On Friday, March 4, Or Emet will host a Shabbat service followed by an educational program about the worldwide refugee crisis with a focus on the U.S. and Afghan resettlement in the Twin Cities.      

The service, led by Eva Cohen, Or Emet’s ritual leader and a Humanistic rabbi-in-training, will begin at 7:30 p.m. at the Sabes Jewish Community Center, 4330 South Cedar Lake Rd., St. Louis Park. Those who cannot attend in person may join over Zoom. Please register in advance. 

Following the service, members of Or Emet’s Social Justice/Social Action Committee will facilitate presentations by two speakers and a discussion of the 26 million-plus worldwide refugees, policy changes and challenges under the Biden administration, and activities to resettle Afghan people in Minnesota.

Speakers will include Nikki Salzman, associate director of major gifts for HIAS (Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society), a global Jewish nonprofit which helps refugees find safety, freedom and stability all around the globe; and Molly Henry, global team builder lead for Alight (formerly American Refugee Committee), a nonprofit based in Minneapolis that provides health care, clean water, shelter and economic opportunity to people worldwide, including Afghan refugees in the Twin Cities.

Or Emet will join other congregations in the U.S. holding a Refugee Shabbat program to address issues of refugees and asylum seekers as part of the HIAS Welcome Campaign. The campaign includes 455 congregations in the U.S. to build support for refugees in the American Jewish Community.

All attendees must wear a mask and show proof of vaccination or a recent 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.