On Sunday, Feb. 5, Patricia Ohmans, founder and director of Frogtown Green, will present “Why We Should Plant Trees and How To Do It: In Tribute to Tu B’Shevat” from 10 a.m.-noon at the Talmud Torah of St. Paul, 768 Hamline Ave. South in St. Paul. A social time will follow the program. 

Patricia Ohmans

Frogtown Green is a resident-driven initiative advocating for environmental equity and sustainability in Frogtown, St. Paul’s most diverse low-income neighborhood. Ohmans will discuss the value and benefits of urban trees; climate change and trees; the impact of climate change on low-resourced neighborhoods like Frogtown; how Frogtown Green works to increase tree canopy; and how other neighborhoods can do the same work, inexpensively and effectively. 

A 42-year resident of Frogtown, Ohmans is a journalist, master gardener and public health professional.

The Sunday adult programs are free and open to the public and meet concurrently with the Jewish Cultural Sunday School. All in-person attendees must wear a mask indoors and are expected to be up to date on vaccinations or have a same-day negative COVID test. Those who cannot attend in person may join over Zoom. Please register in advance here. 

Or Emet is a secular congregation celebrating and honoring Jewish culture, history and values from a humanistic, inclusive perspective. 

For information about Or Emet’s Jewish Cultural Sunday School, contact JCSS director Molly Phipps at school-1@oremet.org. For information about Or Emet, email info@oremet.org or visit oremet.org.

On Saturday, Jan. 21, from 10-11:30 a.m., Or Emet will host a Humanistic Shabbat service and presentation focused on the work of the Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MN). The events will take place at the Minnesota JCC Sabes Center Minneapolis, 4330 S. Cedar Lake Road, Minneapolis. A social time will follow the program.

Jaylani Hussein

The service will be led by Eva Cohen, Or Emet’s ritual leader and a Humanistic rabbi in training. Following the service, Jaylani Hussein, executive director of CAIR-MN, will present “CAIR’s Mission of Advocacy and Civil Rights Initiatives for Muslims and Marginalized Communities.”

Hussein is a passionate leader who specializes in the areas of urban planning, community development, youth development, legal and civil rights. He also advises and works with several mosques and nonprofit organizations across the state.

In 2016, Hussein was appointed to the Minnesota Governor’s Council on Law Enforcement and Community Relations, and in 2017 he received the Twin Cities International Citizen Award for Social Justice. He has appeared on local, national and international news shows, including ABC, CNN, Fox Business, NPR, BBC and others.

Those who cannot attend the program in person may join over Zoom. Please register in advance here. In-person attendees must wear a mask indoors and are expected to be up to date on vaccinations or have a same-day negative COVID test.

Or Emet’s events and programs may change per CDC and state guidelines during the pandemic. All updates and changes will be posted in Or Emet’s events calendar. Or Emet is a secular congregation celebrating and honoring Jewish culture, history and values from a humanistic, inclusive perspective. For more information, email info@oremet.org or visit oremet.org.

On Sunday, Jan. 8, Or Emet member Rachel Wexelbaum will present “In the Spirit of Harvey Milk: 2022-2023 Humanistic Jewish Role Model of the Year” from 10 a.m.-noon at the Talmud Torah of St. Paul, 768 Hamline Ave. South in St. Paul. A social time will follow the program. Those who cannot attend in person may join over Zoom. Please register in advance here. 

Harvey Milk

The Society for Humanistic Judaism has selected the late Harvey Milk as the 2022-2023 Humanistic Jewish Role Model of the Year. The choice of Milk has generated controversy among the Humanistic Jewish community, as Milk neither identified as a Humanistic Jew nor affiliated himself with any religious organization. Wexelbaum will demonstrate how Milk embodied Humanistic Jewish values while uplifting some contemporary LGBTQ+ Jewish activists who are equally worthy of the award.

Wexelbaum is an independent writer and researcher who focuses on LGBTQ+ and Jewish identities, histories and community building via cultural preservation, activism and Wikimedia projects. With more than 20 years’ experience as an educator, librarian and human rights advocate, she currently works as the education director at the St. Cloud Correctional Facility of the Minnesota Department of Corrections.

The Sunday adult programs are free and open to the public and meet concurrently with the Jewish Cultural Sunday School. All in-person attendees must wear a mask indoors and are expected to be up to date on vaccinations or have a same-day negative COVID test.

Or Emet is a secular congregation celebrating and honoring Jewish culture, history and values from a humanistic, inclusive perspective. 

For information about Or Emet’s Jewish Cultural Sunday School, contact JCSS director Molly Phipps at school-1@oremet.org. For information about Or Emet, email info@oremet.org or visit oremet.org.

On Sunday, Dec. 11, Or Emet will host a presentation by Judson (Kim) Bemis, founder and executive director of Gobi Support Inc., an online drug and alcohol early intervention program for teens and their families.

Judson (Kim) Bemis

The program will run from 10 a.m.-noon at the Talmud Torah of St. Paul, 768 Hamline Ave. South in St. Paul. A social time will follow the program. Those who cannot attend in person may join over Zoom. Please register in advance here. 

Marijuana legalization is a hot topic today. Bemis will talk about his personal struggle with cannabis use disorder, what Minnesota just legalized and why commercializing cannabis may not be the solution.

Bemis began his work in the field of addiction recovery in 2005, first as national director of development for the Hazelden Foundation and then as executive director of Hazelden’s online business opportunities. He has served on more than a dozen for-profit and nonprofit boards and currently serves as co-chair of Smart Approaches to Marijuana Minnesota.

The Sunday adult programs are free and open to the public and meet concurrently with the Jewish Cultural Sunday School. All attendees must wear a mask indoors and are expected to be up to date on vaccinations or have a same-day negative COVID test.

Or Emet is a secular congregation celebrating and honoring Jewish culture, history and values from a humanistic, inclusive perspective. 

For information about Or Emet’s Jewish Cultural Sunday School, contact JCSS director Molly Phipps at school-1@oremet.org. For information about Or Emet, email info@oremet.org or visit oremet.org.

On Saturday, Dec. 3, from 10-11:30 a.m., Or Emet will host a Shabbat service followed by a presentation titled “Rod Serling: The Art and Philosophy of a Humanist.” The events will take place at the Minnesota JCC Sabes Center Minneapolis, 4330 S. Cedar Lake Road, Minneapolis. A social time will follow the program.

Rod Serling

The service will be led by Eva Cohen, Or Emet’s ritual leader and a Humanistic rabbi-in-training. Following the service, Or Emet member Diane Wanner will discuss Rod Serling, an American scriptwriter, television producer, radio host and narrator who publicly stated that it was the duty of writers to explore relevant and socially significant content in their work. 

Serling was born to Jewish parents, became a Unitarian and wove his humanistic philosophy throughout his work, including the well-known television series “The Twilight Zone.” Wanner’s presentation will examine the moral and political themes of Serling’s fiction. 

Those who cannot attend in person may join over Zoom. Please register in advance here. In-person attendees must wear a mask indoors and are expected to be up to date on vaccinations or have a same-day negative COVID test.

Or Emet’s events and programs may change per CDC and state guidelines during the pandemic. All updates and changes will be posted in Or Emet’s events calendar. Or Emet is a secular congregation celebrating and honoring Jewish culture, history and values from a humanistic, inclusive perspective. For more information about Or Emet, email info@oremet.org or visit oremet.org.