Special Shabbat Weekend with Scholar-in-Residence Rabbi Dr. Gary P. Zola

A program of the Miriam & Moses Center for Pluralistic Adult Jewish Learning

Join us for a special Shabbat weekend as we welcome Scholar-in-Residence Rabbi Dr. Gary P. Zola, Executive Director Emeritus of the Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives.

Rabbi Dr. Gary P. Zola is the executive director emeritus of the Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives in Cincinnati. A widely regarded expert in American Jewish history, Dr. Zola was appointed to the Commission for the Preservation of American Heritage Abroad in 2011 and the United States Holocaust Memorial Council in 2023. He is the author of We Called Him Rabbi Abraham: Lincoln and American Jewry, A Documentary History.

Friday, March 13
7 p.m. Erev Shabbat Service
Rabbi Dr. Zola will discuss The Past Is Prologue: Temple Beth-El and the American Jewish Experience

As we write the next chapter of Temple Beth-El’s great story, our challenge is to innovate while honoring our venerable past. Rabbi Dr. Zola, a historian of American Reform Judaism, will reflect on how TBE’s unique history, character, and reputation for leadership are keys to a vibrant and exciting future.

Saturday, March 14
9:15-10:15 a.m.
Torah Study with Scholar-in-Residence Rabbi Dr. Zola discussing The Origins of Jewish Life in North America: The Jews Who Came to New Amsterdam  
Explore the amazing saga of how the very first Jewish settlers in North America established new patterns of Jewish life that have characterized the American Jewish experience ever since.

This program is sponsored by Susan & David Weiss-Horowitz

10:30-11:30 a.m.
Shabbat Service honoring congregant Julius Myer
Our honoree has been on TBE’s Board of Trustees for four years and the financial secretary for two. He and his wife, Felisa, have been temple members since 2009.

11:30 a.m.-1 p.m.
Lunch & Learn with Scholar-in-Residence Rabbi Dr. Zola discussing He Was One of Us—American Jewry’s Relationship with Abraham Lincoln  
As Passover approaches, learn about the remarkable history linking American Jewry with America’s great emancipator. Dr. Zola, author of the acclaimed book We Called Him Rabbi Abraham, will explain why many of Lincoln’s personal and professional qualities have led American Jews to embrace the 16th president as a man who possessed a Jewish soul.

Click here to register.

This program is sponsored by Susan & David Weiss-Horowitz.