Rabbi Albert Lewis z"l
Lecture Series
RABBI ALBERT LEWIS Z”L LECTURE SERIES:
In honor of Rabbi Albert Lewis, Temple Isaiah welcomes thought leaders, changemakers, and inspiring voices whose ideas and actions challenge us to think more deeply, engage more fully, and help shape a more just, compassionate, and whole world.
Through conversations about democracy, Jewish life, social justice, Israel, and the broader challenges facing our world, the Lectureship reflects Rabbi Lewis’s belief that Jewish learning should move us beyond understanding toward action—and that a vibrant Jewish community has a responsibility to engage with the world around it.
Celebrating Temple Isaiah’s 80th Anniversary
As Temple Isaiah celebrates 80 years of Jewish community, learning, and leadership, this year’s Rabbi Albert Lewis Lectureship takes on special meaning.
Throughout this anniversary season, nationally recognized thinkers, authors, journalists, and changemakers will help us consider the questions shaping our present and our future. Together, we will honor the values that have guided Temple Isaiah for eight decades while looking ahead to the community—and the world—we hope to build next.
Join us for a year of bold ideas, meaningful conversation, and inspiration as we celebrate where we have been and imagine what comes next.
UPCOMING LECTURES:
The Rabbi Albert Lewis Memorial Lecture with Professor Dan Schnur - Democracy Requires Us
Nationally respected political commentator, educator, and former campaign strategist Dan Schnur has spent decades teaching political communication and ethics, advising political campaigns, and analyzing American politics. Known for his thoughtful and balanced perspective, Dan brings deep experience to questions of civic responsibility, political polarization, and the health of our democratic institutions.
Rabbi Albert Lewis believed that faith communities have both the privilege and the responsibility to strengthen democracy and pursue justice. At a time of deep political division and declining public trust, Dan will help us consider what it will take to rebuild trust and create a healthier civic future. As California prepares for consequential state and local elections this November, he will also explore the political landscape shaping our communities, the evolving priorities of Jewish voters, and how the war in Gaza and broader developments in the Middle East are influencing American politics.
How can we disagree without dehumanizing? What role can citizens—and communities of faith—play in shaping a healthier civic future? Together, we’ll explore how democracy depends not only on our leaders, but on each of us.
The Rabbi Albert Lewis Memorial Lecture with Author Sarah Hurwitz: Finding Our Way Home A Conversation with Bestselling Author Sarah Hurwitz
Former head speechwriter for First Lady Michelle Obama and bestselling author of Here All Along and As a Jew, Sarah Hurwitz brings warmth, humor, and remarkable honesty to questions of Jewish identity, meaning, and belonging. Drawing on her own unexpected journey back to Judaism, she explores how Jewish wisdom can help us navigate modern life, strengthen our relationships, cultivate resilience, and discover a richer, more meaningful Jewish identity.
At a time of rising antisemitism, difficult conversations about Israel, and growing uncertainty about what it means to be Jewish today, many of us are asking not only how to respond to the world around us, but how to deepen our own Jewish lives. How do we reclaim the joy, wisdom, and sense of belonging that have sustained the Jewish people for generations? What kind of Jewish life do we hope to build for ourselves—and for our children?
Whether you are raising young children, launching teens into adulthood, entering a new chapter, or simply searching for greater purpose, this conversation will offer an opportunity to rediscover the depth, beauty, and enduring wisdom of Jewish tradition.
The Rabbi Albert Lewis Memorial Lecture with Filmmaker Dan Partland - When Faith Becomes Power
Emmy Award-winning filmmaker Dan Partland is known for exploring the intersection of politics, culture, religion, and American public life. His acclaimed documentary God & Country, co-produced by Michele and Rob Reiner, examines the rise of Christian nationalism and the ways political power can reshape religious identity and expression.
Following a screening of the film, Dan will join us for a conversation about Christian nationalism, religious freedom, and the responsibilities of faith communities in a democratic society. At a moment when Americans are wrestling with questions of identity, belonging, and the health of our democracy, we’ll explore how religious traditions can inspire justice, humility, and moral courage without becoming instruments of division or exclusion.
The Rabbi Albert Lewis Memorial Lecture with Abby Leibman - Justice Requires Us
Abby Leibman, President & CEO of MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger, has spent decades advocating for policies that address hunger and advance food security across the United States. As the leader of one of the nation’s most respected anti-hunger organizations, she brings deep experience at the intersection of public policy, social justice, and Jewish values.
For nearly four decades, Temple Isaiah’s Rabbi Albert Lewis Lectureship has honored visionary leaders whose work advances justice and helps repair our world. In this timely conversation, Abby will explore the causes of hunger in America, the policies that can make a lasting difference, and the role Jewish communities can play in ensuring that every person has access to nutritious food.
Together, we’ll consider how our tradition calls us not only to respond to immediate need, but also to pursue the systemic change that allows every person to live with dignity.
The Rabbi Albert Lewis Memorial Lecture with Father Greg Boyle - Cherished Belonging: The Healing Power of Love in Divided Times
For more than three decades, Father Greg Boyle, founder of Homeboy Industries, has accompanied people leaving gangs and incarceration as they build new lives rooted in dignity, purpose, and hope. The bestselling author of Tattoos on the Heart, Barking to the Choir, The Whole Language, and Cherished Belonging, Father Boyle brings stories, humor, wisdom, and an unwavering belief in the transformative power of compassion.
Through his work, he has developed a radical vision of kinship: a way of seeing one another that refuses to divide the world into the deserving and the undeserving, the worthy and the disposable, the “us” and the “them.” His perspective challenges us to consider what justice looks like when it begins not with fixing or saving others, but with recognizing our fundamental belonging to one another.
What would change if we truly believed that we belong to one another? Join us for an evening of conversation about compassion, courage, forgiveness, and the possibility of building a world in which everyone knows: You belong here.
PAST LECTURES:
Bill McKibben, Author, Journalist & Founder of 350.org
Q&A begins at 1:05
Bill McKibben, Author, Journalist & Founder of 350.org
Climate Action and the Transition to Renewable Energy
Bill McKibben joined Temple Isaiah for a conversation about the urgency of climate action, the transition to renewable energy, and the political and financial strategies needed to address the climate crisis.
Sue Dunlap, President & CEO, Planned Parenthood Los Angeles
Sue Dunlap, President & CEO, Planned Parenthood Los Angeles
Protecting Access to Women’s Health, 46 Years After Roe v. Wade
Sue Dunlap joined Temple Isaiah for a conversation about reproductive health care, advocacy, and access across Los Angeles. As President & CEO of Planned Parenthood Los Angeles, she has spent more than two decades advancing reproductive health, education, and public policy.
Tom Steyer, Business Leader, Philanthropist & Climate Advocate
Tom Steyer, Business Leader, Philanthropist & Climate Advocate
Climate, Clean Energy & Civic Responsibility
Tom Steyer joined Temple Isaiah for a conversation about climate change, clean energy, economic opportunity, and the responsibility of individuals and institutions to help build a more sustainable future.