Calendar Archive through 2005

December 2004

Sundays

December 5: "In Success And Failure" By Fritz Williams, Leader Baltimore Ethical Society
December 12: "Still, Our Problems Stem From Our Acceptance Of This Filthy Rotten System" Willa Bickham and Brendan Walsh Viva House Founders
December 19: "Winter Solstice Festival" An Interactive Program. Bring Mittens for the Mitten Tree.
December 26: No Meeting This Sunday

Special Events

Call 410-581-2322 for details of events.

December 11, Saturday, 6:00 p.m. - Potluck and Workshop at the home of Dick and Judy Katz, "The Exodus and Conquest Stories." Attendance at the potluck workshops will be limited to a dozen guests. Please contact Fritz or Dick and Judy if you'd like to attend.

December 12, Sunday, 12:15 p.m. to 1:45 p.m. - Brown-bag lunch and repeat workshop of Dec. 11th, "The Exodus and Conquest Stories." There is no limit to the number of participants at the Sunday afternoon workshops. You may contact Fritz by email for any questions.

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January 2005

Sundays

January 2: Colloquy
By Karen Elliott, Associate Leader for Adjunct Services
January 9: Faith and Doubt
By Fritz Williams, Leader of the Baltimore Ethical Society
January 16: Safety, Civil Rights and the Ethics of Discrimination
By Bash Pharoan, Arab-American Anti-Discrimination League
January 23: The Intolerance of Evangelicals
By Rev. Ralph Campbell, Lead Pastor at Twin Rivers Church in Columbia, Maryland
January 30: Reflections of Afghanistan
By Fahima Vorgetts Director of Women for Afghan Women's (WAW) Afghan Women's fund

Special Events

Sundays Jan 2, 16, and 30: The poetry group will meet before our Sunday morning Platform.

Sunday Jan 30: Newcomer's Meeting at 12:30 pm.

Details of Presentations

January 2: Colloquy: Karen Elliott, Associate Leader for Adjunct Services

A colloquy is a period of self guided reflection. Attendees are asked to respond to questions, or stories, but not to each other's comments. Rather, they are asked to "speak from the heart."

Karen Elliott has been a member of the Baltimore Ethical Society for many years, and has conducted colloquys at the Society on many occasions. She assists the Leader by officiating at weddings and memorial services. She is currently the President of the Baltimore Ethical Society.

January 9: Faith and Doubt: Fritz Williams, Leader of the Baltimore Ethical Society

Ethical Culture has a constitutional aversion to religious controversy. We have put arguments about supernatural beliefs behind us, and we have turned our attention to improving human relationships and working for a better world for ourselves and our children. Still, as we pursue these practical agendas, we often find ourselves enmeshed in conflict with people of faith. Fritz Williams discusses faith and doubt as attitudes that range far beyond the question of believing or not believing in God and permeate every dimension of life.

Fritz Williams is Leader of the Baltimore Ethical Society and serves as primary speaker, teacher, pastor, and organizational leader. Fritz also performs weddings and commitment ceremonies. He has worked as a parish priest in the Episcopal church, and as a writer and producer at public TV stations in Harrisburg, PA, and Detroit, MI.

January 16: Safety, Civil Rights and the Ethics of Discrimination: Bash Pharoan, Arab-American Anti-Discrimination League

Bash Pharoan, MD, is founder and President of the Baltimore Chapter for the American Arab Anti-discrimination committee and The Islamic Society of Maryland. Dr. Pharoan will share his views of the specific effects of 9/11 on minorities in the USA as well as the broader effects on 9/11 on the USA and the world. He will also discuss the common values and differences betwen Arab cultures and western culture, and give us an overview of who are Arab Americans in Maryland and the USA.

Dr. Pharoan came to Baltimore in 1975 to begin his surgery residency at Franklin Square Hospital and has been there ever since. He immigrated to the USA for freedom, opportunity and pursuit of happiness. He believes that this nation is better because of every immigrant that came and built his or her life on this land. He says, "We changed America and America changed us."

January 23: The Intolerance of Evangelicals: Rev. Ralph Campbell, Lead Pastor at Twin Rivers Church in Columbia, Maryland

Rev. Campbell will be looking at the prevailing cultural assumptions toward evangelicals, as well as examining their successes and failures. This insider's look will be given by an evangelical who is very proud to be invited to speak to the BES.

