Upcoming events

Our virtual Morning Minyan is one of the best-kept secrets of IKAR. Monday-Friday and Sunday at 8am PT on Zoom, we’ll explore a different modality we might use to help us access our prayer life: singing, meditation, study, etc. And each day we will end with a Mourner’s Kaddish.

Wind down and get ready for Shabbat. We are diverse: still working and retired; single, divorced, widowed, and in a relationship; have children, grandchildren, pets, plants, or none of the above; Angelinos and transplants. What we have in common is ikar, a multitude of experiences, and a desire to spend some of our time enjoying events and experiences with those in our age group (60+).

Every Saturday morning at 9:15am, join Dev Brous and/or Dr. Barry Goldstein for a meditation session on the 3rd floor/rooftop Art Room, located next to the elevator. And find your way to sip some homemade herbal tea blends, FromSoil2Soul, near the coffee station.

We welcome everyone to our Shabbat morning services at 9:30am PT, no matter their level of observance, experience, or familiarity with Hebrew. Daven with us in person at Shalhevet, or join us virtually on YouTube or Zoom. Childcare is available during Services for kids ages 2-5. Stay afterward for our kosher, vegetarian community lunch. 10/24/2026 Samuel Ethan & Joshua Gabriel Goldstein 11/7/2026 Lucille (Luci) Halpern-Fingerhut 11/14/2026 Henry Posalski 11/28/2026 Ezekiel Mataan Brous-Weber 12/5/2026 Samuel Rafael Marquit 12/19/2026 Finch Rhodes

For decades, Barry Michels has been one of the most sought-after psychotherapists in Hollywood—a practitioner whose no-nonsense, transformative approach earned him the devotion of some of the most creative minds in the industry. Bret Easton Ellis, Adam McKay, and Mark Levin are all patients who spoke openly in a 2011 New Yorker profile about how his methods changed their lives and their work. The book he co-wrote with his mentor and colleague Phil Stutz, The Tools, became a New York Times bestseller that has sold nearly 500,000+ copies, recently finding a new generation of readers through Jonah Hill’s acclaimed Netflix documentary STUTZ. Two years ago, Barry was, by any measure, a man at the height of his powers. And then a doctor delivered a diagnosis that changed everything: Lewy Body Dementia—the same degenerative disease that had taken his father’s life—would take his own. Ahead of All Parting: On Learning to Live with an Open Heart is a remarkable and unexpected book. Where one might anticipate a story of grief and loss, Barry has written something far more surprising: an expansive meditation on what becomes possible when we stop running from our deepest fears and allow ourselves to be truly seen. Barry is still practicing, still hiking, and very much present in the world, and that comes through on every page of this remarkable and deeply moving memoir. Michels shows us that being alive is more fragile and more astonishing than we usually allow ourselves to feel.

Join us and some of our amazing teens one Saturday a month for sensory play, a bit of music and movement, and a snack! Open to families with littles ages birth-5 years. Meet us from 11am – 12pm in Shalhevet’s rooftop beit midrash. Did you know IKAR has an amazing preschool for children ages 18 mos-5 years? Contact [email protected] for more info and to join a tour!

This Saturday class offers opportunities for connection, learning, play, and community. We include music and movement, child-led play, and grown-up discussion of developmental and Jewish topics. Open to members and non-members. Facilitated by our Early Childhood Engagement Consultant Beth Weisman, M.A. and coach/trainer Cricket Buchler. The cost is $400/family. Shalhevet Room 303. Also: 10/31, 11/7, 11/14, 12/5, 12/12

Mondays from 8:30-9 am PT, after our virtual Monday Morning Minyan, we open a short Grief Garden Circle, a sacred listening space. Please join us here if you are holding grief. Have questions? Please email [email protected]

Join this virtual, interactive circle using the Jewish Studio Process, facilitated by Ross Berman and Ann Bohrer. Explore the power of making process art in community as a tool for personal and collective renewal. All are welcome – no art experience needed. Unlock your creativity. Your confirmation email will include the Zoom link and information on art supplies to have on hand. We meet from 6-8 pm PT. Please arrive a few minutes early.

