The Adult Education committee of Congregation Shomrei Torah seeks to present topical programs on subjects which will interest synagogue members. Our committee has not pursued a consistent theme (such as a series of programs on Jewish ethics, for example), but rather we have gone where an eclectic collection of interesting subjects and speakers has taken us.

For example, over the past three years we have had evening discussions on: the connection between Jewish and civil law, featuring comparisons by four New Jersey Superior Court judges; Women of the Wall, a discussion led by a woman rabbi fighting for the rights of women to pray at the Kotel; advanced medical directives and living wills, at which doctors and lawyers discussed end-of-life document planning; Jews in Arab lands, members of our own congregation discussing how they celebrated Hanukah in their countries of origin; and other subjects including archeology in Israel today, new housing construction in the West Bank and East Jerusalem and tracing your ancestry through the use of Jewish genealogical sources.

In coming months we hope to continue to provide stimulating programs for our congregation.