Rev. Campbell serves as the primary teacher and vision caster at the Twin Rivers Church, which he founded five years ago with his wife. He is working on his doctorate at Princeton with an emphasis in preaching.

January 30: Reflections of Afghanistan: Fahima Vorgetts, Director of Women for Afghan Women's (WAW) Afghan Women's fund

WAW is an organization dedicated to empowering women in Afghanistan. Ms. Vorgetts will discuss the current situation in Afghanistan, and her efforts to raise awareness about the plight of women and children there.

Fahima Vorgetts is an Afghan born American, board member of WAW, chemist, and independent businesswoman. She lectures world wide, at the United Nations, and has been interviewed by NPR and the BBC.

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February 2005

Sundays

February 6

The Time of Our Lives
By Fritz Williams, Leader of the Baltimore Ethical Society

It often appears that, in spite of our material wealth, we are suffering from a poverty of time. Fritz Williams examines how the pace of life has changed, and shares his thoughts on escaping from the rapids of modern life in order to swim in calmer and deeper waters.

February 13

Darwin Day Celebration:

The Cultural Impact of Darwin
By Tony Hileman, Executive Director of the American Humanist Association

How The Creationist Mind Set could Influence Bioscience Research
By Dr. Christine Miller, Molecular Neuroscientist

This year is the 146th anniversary of publication of Darwin's seminal book, "On The Origin Of Species." In this joint program, the Baltimore Ethical Society and the Baltimore Secular Humanists will meet together to focus attention on the mission of Darwin-Day, which is to promote the public education of science, and encourage the celebration of science and humanity throughout the global community. Mr. Hileman will discuss Darwin's impact on traditional beliefs and his contribution to the development of Humanism itself. Ms. Miller will discuss how teachers continue to be confronted with the politics of teaching Darwin's theory of evolution.

February 20

The New Nuclear Danger: Nuclear Weapons, Nuclear Power, And Nuclear Waste in 2005
By Julie R. Enszer, Executive Director of the Nuclear Policy Research Institute

Ms. Enszer will discuss the current nuclear issues and what we can do to envision and create a nuclear-free age. Ms. Enszer has been the Director for Major, Planned, and Foundation Giving at the Human Rights Campaign, and brings fifteen years of development and marketing experience to NPRI.

February 27

BESpeak-Off, An Oratory Competition
By Gordon Stills, Moderator

The Baltimore Ethical Society, as an aspect of its community outreach, is sponsoring an oratorical competition at the middle school level. The Society seeks to motivate students to increase their language proficiency among middle school students in Baltimore City by helping students to "hear" themselves speak, to develop an "ear" for enunciation, and to become aware of "harmful" speech habits.

Special Events

February 12th, (Saturday) 7:00 p.m., a V-Day performance in the Baltimore Ethical Society main meeting room at the Congress Hotel. The Society is presenting a special V-Day performance of "The Vagina Monologues" (by Eve Ensler). Admission is $8. This program will promote awareness of the effort to stop violence such as rape, battery, incest, female genital mutilation, and sexual slavery against women and girls. The proceeds from this program will go to local groups fighting violence against women and girls in the Baltimore area.

February 13th, at 10:30 a.m., Darwin Day Celebration, in the Baltimore Ethical Society main meeting room at the Congress Hotel. Don't miss the opportunity to meet with members of the Baltimore Secular Humanists at this joint program.

February 27th at 10:30 a.m., An Oratory Contest, in the Baltimore Ethical Society main meeting room at the Congress Hotel. Middle school students will compete by memorizing and presenting narrative poems, or stores with a dramatic flare. Finalists will compete on the 27th for trophies.

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March 2005

Sundays

March 6

Aging: an Inside View (Part 1)
by Fritz Williams, Leader of the Baltimore Ethical Society

Growing old is generally marked by unwelcome changes in our health, our mental and physical functions, and our appearance. Fritz Williams looks at the losses and changes that are an inevitable part of growing older. He examines the challenges involved in drawing on a lifetime of experiences, and achieving a new sense of purpose in the last decades of life.

March 13

Aging: an Inside View (Part 2), An Interactive Program
A Panel Discussion

Zelda Simon, Glascoe Baker, Stan Pollack, Helena Wright, and Cathy Malcomb make short personal statements on how growing older has affected them. Baltimore Ethical Society members and friends, young and old, respond by sharing their own experiences and observations on growing old in America and by talking about their fears, hopes, and frustrations.

