BT Weekend Dr_ Morinis Retreat.pdf - Bethtikvahtoronto.org

Beth Tikvah Synagogue Weekend Retreat:Pathways to Faith and Prayer Through Mussar*With Dr. Alan Morinis – Founder of The Mussar Institutewww.mussarinstitute.orgFriday, November 26 through Sunday, November 28, 2010at Beth Tikvah Synagogue, 3080 Bayview Avenue, TorontoQuestion: What happens at Beth Tikvah no less than 21 times every week?Answer: We gather together to pray - shacharit, mincha, and maariv – morning,afternoon, and evening."You shall serve God with all your heart (Deuteronomy 11:13) –What service is performed with the heart? This is prayer". (Babylonian Talmud, Taanit 2a)Join us for an exploration of prayer and our relationshipto it both individually and as a congregation.Drawing on tools developed over the past 1000 years within the Jewishspiritual tradition of Mussar, we will join together in a hands-on andexperiential retreat to explore what it means to be in conversation withthe transcendent divine, in the synagogue and anywhere else.ALAN MORINIS IS…an active interpreter of the teachings and practices ofthe Mussar tradition and regularly gives lectures and workshops. Born andraised in a culturally Jewish but non-observant home, he studiedanthropology at Oxford University on a Rhodes Scholarship, earning hisPhD at that university.Alan has written books and produced feature films, television dramas anddocumentaries and has taught at several universities. For the past elevenyears the nearly-lost Jewish spiritual discipline of Mussar has been hispassion, a journey recorded in the book Climbing Jacob's Ladder (2002).His guide to Mussar practice, entitled Everyday Holiness: The JewishSpiritual Path of Mussar (2007) has been followed by a practical calendarformatbook, Every Day, Holy Day (2010). He lives in Vancouver, BC.*Mussar is…a Jewish tradition, a spiritual discipline, a body of literature,a way oflooking at the world, an ethical philosophy.

We will learn about the inner quality of faith [emunah] that is the necessary foundation of prayer, and we will engage inMussar practices that can help us cultivate faith. We’ll identify and develop tools to help us overcome the many andvaried obstacles to prayer that can hinder faith and prayer in our personal lives.Drawing on the siddur as well as Jewish traditions of unstructured prayer, we’ll explore the pathways through which youcan enliven both formal and personal ways of conversing with the One who is above all else.FRIDAY, November 266:00 p.m. Kabbalat Shabbat Service: “What is Mussar (and what does it have to do with me andBeth Tikvah?)”7:00 p.m. Dinner8:00 p.m. “Cultivating a Soul, Building a Community: personal spirituality as the cornerstone for afaithful kehillah (community).”SATURDAY, November 279:00 a.m. Shaharit from the bimah: “Torah Through a Mussar Lens (Parshat Vayeshev): Josephʼs faith”12:00 p.m. Kiddush lunch1:00 p.m. “The Middah of Emunah – cultivating faith, the necessary foundation for prayer” –(60 minutes text study / 60 minutes practice)3:45 p.m. Minha4:15 p.m. Seudah Shlishit: “Debriefing the Obstacles to Prayer: What is revealed through effort?The precious lessons of resistance, distraction and rationalization.”5:34 p.m. Havdalah6:00 p.m. Dinner6:30 p.m. Melavah Malka: “The experience of yirah as the basis for faith and a prayerful life.”SUNDAY, November 289:00 a.m. Shaharit10:00 a.m. Breakfast10:30 a.m. “Infrastructure for a prayerful community”Personal Practice: methods of cultivating faith;Collective Practice: institutional forms to support faith and prayerYoung Families please note that child supervision will be provided throughoutthe retreat for the children of registered participants.Registration for Weekend RetreatBeth Tikvah Members: $75 per person, children no charge, maximum $125 per familyNon-Members: $125 per personRegistration Call 416-221-2433 or register online www.bethtikvahtoronto.org'Registration deadline Monday November 22, 2010The weekend retreat has been madepossible by a generous grant from theFeldgaier Shapiro Endowment Fund.The Saturdayprograms aresponsored by