Our Sanctuary Shabbat speaker program is entering its sixth year.

In 2012, we are seeking leaders of faith communities in Grand Rapids who would like to share a 15-20 minute address related to "2012: The Year of Interfaith Understanding."  Contact Rabbi David Krishef, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , to talk about scheduling a date.

While we do not have a formal description of the parameters of what constitutes a legitimate speaker, the speakers thus far have been chosen based on the following informal guidelines.

The opportunity to speak at Ahavas Israel is open to any position which does not explicitly contradict a fundamental value of Judaism and the synagogue.  This excludes a speaker on the topic of why we should serve bacon wrapped shrimp at kiddush.  A speaker on an environmental topic, as long as he/she does not advocate wholesale, wanton, purposeless destruction, may agree or disagree with the proposition of human caused global warming and still remain within acceptable boundaries of Jewish values.

Jewish values rarely dictate specific policy.  They instruct us not to be cruel to animals, but leave choice of whether to kill an animal for food up to us.  Thus, I might have a speaker one month urging a vegetarian diet, and another month extolling the role of fur trading Jews in establishing the Jewish community of Michigan, and encouraging us to wear fur shtreimels in their honor.

Senators Stabenow and Levin, Governor Granholm, Judge Steve Pestka, and Representative Vern Ehlers have been invited to address us. We are looking forward to hearing from Representative Justin Amash early in 2012.  We do not invite politicians actively campaigning for office.

Some speakers are Jewish and have explicitly Jewish messages.  Others are not Jewish, but have Jewish messages.  Still others have messages which are not specifically Jewish (such as domestic abuse) but which are important messages for us to hear.

Part of being a member of a Jewish community is accepting the obligation of learning.  Shabbat is our primary gathering time to study together.  Whatever we have learned, whether it comes from a d'var Torah or a speaker on the topic of kayaking and faith, should both influence and be influenced by our understanding of the Torah reading and by our prayers.

We do not live in a vacuum.  Our world is not defined solely by Torah.  We read books, see movies, watch television, read and watch news from various sources, and interact with a variety of people in the course of an average day.  The sanctuary shabbat speaker series is meant to remind us that our essential Jewish values ought to inform our decision making process. If you know of individuals that would be good speakers or topics that we should address, please share them with me.