Shabbat Special Events

Throughout the year, City Shul will be hosting Shabbat Special events, from 10 am to 12 noon.

Most events will be held in a private home and be open to members only. There is no cost, but registration is required.

Brunch sponsorships are always welcome— your donation is tax-deductible. Please click HERE to donate, under Shabbat Special Events Kiddush.

If you are interested in hosting one of these events in your home or condo party room, or in sponsoring the brunch in memory or In honour of someone or something, please send an email to the office HERE. 

B'tzelem Elohim: we are all created in God's image -- created to be creative.

Traditionally, Shabbat is the day of rest from creation, but we'll gather together to explore the creative process as a spiritual practice, and to experiment with art-making as a way to surface new insights about the Hebrew month's themes. This time, we'll take inspiration from the month of Sivan, in which we celebrate Shavuot, to focus on "The Art of Gleaning."

What will we be doing?

Accessing and activating our creativity is how we partner with the Divine in the ongoing work of creation. Using the Jewish Studio Process, the first half of the program will feature a brief spiritual grounding in place (a short meditation or poem), followed by a Beit Midrash (study hall) paired study.

Unlike other "beit midrash" settings we may have experienced, the aim of this text study isn't to find an authoritative or even intellectual read on what the texts mean. It's to spark images, feelings, and sensations that will help us engage in conversation with each other, uncover our innate wisdom and insights, and build shared resonance within the group that shows up to the workshop.

The second half of the workshop is devoted to mark- or art-making, where we will work alongside each other to create images inspired by our text study, using materials from Sharoni's portable art studio -- paint, markers, collage, stickers, stencils, etc. We close out by witnessing our work, reflecting on the process and to hear what insights surfaced in the room. You don't have to be "artistic" to participate; in fact, this process has proven especially valuable for folks who don't think of themselves that way at all!

Who is Sharoni Sibony?

Sharoni Sibony is an educator, artist, creative facilitator, and community organizer. She has been a lecturer, tour guide, pottery instructor, and book club facilitator in various venues across the Toronto community and has worked and volunteered in Jewish adult educational programming and event management through organizations that include Kolel, at the Prosserman JCC, the Miles Nadal JCC, Ashkenaz Festival, Holy Blossom Temple, and Limmud Toronto. You can also find images of some of her ceramic work HERE    

Sharoni Sibony completed an 18-month training program with the Jewish Studio Project in Berkeley, California, and is pleased to bring this work to Toronto.

Additional Information:

Will I get messy? Most people don't get messy, so there is no need to show up in an “old shirt”. You may be working with glue and cut paper or stickers, or if you would like to work with paint, it will be in a controlled space. Gloves are not required, and all materials are non-toxic. You are welcome to take home your completed piece of artwork - you may want to bring along a disposable shopping bag to carry your artwork home in.

The event concludes with Kaddish, followed by brunch.

The event will not be live-streamed. Brunch sponsors are welcome.

This event is for adults only.

Please note: No recording of the event is allowed.

Sharoni will be asking for a few volunteers to help her gather up materials at the end of the workshop.

Register HERE.