Psychology Unplugged: A Musical Conversation About Judaism and the Mind

On May 7th, join Rabbi Adina Lewittes and musician Ryan Stotland for an exploration of psychology through song and scripture.

This 75-minute program will weave together original music and deep Jewish teachings to explore how to harness the complexities of our brains and the stressors of contemporary life in the search for more mindful, grounded living. Over the course of the night, we’ll take a new look at ideas such as the gift of stress, the success of failure and our brains on G-d, among others. Guests are invited to participate in this rich and wide-reaching discussion through a Q+A period.

Drinks will be available at the bar for purchase (by card only).

Doors will open at 7pm and the discussion will begin at 7:30pm. We hope to see you there! Click here to purchase your ticket. Tickets start at $10 for students and $15 for general admission. 

Adina Lewittes founded Sha’ar, a values-driven Jewish community that for twenty years provided innovative gateways into Jewish life in northern New Jersey and NYC exemplified by a commitment to diversity, creativity, scholarship, excellence and collaboration. She is currently writing a book on the changing landscape of identity and belonging, and speaking and teaching in a wide variety of settings, including in the Rabbinical School at JTS where she teaches a class in contemporary Jewish Law, and has led several creative programs with the Museum of Jewish Montreal. She recently served as the interim Rabbi in Residence at Kehillat Beth Israel in Ottawa. She is married to Andi Lewittes and is blessed with 4 children and 2 stepchildren, and one awesome dog. When not with their kids in NYC or Toronto they live in the beautiful Laurentian mountains.

Ryan Stotland is a topical songwriter and musician, who writes songs that help people learn about difficult subjects whether it be Psychology, Law or Economics. After studying at Berklee College of Music, he started writing songs in 2008 during the global financial crisis. Along with his band The Bull and The Bear, Ryan released an album called Recession Sessions that was featured frequently on public media like NPR, APM and CBC. NPR even described the album as one that best captured the times. One of Ryan’s most recent projects is focused on songs about psychology, its history and many of the most interesting individuals and stories that have helped create the field as we know it today. You can find his music on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/RyanStotland or support his work here: https://www.patreon.com/ryanstotland