Sichah Master List of Topics

1. Nov 30, 2011: Can we reconcile scientific and religious world views?

2. April 4, 2012: What Happens When Jews Have Power?

3. August 1, 2012: Reform Judaism Without God?

4. November 28, 2012: The Evolution of Jewish Identity in America --- the challenges and opportunities of living in a world with unlimited choices

5. May 21, 2013: Gun control --- A Jewish point of view

6. August 28, 2013: The growing disparity in income inequality

7. January 9, 2014: The man-made destruction of the earth

8. April 24, 2014: American Judaism in Flux

9. August 20, 2014: Jews and the separation of Church and State

10. December 10, 2014: How should we as American Jews think about Israel given the complexity of its political situation, the apparent breakdown of the latest edition of the peace process, and the growing BDS movement?

11. April 21, 2015: Jewish Values and Immigration

12. August 6, 2015: Has the American 'light unto the nations' been burned out as a result of drones, electronic surveillance, Guantanamo, CIA torture documents, etc. -- and if so, what's the impact for American Jews, especially as we are supposed to be a light to all the nations?

13. December 17, 2015: Why is Orthodoxy thriving and other mainstream movements (e.g., Reform, Conservative) floundering?

14. April 19, 2016: Celebrating the major holidays — Pesach, Hanukkah, Sukkot, Shavuot, Purim, the High Holy Days and Shabbat — and what does it mean/say to us (all denominations) and to the larger American Jewish community of unaffiliateds?

15. August 17, 2016: Is there a “Jewish perspective” on the upcoming presidential election?

16. December 15, 2016: American values vs Jewish values: Are they the same? If there are differences, which should take priority for us as American Jews?

17. Anti-Semitism: do American Jews have more to fear from the Alt- Right or the Radical Left? What are appropriate responses to both?

18. August 17, 2017: Jewish Identity What are the Jewish rules for determining Jewish identity and are Jewish rules arguably broader that Israeli law? Is Jewish identity genetic, cultural, theological, value oriented, or something else? If genetic, is there a Jewish gene and does that idea in turn raise questions concerning the ethics of “eugenics” (once initially popular until practiced by Nazis and other racists) and now the use of modern DNA testing? Is there a Jewish “people” and how is that defined, particularly when there is debate over characterizing Israel as a Jewish state? Should Jews deny (or perhaps accept to some extent) as Jewish the non-Jewish spouses (whether male of female) who are married to Jews and whose children are identified as Jews and who want to be considered Jewish as a matter of identity without formal conversion?

19. December 13, 2017: How does Judaism impact your professional life? In other words, do you bring your Jewishness into your business methods, dealings with others, organizational issues, etc. and if so, how? If not, why not?