March 20

Ten Powerful Ideas from Felix Adler
by Jone Lewis

Jone Lewis has searched the writings of Ethical Culture founder, Felix Adler, to harvest his best and most useful ideas, in particular ideas that have stood the test of time and remain powerful today. TEN POWERFUL IDEAS has become one of Jone Lewis's most popular talks. It is her testimony to the relevance of Ethical Culture and her exploration of the guidance Adler's teachings and writings provide for personal behavior and ethical action. It is, as some have said, her own Ethical Culture 101.

Jone Lewis is the Leader of the Northern Virginia Ethical Society, and an ordained minister in the Unitarian Church. She is President of the National Leaders Conference which is the official organization of Ethical Culture Leaders. She chairs the American Ethical Union Leadership Committee, which oversees a web site on transcendentalism and a web site of wisdom quotes.

March 27

Social Security Reform: Distinguishing Facts from Spin
by Ron Solomon

President Bush says that the Social Security system must be reformed in order to preserve it for future generations. Politicians and advocacy organizations have shifted into high gear disseminating their viewpoints, generally choosing selected elements of fact to support whatever their position is. Baltimore Ethical Society member, Ron Solomon, will attempt to lay out the facts about the Social Security system as they are known, and what the most likely implications are for the future of the program.

Ron Solomon has recently retired after a 35 year career as an actuary working in the field of employee benefits, first in the private sector and then for the Federal government. While he never worked for the Social Security Administration, he has studied the program for virtually has entire career, and served as a volunteer for several years on the Social Insurance Committee of the American Academy of Actuaries.

Special Events

Saturday, March 12th

Pot Luck (12:30 p.m.) and Bible Workshop (1:30 p.m.) at the Baltimore Ethical Society.

Workshop: "Jesus in the Light of Modern Scholarship"

How do scholars try to penetrate Christian traditions and claims about Jesus in an effort to determine what he really did and said? And what sorts of conclusions are they drawing about his life and message?

Don't miss our third pot luck and Bible workshop at the Baltimore Ethical Society at 306 West Franklin Street on Saturday, March 12th, at 12:30 p.m. We'll eat and socialize first. Then at 1:30 p.m., Fritz Williams will lead a discussion on "Jesus in the Light of Modern Scholarship." We're holding the workshop at the Baltimore Ethical Society in order to accommodate as many people as want to attend, and the pot luck and workshop are open to all members, friends, guests, and visitors. Bring along some food to share, and if you have access to one, a New Testament to refer to.

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April 2005

Sundays

Sunday, April 3

Deliver Us From Evil
By Fritz Williams, Leader, Baltimore Ethical Society

Fritz Williams admits that he has always had difficulty making sense of philosophical and theological discussions of the problem of evil. He is troubled by the use of "evil" as a noun and the habit of speaking of evil as if it were an objective force we need to combat. Yes, evil things happen with terrible regularity, but what are we saying when we suggest that "evil" itself has brought them about? In this talk, Fritz reflects on his struggle to understand the nature of evil and his concern for liberating ourselves from the factors and influences which have given evil such a place in our lives.

Sunday, April 10

Spring Festival: Hope & Peace
Facilitated by Karen Elliott and Cathy Malcomb

As spring arrives, we welcome the warmth and new growth with many hopes and peace in our hearts. Come prepared to enjoy words, smiles, and some participatory moments of peace and hope as together we explore the meanings of hope and peace and perhaps create a bit more of each for our somewhat bedraggled world.

Karen Elliott and Cathy Malcomb are long time members of the Baltimore Ethical Society.

Sunday, April 17

Moveable Feast: Providing Meals to Homebound People Living With HIV and Aids
By Tom Patrick, Volunteer Manager at Moveable Feast

Moveable Feast, which started in 1989, is an organization that provides meals to people who are homebound living with HIV and AIDS. Some meals are delivered daily. Some food deliveries are for a week, and include one bag of groceries and five frozen meals.

The organization is located in what was the former Housner's Restaurant on Eastern Avenue. Meals are cooked at the restaurant and frozen. Volunteers pick up the meals, and make deliveries.

