UPCOMING EVENTS: Summer / Fall 2019
Event dates can also be found on our calendar page
Forming Community Through Movement and Music
Saturday September 14, 4pm
Do you ever get to play? How do you work through conflict in relationships and community? How does learning, creativity and reflection help us become better Ethical Culturists? If any of these questions intrigue you, join us for this workshop where we will experience play while learning about one another.
Christian Hayden, Ethical Leader-in-Training, was a Mossler Fellow where he explored how to shape experiences that could challenge and shape communities and societies.
Potluck dinner following workshop. Please RSVP for location details (the event is at a private home) and to indicate what you plan to bring for the potluck. Use our Meetup page if you have a Meetup account, or you can contact us by email or this site’s contact form .
Sunday Spotlight With Visiting Ethical Culture Leader-in-Training Christian Hayden: Pan-Africanism and Humanism, Two Pillars of Faith
Sunday September 15, 11am
Neutra House (181 Hillview Ave., Los Altos CA 94022)
Guest Speaker: Christian Hayden, Member of the Philadelphia Ethical Society & Ethical Culture Leader-in-Training.
Join us for this special Sunday Spotlight to hear how Christian’s life-changing trip to Ghana impacted how he views Pan-Africanism and Humanism. Christian will explore his work with the Humanist Service Corps, as well as personal reflections on race within the Humanist movement.
We welcome your participation by listening and engaging in thoughtful dialogue, with a little live music mixed in. We provide the coffee, tea, and a welcoming space for inquiring minds and open hearts to learn from one another.
The program begins at 11am and ends at 12:30pm, and we’d love it if you’d stay for a beverage and light refreshments to share your thoughts.
Although it’s fine to just show up, it would be greatly appreciated if you RSVP so we have some idea how many people to expect and can set up the room accordingly. You can use our Meetup page if you have an account there, or you can use our contact form. Thanks!
Senior Scam Stopper Seminar
Monday September 16, 10am to noon
Joan Pisani Community Center (19655 Allendale Ave., Saratoga CA 95070)
Did you know that one in five seniors has been a victim of fraud? That seniors are the most targeted group, and that new senior scams are developed constantly? Come and learn how to protect yourself. Seniors, their families, and caregivers are welcome to attend this FREE seminar.
RSVPs are not required, but they are welcomed so we have an idea how many people to expect. You can use our Meetup page if you have an account there, or you can use our contact form. Thanks!
What To Do When Place Names Are Controversial
Wednesday September 18, 6:30pm
Paula and Ben’s home (RSVP for location details)
Peter Burnett Middle School in San Jose is now called Ohlone Middle School because, while being the first Governor of California is noteworthy, Burnett was the Governor who advocated keeping African Americans out of California upon statehood and advocated for the Chinese Exclusion Act.
As teacher Cap Wilhelm-Safian wrote on Facebook when advocating for the change: “It would seem that the legacy of Peter Burnett sharply conflicts with the values we now hold. Times change. Communities evolve.” (From Sanjosespotlight article.)
When place names conflict with values, what should the community do? The name may have historical significance while the values that person represented exclude people or are offensive. Some who want to retain the historical names say that “names bestowed long ago shouldn’t be judged by today’s standards.” (Jeff Cruess, quoted in National Parks Magazine.)
Please come join the discussion. Light meal at 6:30. Discussion starts at 7:30. Arrive anytime in that window.
Please bring no outside food or drink. RSVP for location details (you can use our Meetup page if you have an account there, or you can use our contact form.)
Friday Morning Ethics Discussion
Friday September 20, 10am to noon
Holder’s Country Inn (998 S. DeAnza Blvd, San Jose CA 95129)
Using situations in life and from the news of the week, we’ll explore ethical issues of the day. The topic will change every month. Bring issues from your life or the news to share.
Although it’s fine to just show up, it would be greatly appreciated if you RSVP so we have some idea how many people to expect. You can use our Meetup page if you have an account there, or you can use our contact form. Thanks!
Book Club: Spying on the South by Tony Horwitz
Sunday September 22, 11am
Neutra House (181 Hillview Ave., Los Altos CA 94022)
For this meeting of the Ethical Culture Book Club we will be discussing “Spying on the South: An Odyssey Across the American Divide.”
• All are welcome (though please read the book)
• Please bring along at least one point for discussion
• If you have chance, look over the list to help choose the next book http://ethicalsiliconvalley.org/ecssv-book-club/
Abstract: Is America still one country? In search of answers and his own adventures, Tony Horwitz travels through Appalachia, down the Mississippi River, into bayou Louisiana, and across Texas to the contested Mexican borderland. Venturing far off beaten paths, Horwitz uncovers bracing vestiges and strange new mutations of the Cotton Kingdom. Horwitz’s intrepid and often hilarious journey through an outsized American landscape is a masterpiece in the tradition of Great Plains, Bad Land, and the author’s own classic, Confederates in the Attic.
Although it’s fine to just show up, it would be greatly appreciated if you RSVP so we have some idea how many people to expect and can set up the room accordingly. You can use our Meetup page if you have an account there, or you can use our contact form. Thanks!
Video Night With Discussion And Food
Wednesday September 25, 6:30pm
Paula and Ben’s home (RSVP for location details)
Join us for another video exploring issues related to ethics. We will look into the deeper and more introspective questions in life. The goal of the night is to be inspired and motivated to pursue meaningful virtues in our everyday lives. Suggestions for videos under 30 minutes are welcome!
Vegan dinner served at 6:30, discussion at 7:30. PLEASE do not bring any food or drink into the home. RSVP for location details (you can use our Meetup page if you have an account there, or you can use our contact form.)
