Two humanist groups sponsor nationally known Jewish atheist author
Phil Zuckerman, nationally known author of Living the Secular Life will speak in Tucson on June 21 at the DuVal Auditorium, 1501 N Campbell Ave. His afternoon lecture, “Secularism and Individualism” sponsored by the Secular Humanist Jewish Circle, will start at 1 pm. Phil will talk how “being non-religious is strongly correlated with individualism and why secular individuals have fewer friends and weaker social bonds when compared to their religious peers.” He will focus on the “costs of secular individualism and how this relates to Jewish identity and being part of a Jewish humanist community.”
His morning lecture, “The Rise of the Nones: Causes and Consequences of rising irreligion in the USA,” is sponsored by Free Thought Arizona and will start at 10 am at the same location. Phil will discuss how “more and more Americans are walking away from religion and how atheism and agnosticism are on the rise. Why is this happening and what does it mean for American culture?”
Phil Zuckerman is a PhD professor of sociology and secular studies at Pitzer College in Claremont, CA. In 2011 Phil founded the first Secular Studies department in the nation. He is the author of several books, including Living the Secular Life (Penguin, 2014), Faith No More (Oxford, 2011), and Society Without God (NYU, 2008). He has also edited several volumes, including Atheism and Secularity (Praeger, 2010), and The Social Theory of W.E.B. Du Bois (Pine Forge, 2004). His books have been translated and published in Danish, Farsi, Turkish, Chinese, Korean and Italian. Phil writes a regular blog for Psychology Today titled “The Secular Life,” and he also writes for the Huffington Post. He lives in Claremont with his wife and three children.
The Secular Humanist Jewish Circle is organized to meet the needs of cultural, humanist and secular Jews (as well as their non-Jewish family members/partners) in the greater Tucson community. SHJC is affiliated with the Society for Humanistic Judaism.
The mission of Free Thought Arizona is to offer an ethical alternative to religious and paranormal worldviews, protect civil liberties, defend reason and increase scientific literacy in Arizona.
Both programs are free, however please RSVP as space is limited: Susan, 520-577-7718, srubinaz@comcast.net.
secularhumanistjewishcircle.org | freethought-az.org
Summer Film Festival set in Scottsdale
Desert Foothills Jewish Community Association is presenting a Summer Film Festival with three documentaries being shown monthly immediately following Shabbat services.
June 19 – Geto: The Historic Jewish Ghetto of Venice
July 17 – Resistance: Untold Stories of Jewish Partisans
Aug. 21 – Women Unchained, dealing with obtaining a Get, a Jewish divorce.
Open to all. First attendance is free. Membership in the group is $60 per year. Call to RSVP and for the address of the north Scottsdale location: Arlene 480-585-4437.
dfjca.org
AZYentas plan Summer Chai Jewish singles event
One blonde, one brunette, one married, one looking. As best friends, Nancy Silverman and Shari Jaffe-Zee are constantly talking about the joys and difficulties of married life versus single life, and what it takes to find a partner and maintain a lifelong union.
Both grew up in Jewish homes and married Jewish men. Nancy has been married for nearly 25 years, and Shari is now single again. Nancy is constantly trying to find a nice Jewish man for Shari. They thought about how much easier it would be, not only for Shari but for the hundreds of other Jewish singles in Phoenix, if there were a Yenta Event Coordinator – and that’s how AZYentas was born. Their events will bring Jewish singles together like lox and bagels. The inaugural event is Summer Chai Jewish Singles Happy Hour on June 18 at the Blue Martini on High Street (see calendar page 66).
azyentas@gmail.com | Facebook page: AZYentas