On April 28th, hundreds of Baltimore area restaurants will participate in a nationwide program called Dining Out For Life, by donating a portion of their profits for the evening to Baltimore's Moveable Feast. Go to web site diningoutforlife.com to see if your favorite restaurant is listed. Pick a participating restaurant, and go with 200 of your closest friends.

Tom Patrick is in charge of all of the volunteers at Moveable Feast. Last year he supervised 2,900 volunteers who logged in 12,000 hours of work. Volunteers do all the kitchen work, make deliveries, bake on two nights every month, and help with paperwork. Tom volunteered for Moveable Feast 14 years ago. He became a full time employee shortly thereafter, and has been there ever since.

Sunday, April 24

The Philosophy of Emanuel Levinas
By Barbara Meyerson, Leader of the Ethical Culture Society of Essex County, NJ

Emanuel Levinas is the philosopher who introduced Heidegger, Husserl, and German phenomenology to France. For Levinas, ethics is the core of philosophy. But rather than basing ethics on intellectual abstractions, he grounds it in the interactions between two people. Ethical obligation resides in responding to the person in need.

Barbara Meyerson is the Leader of the Ethical Culture Society of Essex County New Jersey. Ms. Meyerson is the Ethical Humanist Chaplain at Columbia University, and is a certified family therapist. Ms. Meyerson has a Masters degree in English literature (Berkeley) and in philosophy (Columbia).

Special Events

Saturday, April 9: A multimedia performance, "World Parliament of Faith," 8:00 p.m., at St. Mary's Outreach Center. Tickets, $10. St. Mary's Outreach Center is located at 3900 Roland Avenue, between 40th Street and "The Avenue" in Hampden.

Thursday April 28: Dining Out For Life

What is Dining Out For Life? On April 28th, participating restaurants in the Baltimore and Annapolis area (and around the country) will be donating all or a portion of their profits for the evening to Moveable Feast, an organization that provides food to homebound people living with AIDS and HIV.

How does it work? Simply eat out at your favorite participating restaurant with your family or friends, and enjoy the meal knowing that at least 20% of your check is going to help hundreds of men, women, and children in your community living with AIDS and HIV.

How do I find participating restaurants? Go to the web site diningoutforlife.com and click on your city. A list of participating restaurants will appear along with the amount the restaurant will donate for that evening. Please thank the restaurant for supporting Moveable Feast and for making a difference in the lives of people living with AIDS and HIV.

What is a Moveable Feast Ambassador, and would I like to be one? An ambassador is someone who greets dining guests as they come in, and lets them know that the restaurant is donating a portion of their profits to Moveable Feast. Anyone can be an ambassador. Just call 410-327-3420, Ext. 11 for more information.

What if my favorite restaurant does not participate in "Dining Out For Life"? You can tell management at your favorite restaurant about Moveable Feast and ask them to participate. Bon appetit!

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May 2005

Sundays

Sunday, May 1

The Ethics of Joy
By Fritz Williams, Leader, Baltimore Ethical Society

Joy is more than a momentary elation that accompanies some good fortune. It is a tap root into the potential of life. It nourishes goodness. Fritz Williams examines the deeper meaning of joy and its central place in a purposeful and moral life.

Sunday, May 8

Getting Out of the Way
By Sue Egbert, Baltimore Shambhala Meditation Center

We live in a world that needs our help. How do we do that? How do we know what's the best thing to do in any situation? How can we be sure that what we are doing is not adding to the problem? To be of real benefit, we must start with ourselves. The sitting practice of meditation and the practice of contemplation are opportunities to get out of our own way long enough to see what's going on.

Training our mind...we can create an alliance that allows us to actually use our mind, rather than be used by it. This is a practice that anyone can do. Although it has its roots in Buddhism, it is a complement to any spiritual tradition.

(Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, from Turning Your Mind Into An Ally.)

Sue Egbert discovered the Baltimore Shambhala Meditation Center through a series of secular training weekends called Shambhala Training, and has had a daily meditation practice for four years. She is certified as a "Guide" which means she can offer introductory meditation instruction. She is a temporary employee of the Motor Vehicle Administration assigned to a research project related to reducing recidivism in drunk drivers through close monitoring of drivers given an interlock device as a condition of maintaining their driving privilege. She is also the mother of three teens. All of this has given her plenty of opportunity to practice getting out of the way.

