Events for November 20 - October 22

In "Optics of Aging" stereotypes of ageism are confronted and the beauty of aging is revealed through five Rhode Island elders who have shaped the landscape of Rhode Island and beyond. Their voices take flight against the backdrop of archival imagery that captures the vision of an earlier time.

What does it actually mean to harvest and cultivate one's wisdom in later life? For four years, Ronnie Dunetz has led an online group that has been tackling this challenge using lively, explorative group reflection, exploration, and conversation. By bringing our authentic selves to such conversations we enable the cultivation of our insights and wisdom. This new Harvesting your Wisdom Circle will invite members to engage with a vast array of “off the beaten track” topics that will challenge, empower, and assist our growth of wisdom in our sage-ing processes of later life.

When you ask elders what they are most worried about as they age, their answer is generally not the economy, the Coronavirus, or even climate change. Most often the response is cognitive decline. Two common misconceptions, however, are first that cognitive decline is an inevitable part of aging and second that it is unavoidable if you have a high genetic risk. The truth is that approximately 40% of your C health may be under your control and attributable to healthy lifestyle behavior choices and proper management of other health conditions.

This is the 3rd and final Episode in the Life of Reb Zalman, as told by his family and closest friends, to honor his memory of the centennial year of his birth. Episode 3 will bring you the two major turning points that led to the Sage-ing Movement and Jewish Renewal. There is a real-life background story to Reb Zalman's well-known exercise, The Testimonial Dinner: "A Banquet for our Severe Teachers;" We will also hear about personal insights contributing to his move in 1956 which led to his 40-day retreat at age 60, where the inspiration came for his classic book, From Age-ing to Sage-ing; and how that move changed his religious vision and became Jewish Renewal.

The wisdom of elders is to move from a self-centered narrow view of life to a more expansive and inclusive embrace of the other. The challenge is to hold on to one’s own spiritual integrity while reaching out to others. Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi embodied this wisdom and in his meeting with His Holiness the XIV Dalai Lama showed the significance of spiritual imagination for dialogue. We will see how Reb Zalman first established a heart-to-heart connection. Then breaking free of his original agenda, Reb Zalman could follow the Dalai Lama’s curiosity about angels and this spontaneous and exciting exchange led to an extraordinary transcendent moment.

David Chernikoff draws on Buddhist and other contemplative teachings to guide us in cultivating and celebrating the blessings of spiritual maturity. We will study and experientially explore lovingkindness. Together we create a safe, supportive learning community as we increasingly embody the wise and loving elders we each have the potential to be.

Every one has suffered personal, communal, and planetary losses over the past year. We as individuals, and We, the global interconnected web of life, benefit when we come together to create Sacred Space for honoring our losses and deepening our blessings. You are invited to join the Sage-ing Community in this ritual for remembering, sharing, and transforming our collective grief.

Everyone is getting old; not everyone is growing older. But the path of purposeful aging is accessible to all. And it is fundamental to health, healing, happiness, and longevity. With a focus on growing whole through unlocking a sense of purpose in later life, Richard celebrates the experience of aging with inspiring stories, real-world practices, and provocative questions to help us navigate the path from adulthood to elderhood with choice, curiosity, and courage.

Many of us navigating the years beyond midlife report high levels of self-acceptance, freedom, and joy. However, there can also be bouts of second-guessing and regret and the occasional longing to be reminded that you’re not in this alone. Walking participants through the most uplifting, passionate, as well as dangerous passages on the path of aging spiritually, Carol Orsborn provides us with a first look at her newest book Spiritual Aging: Weekly Reflections for Embracing Life (Inner Traditions, December 2024).

In this final webinar of the 2024 series, we’ll look closely at what some traditions consider to be the ultimate fruition of a consciously lived life. David’s talk will address ways we can distinguish authentic equanimity from indifference and apathy. We’ll review the entire webinar series and David will lead us in an experiential exercise to help us identify and assimilate what we’ve learned from our time together.