Kesharim Chamoosh translates (roughly) to Connections 50s/60s/70s. This new Beth Israel Center program is for anyone who is not so young but still active, less absorbed in work or family than in younger years, and interested in occasional gatherings filled with learning and socializing in a Jewish setting. Kesharim Chamoosh aims to provide Madison Jews in their fifties, sixties or seventies an opportunity for mingling while exploring ideas and indulging in a few treats.

At the first gathering, enjoy a sampling of vegetarian cheese with wine and begin a sicha (conversation) aimed at helping us take a deep breath between the recent election in Israel and the 2016 election in the United States. Rabbis Joshua and Rebecca Ben-Gideon will lead an exploration of speaking across the political divide. If you've read Jonathan Haidt's The Righteous Mind or Parker Palmer's Healing the Heart of Democracy, you may recognize some of the ideas, and the Rabbis Ben-Gideon will also offer a Jewish perspective on this perpetual challenge.

Bring friends or come alone.