Sunday, May 15

Mahatma Gandhi
By Mark Lindley, Boston Ethical Society

Mark Lindley, a member of the Boston Ethical Society, will include a sketch of Gandhi's life, work, and ideas (some of which were different from what most of us think they were), and some reflections on how Gandhi's reputation has fared, which of his ideas are worth adapting to modern times, and which are best left to the history books.

Prof. Lindley has taught Gandhi studies at universities in India and the Near East, and has given guest lectures on related topics at many universities in India, Europe, and the USA. His recent publications include "Gandhi's Challenge Now to the Affluent" in the Journal of Gandhian Studies, 2004, and the 3rd edition of Gandhi and Humanism. His book, J.C. Kumarappa: Mahatma Gandhi's Economist, will be published in Bombay next hear. This month the National Gandhi Museum in New Delhi will publish a book on Gandhi and religions which Dr. Lindley co-wrote with Lavanam Gora, the International Humanist and Ethical Union's "Humanist of the Decade" for the 1990's.

Sunday May 22

Memorial Sunday

An Interactive Experience

The Baltimore Ethical Society is a better community due to the work and caring of those who have belonged over the years, as well as those who have given support and vision to our members. As we finish our regular season of programming, we come together to celebrate those who are no longer with us in body, but whom we still hold in our hearts and minds.

The annual membership meeting will immediately follow this program.

Sunday May 29

No Meeting

Special Events

Saturday, May 14th, Bible Workshop ("The End of the World") and Pot Luck, 6:00 p.m., home of Dick and Judy Katz. Bring a dish to share, and a Bible for reference. Space is limited, so call Fritz Williams at 1-717-582-4932 for a reservation. "The End of the World" will explore what many fundamentalist Christians believe about living in the "end times," and preparing for the second coming of Jesus Christ. It will also provide an opportunity to examine the scriptures that support these beliefs and key chapters in their historical development.

The workshops will be conducted by Fritz Williams, who is not only our Leader, but has a MDiv from the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, and a ThM in Biblical Studies from Princeton Seminary.

Sunday, May 15th, Bible Workshop (Repeat of "The End of the World"), starting at 12:30 p.m., after the regular program at the Baltimore Ethical Society, 306 West Franklin Street. There is no pot luck, but bring a Bible for reference.

June 5th, Picnic in the Park, Sparks Bank Nature Center, noon to 4:00 p.m. Bring a dish to share and a lawn chair. There will be some outdoor games such as lawn bowling, horse shoes, badminton, and for the little ones, ring toss, big balls, and bubbles. There is a hiking trail for those who want to ramble. Drinks, cups, plates, and utensils will be provided.

Directions: Take I-83 north to exit 24 (Belfast Road). Turn right on to Belfast Road, and go to the end (York Road). Turn right. Take the second left onto Sparks Road. The parking lot is just past the one lane bridge on the right. Noon to 4:00 p.m.

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Summer Sundays Schedule

During the summer, the Baltimore Ethical Society Sunday program consists of informal guided discussions on a wide variety of topics, ending at 11:30 (discussion only) or noon (with video). The regular formal program resumes in September.

June 12:: Everyday Ethics
by Karen Elliott
June 19:: Favorite Poems
by Joan Bromberg
June 26:: INFECTED
Video and discussion by the Public Justice Center
July 3:: Everyday Ethics
by Stan Pollack
July 10:: Parenting Puzzle: Tools for All Relationships
Video and discussion by Fritz Williams
July 17:: Can Ethicals Be Humanists? Can Humanists Be Ethicals?
by Bob and Diana Corbett
July 24:: Doing Tai Chi
An experiential program by Steve Meskin
July 31:: Can You Reconcile Religious Dogma and Science?
by Glascoe Baker
August 7:: What is Torture?
by Steve Meskin
August 14:: Mortality and Immortality
by Cathy Malcomb
August 21:: What I Learned in Japan
by Karen Elliott
August 28:: The Next Industrial Revolution
Video and discussion by Sam Hudnet

Poetry Group Summer Schedule:
Meetings at 9:30 AM every other Sunday June 12, 26, July 10, 24, August 7, 21. Bring poems to share (yours or those that move you). Facilitated by Karla Mancero; for more info, e-mail nada23_2002@yahoo.com.