Through IKAR’s PATH Meals collaboration, a small group of volunteers will serve and enjoy warm meals with residents who are temporarily housed at PATH Cotner residence. Drop off a prepared dish or join us in person to serve warm meals for residents getting back on their feet at PATH Cotner. How can I participate? You can participate by donating items before the event begins or signing up to bring donations and serve. Those who donate food and serve during the event will have the opportunity to eat with the clients we serve. Who can participate? Volunteers must be at least 16 years of age to serve meals at PATH, but we encourage you to make a dish at home with younger children and drop it off if they are too young to serve. Does food need to be home-cooked? No, participants can feel free to prepare meals at home or bring store-bought items to serve. Should participants expect to cook items onsite? No, please bring pre-cooked dishes. There will be an oven to warm up items, if needed. How much food should I prepare/purchase? We expect to serve 25-30 PATH clients during each event. Please bring enough food to serve 20 guests, as it will be served potluck style. Other accessibility info: There are steps to access the building and a handicap lift – if needed, please reach out in advance for assistance. There is only street parking available with no guarantee of a handicap spot.

What is the Grief Garden? Please join Dev Brous, a certified trauma-informed Compassionate Bereavement Care grief counselor, and herbalist. Join this safe, reflective space to hold, and to be held as we “garden” grief. Here, we share reflections on what we’re learning from grief through embodied weekly prompts that connect people to nature-based Jewish healing practices. To sign-up, please fill out this form. Here’s the link to join the Grief Garden FS2S What’sApp: https://tinyurl.com/2eacz8nc Schedule a 1-0n-1 Grief Support with Dev here: https://cal.com/devorah-brous/grief-support?duration=60  

Parenting is amazing. And hard. Really hard. But it can be so much better when we do it in a community of thoughtful, caring, supportive, inquisitive parents. Here’s a chance to be part of an amazing community from the comfort of your couch, one night a week. We will take up different parenting challenges and questions, share information and ideas from experts and from each other, and enjoy a bit of grown-up time. Facilitated by Beth Weisman, M.A., IKAR’s Early Childhood Engagement Consultant. Free and open to grown-ups with children ages birth-5 years. Members and non-members welcome. We will meet virtually Wednesdays from 8:30-9:30 pm 9/30, 10/7, 10/14, and 10/21. A Zoom link will be sent once we receive your RSVP. We hope you’ll join us!

Join Rabbi David Kasher, Director of Hadar West Coast and past IKAR rabbi, for a virtual literary study of the text of the Torah, aided by the keen eyes of the classical commentators. This series is co-sponsored with Hadar. It will run from Wednesday, October 7 through Wednesday, November 18, 2026.

Wednesdays, 10/28, 11/18, 12/9, 1/6, 2/10, 3/3, 4/14, 5/12 at 7pm The sudden rise of Elijah marks a major shift in the leadership of Israel, from the King to the Prophet. This transition raises all the thorny questions about the relationship between religion and politics that we continue to grapple with today. Fire from heaven, resurrections, sea-splitting, and more – come study some of the wildest, most riveting stories in all of Tanakh (the Hebrew Bible) in a monthly Beit Midrash led by Rabbis Brous, Panitz and Kasher.

Off-Mic Kabbalat Shabbat Services + Community & TRIBE (20’s-30’s) Dinner IKAR Event Space (1729 S. La Cienega Blvd), 6:30pm Services, dinner Come together for our tech-free (off-mic) Kabbalat Shabbat Services with a focus on lifting our voices in song as a community. Enter through our alleyway and down the ramp into our event space. For those with accessibility needs, you can be dropped off and enter through the front door. Following Services, join us for a community, veggie, kosher dinner.

We welcome everyone to our Shabbat morning services at 9:30am PT, no matter their level of observance, experience, or familiarity with Hebrew. Daven with us in person at Shalhevet, or join us virtually on YouTube or Zoom. Childcare is available during Services for kids ages 2-5. Stay afterward for our kosher, vegetarian community lunch. 11/7/2026 Lucille (Luci) Halpern-Fingerhut 11/14/2026 Henry Posalski 11/28/2026 Ezekiel Mataan Brous-Weber 12/5/2026 Samuel Rafael Marquit 12/19/2026 Finch Rhodes

Looking for a way to spend a bit of quality time with your little ones on Shabbat? Join us and some of our amazing teens for an hour of sensory play, movement, and a snack in the Beit Midrash from 11am-12pm! Then stay for IKAR's free vegetarian community lunch! For families with children ages birth-4. Meet us from 11am - 12pm in Shalhevet's Beit Midrash (3rd floor/rooftop classroom).

