gave the Torah to the nation of Israel assembled at Mount Sinai. It also marks the all-important wheat harvest in the Land of Israel.
One of the Shalosh Regalim, the three Biblical pilgrimage festivals, Shavuot (meaning “weeks”) marks the conclusion of the Counting of the Omer. The Torah commands the seven-week Counting of the Omer, beginning on the second day of Passover, to be immediately followed by Shavuot. This counting of days and weeks is understood to express anticipation for the giving of the Torah. On Passover, the people of Israel were freed from their enslavement in Egypt; on Shavuot they were given the Torah and became a nation committed to serving God.