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September 11

A Religion for the 21st Century
By Fritz Williams, Leader Baltimore Ethical Society

We live at a time when religion is at war with science, secularism, and modern values, and when it appears that people are being forced to take sides - to choose between imperialistic, irrational religiosity and unrestrained, unfocused secularism. Fritz Williams says we need to abandon the supernatural beliefs and practices of traditional religion in order to rediscover the enduring relevance of a religious approach to life.

September 18

Felix and the Humanists: An Irreverent History of Ethical Culture
By Steve Meskin and Ron Solomon

Felix Adler, as founder of the Ethical Culture movement, naturally had an enormous impact on every aspect of the ethical movement during the more than 50 years he served as Leader of the New York Society and "patriarch" of the movement. Advocating a metaphysical neutrality, he had a vision of ethical culture as a movement representing "unanimity in the deed, diversity in the creed." Even during Adler's lifetime, his vision of ethical culture was not the only vision (which of course was entirely consistent with his views). The first Humanist Manifesto was issued in 1932. Adler was not among the 34 signatories, although several prominent ethical culturists were. During the decades following Adler's death, calls for the ethical movement to become more naturalist and humanist became increasingly pronounced.

BES members Steve Meskin and Ron Solomon invite you to listen as they recount a bit of the storied past of the ethical movement, and then join in a discussion of what relevance this has to our lives today.

Steve Meskin has been a member of BES and Ethical Culture for about 20 years. He has served as President of BES and as a member of the Board of the AEU. He is a graduate of the Humanist Institute and is currently its Treasurer. Ron Solomon has been an Ethical Culture member for over 40 years. He is a former president of BES, the AEU, and the North American Committee for Humanism, and currently serves on the boards of BES and AEU. He has led or co-led membership growth workshops, e.g., Five Things You Need to Know to Grow, and book discussion groups, e.g., Radest's Toward Common Ground, and given several platform addresses, including one last March entitled Social Security Reform: Distinguishing Facts From Spin.

September 25

The Costs of War
By Susan Crane, Jonah House

Susan Crane is a member of Jonah House, a faith-based non-violence community. She has participated in three Plow Shares action standing in witness against war and has served five years in prison for her actions. She will explore with us the many costs of war.

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October 2

Like a Mighty Army: The impact of conservative Christianity
By Fritz Williams, Leader, Baltimore Ethical Society

Not content with their influence on government at the highest levels, conservative Christians have set their sights on transforming every dimension of our lives. They now have a formidable educational network which includes Christian home schools, private schools, universities, and graduate schools, and they are training an army of missionaries who will represent their faith in every conceivable profession and institution. Fritz Williams examines this multi-dimensional Christian offensive and the challenge it poses for religious and social liberals.

October 9

The Intolerance of Evangelicals
By Rev. Ralph Campbell, Lead Pastor at Twin Rivers Church

Just who are these people who have hijacked moral issues and exerted such power in the political landscape? We will be looking at the prevailing cultural assumptions towards evangelicals, as well as examining their successes and failures. Evangelicals espouse compassionate conservatism yet glaringly lack compassion and tolerance. Secularists embrace tolerance, yet that tolerance seems not to extend to people of faith. Ah, that leaves us seeing red and blue. In the immortal words of Rodney King, Can't we just get along? This insider's look will be given by yes (gasp) an evangelical, who is very proud to call some ethical humanists his friends.

Rev. Ralph Campbell is the Lead Pastor at Twin Rivers Church in Columbia, Maryland. In this capacity, he serves as the primary teacher and vision caster. Ralph is known for his warm, humorous, and engaging speaking style. He is working on his doctorate at Princeton with an emphasis in preaching.

October 16

Creed and Deed
By Steve Meskin, BES member

This book presents lectures that Adler gave during the winter and spring of 1877, the first year of the Ethical Culture movement. In this book Adler discusses his views on religion. Indeed the title of one of the chapters is Religion. Some other chapter titles are Immortality, The New Ideal, Spinoza, and The Founder of Christianity. Page images of the text are available online for free on the Making of America (MOA) website, or just Google "Creed and Deed."

Stephen Meskin has been a member of BES and Ethical Culture for about 20 years. He has served as President of BES and as a member of the Board of the AEU. He is a graduate of the Humanist Institute and is currently its Treasurer.