Join us after services for a special Lunch & Learn with the Vote Is Sacred Bus Tour, bringing interfaith partners from across the country to IKAR as part of their national journey. Since it is Shabbat, our interfaith partners are coming to us! Let’s give them a big IKAR welcome! Enjoy lunch, learning, and conversation about building a multifaith movement for democracy.

This Saturday class offers opportunities for connection, learning, play, and community. We include music and movement, child-led play, and grown-up discussion of developmental and Jewish topics. Open to members and non-members. Facilitated by our Early Childhood Engagement Consultant Beth Weisman, M.A. and coach/trainer Cricket Buchler. The cost is $400/family. Shalhevet Room 303. Also: 11/7, 11/14, 12/5, 12/12

Please bring the following: Pumpkins to smash and/or vegan compost scraps (no dairy, meat or citrus please – we love coffee grounds and egg shells, though!) Gently worn or new clothing and toys Rain protection items Canned or packaged foods (non perishable) and Halloween candy Helping hands and open hearts Service projects: Smash pumpkins – support our regenerative garden! Pack 150 lunch bags for the food insecure community Assemble hygiene kits Make no-sew blankets for the unhoused community Paint rocks for residents of a local senior community Write welcome home letters and plant flowers for newly housed Marigold magic and take home seedlings Community Lego build Art projects with our program partner Momentum Therapy dog visits from Love on a Leash – pet a puppy And more! Agenda: 1:30 PM: Service projects begin, Music by Continental Drips 1:45 PM: Accessible Yoga with Tami 2:00 PM: ALLWAYZ on Stage performance 2:15 PM: Farm Tour and Pumpkin Hunt 2:45 PM: Rabbi Bill Kaplan Pollinator Garden Dedication and Ribbon Cutting Ceremony 3:15 PM: Community Sing-Along with Julian Friedman, Sammy Blanc and Shemesh Farms Farm Fellows and Community Food Options: Enjoy our tasting table and Fall inspired concessions and our famous farm stand with our latest products and gift sets Pizza vendor Work alongside our farm fellows and community and help us build a kinder world! Tickets: Free, or support this event at one of the following sponsorship levels: $18 – Pumpkin Smasher $36 – “Pe’ah” Forward – includes a free Pumpkin Smash T-shirt $180 – Event Supporter – your name will be recognized at event – includes 2 tshirts T-shirts will be available for purchase for $36 at the event and proceeds benefit our program and community. Get one while supplies last. 1:45 Accessible yoga reservation – 15 spots available (no charge)

Elections, Elections, Elections. Elections are ultimately horse races. And who wins, and who loses changes everything. And is fun to guess who might win. This year’s mid terms are hugely consequential. Both the U.S. House and Senate have the potential to flip from Republican to Democratic control as well as up to 14 State Houses. This week’s Modern History Circle will examine the 11 US Senate races that have the potential to flip, 18 U.S. House Races and several of the States that might have their State Houses flip – and how that can affect US politics. We will be meeting in person at the IKAR event space, beginning at 6:30 and discussion will begin at 7:00. Lay-Led by Jonathan Silberman ([email protected]).

Sing your heart out to your favorite Hebrew chant with us! Whether you are an expert or a first-timer, we welcome you! Lay led by Antonia Lassar. Light snacks are provided.

Poetry can often heal, elevate the soul and awaken the heart. Come join IKAR’s Jewish Poetry Circle as we read Jewish poets — the Oneg Shabbos poets of the Warsaw Ghetto, Medieval Sephardic poets, Israeli and Jewish-American poets up to the present—the historical context of their writing, spiritual relationships, personal agonies and joys. The Circle is not an academic writing class but rather an informal experience of a committed group of participants to explore and hopefully bond with Jewish poetic expression and with each other.

This is a drop-in event for all members of the ikar Men’s Circle. All who identify as men at ikar are welcome to join the circle this evening. We are an intergenerational circle of men who support one another in becoming the men we want to be in the world. We focus on deepening our connection to Judaism, building community at IKAR, and forging bonds of brotherhood.