Metro Briefs August 27

Ruth Fauman-Fichman, researcher for the art exhibition Moving Targets, will be joining artists Ann Rosenthal and Steffi Domike for the opening reception and catalog signing at Christine Frechard Gallery, 5871 Forbes Ave. on Saturday, Aug. 29 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

The exhibition incorporates the artists’ exploration of their Jewish forebears’ flight from the Ukraine/Pale of Settlement in the early 20th century with the then concurrent exploitation and extinction of the passenger pigeon.

Domike’s family originated in Uman, burial place of the famed Rabbi Nachman of Bratslav. Local Holocaust survivor Moshe Baran’s Yiddish rendition of a challah recipe is incorporated into one of Rosenthal’s images. The event is free and open to the public.

Get The Jewish Chronicle Weekly Edition by email and never miss our top stories Free Sign Up

Contact Ruth Fauman-Fichman at rfaumanfichman@gmail.com for more information about the opening reception and Sept. 20 gallery talk.

The Pittsburgh Area Jewish Committee East End Christian-Jewish Dialogue will be held on Thursday, Sept. 3 from noon to 1:15 p.m. at Rodef Shalom Congregation. The discussion will focus on Pope Francis’ Encyclical, On the Care of Our Common Home, with Dr. Ed Scheid leading the discussion on the pope’s spiritual teachings on our environment and its current state of affairs and the pope’s call to action for us to have a more intentional relationship with our Earth.

Contact pajc@pajc.net or 412-605-0816 or visit pajc.net for more information.

Temple Emanuel of South Hills and Beth El Congregation invite the community to Selichot on Saturday, Sept. 5 at 7:30 p.m. at Temple Emanuel.  The evening will include a Mincha service, dessert reception, Havdalah and a Selichot service highlighted by music featuring soloists from both congregations.  Following the service, Cantor Henry Shapiro will present “Songs from the Jewish Heart and Soul.” Contact the Temple office at 412-279-7600 for more information.

Temple Emanuel of South Hills will hold its annual Labor Day Picnic on Monday, Sept. 7 at 4 p.m. The picnic features activities for the family, including train rides for children, Kona Ice available for purchase, games, food and more. Prospective members are welcome. 

Contact the office at 412-279-7600 for more information.

Chabad of the South Hills will hold a pre-High Holiday lecture, “Making the Most of a Bad Day,” by Dan Butler on Thursday, Sept. 10 at 7 p.m. Call 412-344-2424 for more information.

The Autism Speaks Chapter and Regional Grant Program deadline is Monday, Sept. 28. The Chapter and Regional Grant Program is available for local service providers and schools and is designed to promote local services that enhance the lives of those affected by autism, expand the capacity to effectively serve the growing community and increase the field of service providers.

Local organizations may apply for a one-time grant of up to $5,000 for new programs or the expansion of existing programs.

Questions about application status, funding and grant-related inquiries should be directed to Serena Selkin at sselkin@autismspeaks.org.

Community Day School has been selected as a Partner School in the Facing History and Ourselves’ Innovative Schools Network in recognition of its leadership in social justice, human behavior and Holocaust education.

The Innovative Schools Network comprises 80 public, private and parochial schools worldwide that weave content and teaching strategies from Facing History and Ourselves throughout their curricula across grade levels and disciplines. As students explore the complexities of history, they wrestle with the ethical choices we face today.

Middle school teacher Jackie Goldblum is the Facing History liaison for CDS and traveled to Boston for training this July with several colleagues. Goldblum also serves as a Holocaust educator with the Gary and Nancy Tuckfelt Keeping Tabs: A Holocaust Sculpture, a memorial on the CDS campus. She also teaches an after-school program based on Facing History themes to inner-city students through a partnership with Higher Achievement Pittsburgh.

CDS students currently study the Holocaust, human rights, and related topics in seventh and eighth grades. As a Partner School, Facing History teaching strategies and lessons will be integrated throughout the school in an age-appropriate way in history, language arts, library and other disciplines. They also will be part of a new program for Martin Luther King Jr. Day and integrated into service-learning opportunities for CDS students.

In a letter to Congress, 340 U.S. rabbis from the major streams of Judaism expressed support for the Iran nuclear deal.

The letter sent last week urges the House of Representatives and Senate to endorse the agreement, in which sanctions are lifted in exchange for restrictions on Iran’s nuclear program.

Noting that “we are deeply concerned with the impression that the leadership of the American Jewish community is united in opposition to the agreement,” the letter states, “We, along with many other Jewish leaders, fully support this historic nuclear accord.”

In a news release issued by Ameinu, a liberal Zionist organization, one of the letter’s signatories, Rabbi Steven Bob of Glen Ellyn, Ill., said, “We commend the U.S. and the other negotiating teams for their dedication to reaching an agreement to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. This deal is good for the United States and our allies in the region and is the best arrangement possible given current international realities.”

Among the rabbis signing the letter are Rabbi Art Donsky (the only one from Pittsburgh), former rabbi at Temple Ohav Shalom in Allison Park; Burton Visotzky, a professor at the Conservative movement’s Jewish Theological Seminary; Sharon Brous of Ikar, a large congregation in Los Angeles and Nina Beth Cardin, an author and Jewish environmental activist.