October 23

Israel: A Progressive Jewish Approach to Engagement with the Issues
By Valerie Kaplan and John Riehl, Jewish Reconstructionist Federation

The Jewish Reconstructionist Federation's Israel Policies Task Force Report is a progressive Jewish model for communal values based decision making on controversial issues. The Report (November 2004) is intended to provide a substantive framework to begin a process of in-depth engagement of the Reconstructionist Movement with Israel (nationally and congregationally).

From the standpoint of both substance and process, issues surrounding the approach of North American Jews to Israel and the spectrum of Israeli-Palestinian relations have shown the potential to create divisions within communities and community groups or result in the inability to even talk about Israel.

Valerie Kaplan, a member of the Jewish Reconstructionist Federation's Board of Directors since 1986, and President 1990-94, also serves currently on the Board of Governors of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College and as Chair of the JRF External Affiliations Committee. She has also served on the JRF Task Force on Israel Policies, the Reconstructionst Commission on Homosexuality and the JRF Task Force on "Boundaries and Opportunities: The Role Non-Jews in JRF Congregations".

John Riehl is a long-time member of the Jewish Reconstructionist Federation Board, is a past and current President of the JRF's Chesapeake Region, and has served on the Reconstructionist Commission on the Role of the Rabbi, which produced the report "The Rabbi-Congregation Relationship: A Vision for the 21st Century".

October 30

Fall Family Festival: an interactive celebration

Our traditional Stone Salad story and feast, with thoughts on the season and our families to keep us warm in autumn's dipping temperatures. Please bring an ingredient to be added to the salad. All else will be provided for a fun and tasty fall get-together!

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November 6

Get Real
by Fritz Williams, Leader, Baltimore Ethical Society

I think we pay too much attention to lying as an individual deed and too little attention to lying as a state of being... too much attention to the lies that come out of our mouths, and too little attention to the tangle of lies inside, the lies that live in our deepest selves. Beginning with vivid memories of sensitivity training, Fritz Williams describes his quest for authenticity.

Fritz Williams is Leader of the Baltimore Ethical Society and, in that capacity, serves as primary speaker, teacher, pastor, and organizational leader. To these duties, Fritz brings extensive ministerial and communications experience. He has worked as a parish priest in the Episcopal Church, and also as a writer and producer at public television stations in Harrisburg, PA, and Detroit, MI. He is especially loved for his down-to-earth narrative style of speaking and his "When I Was Kid" stories, based on his own childhood.

November 13

Are Ethical Politics Possible Today?
by Liz Bobo, Delegate Maryland General Assembly

Delegate Bobo will use three legislative examples from the last four sessions of the Maryland General Assembly, to address the possibility of Ethical Politics. She will deal with both the process as well as the substance of Landlord/Tenant Law, Financial Institutions Regulations, and Lobbyist Regulations.

Elizabeth ("Liz") Bobo was born in Baltimore, studied literature at University of Maryland undergraduate school, attended University of Maryland Law School, and was admitted to the Maryland Bar. Liz has been a Member of House of Delegates since January 11, 1995 representing District 12B in Columbia, MD. She is currently a member of the Environmental Matters Committee (housing & real property subcommittee, natural resources & ethics subcommittee, chair, local government & bi-county agencies subcommittee), Joint Subcommittee on Program Open Space and Agricultural Land Preservation, Joint Committee on Welfare Reform, Maryland Green Caucus, Maryland Bicycle and Pedestrian Caucus, and Maryland Consumer Caucus. From 1986 to 1990, she was the County Executive of Howard County.

November 20

Colloquy on Change
by Karen Elliott, President of the Baltimore Ethical Society

The colloquy is a formal program consisting of guided meditation on a particular topic, with responses on a personal level as well as time for silent reflection. It was developed by Arthur Dobrin, Ethical Culture Leader, author, and teacher. In December, BES will have the first of a series of colloquies once a month on the second Sunday morning at 9:30 AM. To kick off the series, we replace the usual Sunday program format with a colloquy on change, based on a section in Dobrin's book Spelling God with Two O's.

Karen Elliott is a member of the Society's Ethical Humanist Officiant team, and has served on the Board in various roles for over 10 years. She is preparing for a year of change in 2006 as her son leaves for college and her "unofficial" stepson gets married.