Friday Morning Ethics Discussion
Friday October 4, 10am to noon
Holder’s Country Inn (998 S. DeAnza Blvd, San Jose CA 95129)
Using situations in life and from the news of the week, we’ll explore ethical issues of the day. The topic will change every month. Bring issues from your life or the news to share.
Although it’s fine to just show up, it would be greatly appreciated if you RSVP so we have some idea how many people to expect. You can use our Meetup page if you have an account there, or you can use our contact form. Thanks!
Sunday Study Session
Sunday October 6, 4pm
BJ and Lawrence’s home (RSVP for location details)
Want to know more about Ethical Culture? Have you attended some of our gatherings but don’t really know what Ethical Culture is all about? Attend this gathering where we review some of the documents created around the ideas and ideals of Ethical Culture as well as some of the current writings on Ethical Culture. This discussion will introduce Ethical Culture to new folks, refresh the ideas for the folks who’ve been around a while, and offer lots of ideas for discussion.
Please RSVP for location details, as this event is held at a private home. Use our Meetup page if you have a Meetup account, or you can contact us by email or this site’s contact form .
Coffee and Conversation
Sunday October 13, 11am
Neutra House (181 Hillview Ave., Los Altos CA 94022)
Coffee & Conversation sessions are informal, inclusive, supportive gatherings. We just talk about things that are on our minds, things that make for, or detract from, a fulfilling human life in the real world for ourselves and for other people. We listen to each other, share our thoughts, sip our hot drinks, and enjoy being together. We do this at Neutra House in Los Altos the second Sunday of each month at 11:00 in the morning. Linda and John will lead the discussion.
Although it’s fine to just show up, it would be greatly appreciated if you RSVP so we have some idea how many people to expect and can set up the room accordingly. You can use our Meetup page if you have an account there, or you can use our contact form. Thanks!
Evening Ethics Discussion and Food
Wednesday October 16, 2019, 6:30pm
Paula and Ben’s home (RSVP for location details)
Ethical dilemmas from our daily lives will be the focus of the discussion. Bring ethical situations you personally face to the group for a hearty and thoughtful discussion. For instance, are you faced with an ethical choice and wonder what the right thing to do is? Does something you see in the media make you wince because you think it’s unethical? Did some person act in a way that received media attention because it was seen as very “moral” and it got you thinking about what you would do in the same situation? Bring it to the group and we’ll discuss it!
Vegan dinner served at 6:30, discussion at 7:30. PLEASE do not bring any food or drink into the home. RSVP for location details (you can use our Meetup page if you have an account there, or you can use our contact form.)
Friday Morning Ethics Discussion
Friday October 18, 10am to noon
Holder’s Country Inn (998 S. DeAnza Blvd, San Jose CA 95129)
Using situations in life and from the news of the week, we’ll explore ethical issues of the day. The topic will change every month. Bring issues from your life or the news to share.
Although it’s fine to just show up, it would be greatly appreciated if you RSVP so we have some idea how many people to expect. You can use our Meetup page if you have an account there, or you can use our contact form. Thanks!
Sunday Spotlight
Sunday October 20, 11am
Neutra House (181 Hillview Ave., Los Altos CA 94022)
Join us one Sunday each month to hear from an inspiring, active speaker who will share information about working to make our community and our world a better place. Topics run the gamut from basic needs to social justice to the environment. We welcome you to participate by listening and engaging in thoughtful dialogue, with a little live music mixed in. We provide the coffee, tea, and a welcoming space for inquiring minds and open hearts to learn from one another.
The program begins at 11am and ends at 12:30pm, and we’d love it if you’d stay for a beverage and light refreshments to share your thoughts.
Although it’s fine to just show up, it would be greatly appreciated if you RSVP so we have some idea how many people to expect and can set up the room accordingly. You can use our Meetup page if you have an account there, or you can use our contact form. Thanks!
Video Night With Discussion And Food
Wednesday October 23, 6:30pm
Paula and Ben’s home (RSVP for location details)
Join us for another video exploring issues related to ethics. We will look into the deeper and more introspective questions in life. The goal of the night is to be inspired and motivated to pursue meaningful virtues in our everyday lives. Suggestions for videos under 30 minutes are welcome!
Vegan dinner served at 6:30, discussion at 7:30. PLEASE do not bring any food or drink into the home. RSVP for location details (you can use our Meetup page if you have an account there, or you can use our contact form.)
Book Club: Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
Sunday October 27, 11am
Neutra House (181 Hillview Ave., Los Altos CA 94022)
For this meeting of the Ethical Culture Book Club we will be discussing “Flowers for Algernon.”
• All are welcome (though please read the book)
• Please bring along at least one point for discussion
• If you have chance, look over the list to help choose the next book http://ethicalsiliconvalley.org/ecssv-book-club/
Abstract: It is better to be a human being dissatisfied than a pig satisfied; better to be Socrates dissatisfied than a fool satisfied. And if the fool, or the pig, is of a different opinion, it is only because they only know their own side of the question. — John Stuart Mill
Daniel Keyes’ inventive, charming, and melancholy tale of Charlie Gordon puts Mill’s claim about wisdom to the test. Is it truly better to be wise than to be a fool? In Flowers for Algernon, the mentally handicapped Charlie Gordon is transformed by a surgery that allows him to become intelligent. The short story and later-developed novel explores themes about the cycle of life, the limits of science, and whether knowledge is truly more valuable than happiness.
Although it’s fine to just show up, it would be greatly appreciated if you RSVP so we have some idea how many people to expect and can set up the room accordingly. You can use our Meetup page if you have an account there, or you can use our contact form. Thanks!