November 27

The Search for Truth
by Brian Solomon, Author

What is Truth? Brian Solomon explores the search for truth as a sequestered juror on a high profile murder trial in Madison, Wisconsin. He provides details about the trial itself, testimony, deliberations, and the verdict. But he also explores what it is like to be sequestered, isolated from your family, friends, and support structure, and forced to participate in a real-life drama of life and death. The search for truth is a difficult one, and because the victim's body was never recovered, it is even more pronounced in this case. Brian will weave us through the journey -- leaving us with, as one reviewer put it, "a fascinating glimpse into the judicial process and into humanity itself."

Brian Solomon was a member of the Baltimore Ethical Society until he moved away for school. He now facilitates an Ethical Discussion Group in Madison, Wisconsin, where he lives with his wife and daughter. He has had numerous poems, articles, and essays published, and is also a song writer who still dreams of rock stardom. Sequestered is his first book.

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December 2005

Sundays

December 4

The Binding of Isaac
by Fritz Williams, Leader, Baltimore Ethical Society

The Biblical story (Genesis 22) of God putting Abraham to the test by commanding him to take his son Isaac's life and offer him up as a sacrificial burnt offering is one of the most poignant and troubling passages in the entire Bible. Through the centuries, rabbis, imams, priests, and ministers have attempted to make theological and moral sense of it. Fritz Williams provides a deeply personal and humanistic encounter with this ancient story.

December 11

Life is Enough
by Richard Kiniry, Leader of the Philadelphia Ethical Society

It seems that most people who claim to believe in heaven and hell don't actually plan their lives with an afterlife in mind but the idea remains part of their theory about life and they can fall back on that idea in times of trouble. Since Ethical Humanists don't expect such life insurance, should we live differently, behave differently?

Richard Kiniry has been Leader of the Philadelphia Ethical Society for more than ten years. He has also served in various capacities with the AEU including the Board, the Leadership Committee and as president of the National Leaders Council. He currently is the NLC representative to the AEU Ethical Action Committee. Richard spent his college years in a Catholic seminary, raised chickens in India for two years with the Peace Corps, and had his own stained glass business for many years. A graduate of the Humanist Institute, he is also the Director of Camp Linden, a children's camp in Chester County, Pennsylvania, and a member of the Board of The East Fairmount Park Alliance, a neighborhood community group in North Philadelphia

December 18

Winter Festival: A Participatory Happening

It may not be snowing, but we'll celebrate the season together anyway, with our traditional mitten tree and some sharing of what this time of year means to us all. Bring gloves, scarves, etc. for the mitten tree, a final donation for the good folks at Viva House to distribute, and a winter tradition to share - in story or as "show and tell". Even if it's snow-less outside, we'll still have our own winter wonderland inside the Congress Hotel!

December 25

What Do We Believe? An Interactive Journey

Ethical Culture emphasizes deed before creed, so we often talk about how to live ethically but we don't usually address what each of us believes. While the Baltimore Believe campaign encourages us to believe that Baltimore can be a better city and advertising campaigns urge us to believe in their products, that's not the kind of belief we're going to address here. Rather, what are our innermost beliefs? What helps us make it through difficult times? Together, in one or more small groups, we will explore this question.

Other Activities

December 3, Coffee House, Saturday at 7 pm.
The second in our monthly series of CoffeeHouses. Music and poetry by featured performers, plus an open mic. Coffee, tea, and snacks available. Snow date: Sat., Dec. 10. Sign-up for open mic at 7pm.

December 4, Poetry Group, Sunday at 9:30 am.
Facilitated by Karla Mancero. Bring poems that move you or that you have written to share and discuss. A general theme is picked for each meeting - contact Karla at poet@baltimoreethicalsociety.org to be added to the e-mail list and receive notification of topics.

December 4, Board Meeting, Sunday at 12:30 pm.
All members are welcome to attend.

December 11, Colloquy, Sunday at 9:30 am.
Facilitated by Stephen Meskin. The colloquy is a formal program consisting of guided meditation on a particular topic, with responses on a personal level as well as time for silent reflection. It was developed by Arthur Dobrin, Ethical Culture Leader, author, and teacher. The topic this month will be Meditation, based on a section in Dobrin's book "Spelling God with Two O's."

December 11, Ethical Action, Sunday at 12:30 pm

December 18, Poetry Group, Sunday at 9:30 am. See Dec 4th.

December 18, "NEWCOMERS' MEETING", Sunday at 12:30 pm. Learn about the history and organization of the Baltimore Ethical Society and the Ethical Culture movement.

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