Rebecca Lurie Receives Anna Garlin Spencer Volunteer Award
Rebecca Lurie has been an indispensable member of the Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture since 1998. She has been a leader at BSEC throughout her tenure here. She has served as BSEC Board President, managed our Building and Grounds committee and most recently has...
Art Outside (with pictures)
This past Sunday, our platform brought together art, music, and activities, for an engaging, diverse, participatory and enlightening event with Ed Woodham about the value of the arts in bringing attention to social issues and seeking social change. Participants of all...
The Women of Color Writers Event (with pictures)
This past Saturday, November 16, 2024, BSEC hosted the Women of Color Writers – Telling Our Story, Preserving Our Legacy event. The space was generous, warm, and friendly and about 30 participants came to take part in Captivating Performances, Writing Workshops, Rich...
A LETTER TO MY PEOPLE
By Lujira Cooper Today, we cry for those who’ve died. We weep for those murdered, and then we fight. For too long we’ve hidden to forget the “slings and arrows of outrageous fortune” thrown at us. NO MORE. Neither do we hide under a rock nor in a closet obscuring our...
Ethics for Children – Service Day in Marine Park (with pictures)
Our Ethics for Children program's monthly service project day happened on a lovely day in Marine Park this month. The kids and adults met the friendly and super helpful rangers who work at the park, learned a lot about the wildlife in the area, and went to work,...
Halloween Party 2024 (with pictures)
Last weekend our Ethics for children program organized a Halloween party for the kids and our members. There were lots of costumes, fun games, delicious treats and much laughter. Thank you all who came! CLICK ON THE PICTURES BELOW FOR SLIDES.
BSEC Celebrates Indigenous People’s Day (with pictures)
On October 13, 2024, our Ethics for Children program and BSEC members, went to Randall's Island to honor and support Indigenous people by joining the celebrations at the PowWow organized by the Redhawk Native American Council. It was a beautiful day of activists,...
All Ages Game Day – April 26, 2024 (with pictures)
Thank you to all who came to our All Ages Game Day on April 26. We were so thankful to have shared a Friday night with all of you, playing games, sharing some pizza and enjoying meeting new friends. Special thanks to all who helped make the day a success. CLICK ON THE...
All Ages Game Day – March 3, 2024 (with pictures)
On March 3, 2024, after a long hiatus, our "All Ages Game Day" returned to BSEC! About 40 people of all ages gathered at our new address at 269 4th Avenue, Brooklyn, for an afternoon of board and card games, lots of snacks, and a great time. Many friends came by,...
Art is the Act of Making (with pictures)
On January 27, 2024, we had our first art show at our new location at 269th 4th Avenue. Almost 2 dozen members brought their artwork, showing that we are surrounded by creativity and talent.There was live music, refreshments, and a lot of laughter and joy. There was...
Bereavement Announcement
Bayo Ayaba Callender passed suddenly on Monday, October 9, 2023, a victim of cancer. Bayo was a person full of life and expression. She had much to give to the world and she gave unstintingly. After having lived in many parts of the world including China and traveling...
The Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture has moved from 53 Prospect Park West to 269 4th Avenue, Park Slope.
The Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture (http://bsec.org), a Brooklyn humanist congregation since 1907, has moved to our newly renovated and accessible space at 269 4th Avenue, Park Slope. Our Ethical Education, Ethical Living, and Ethical Action programs will...
BSEC Celebrates Halloween 2023
Ethical humanists also like to have fun! Check out some of the pictures from our members celebrating Halloween, and from our Ethics for Children Halloween movie celebration!
BSEC at March to End Fossil Fuels
On Sept 17th, some of our members and Ethics for Children students participated in the March to End Fossil Fuels, demanding investments in alternative greener options and a better future for our children. The kids even ended up being interviewed by a radio station...
Saying goodbye to our building and welcoming a new beginning
This weekend, we celebrated our years at our building at 53 Prospect Park West, as we get ready to move to a new location. It was an emotional party, as we have spent many decades at this beautiful Park Slope address, but we move with new purpose and excitement for...
Dance at BSEC
On April 30th, BSEC, in collaboration with Good Neighbors of Park Slope, had a community dance, led by Laurie Shayler, from Dance Connection.It was a lovely night, full of gracious steps and many fun missteps, with about 50 friends of all ages, sharing a great night...
Donating Feminine Products to the Brooklyn Central Library
Last week, we put out a call for feminine products, in support of "Pink Moon", the Brooklyn Central Library's distribution of menstrual products to low-income teens. Thanks to donations from our members, the Flying Squirrel Homeschoolers Co-op, and members of our...
Ethics for Children Service Project – Fun Day for Refugee Families
This weekend the Ethics for Children program held a Family Fun Day for about 50 children and adults. This wasn't just an event for our families. We invited families from the local sanctuary shelter to join us! Working in collaboration with Rachel Lori from Gowanus...
Collection of Feminine Products for Low Income Teens to Support Public Library Program
The Brooklyn Central Library will have a distribution of feminine products for low-income teens, called "Pink Moon". It is a very needed project, as feminine products are a monthly need, they are expensive and hard to acquire through public programs, particularly for...
Remembering BSEC’s History – Patsy Tran Berkman
Patsy Tran Berkman is an alumna who is currently 86 years old, but who was, in her childhood, part of what is now our Ethics for Children program. We are lucky to have people like her, who have saved a special place in their hearts for us, even so many years later....
2022 In Person Events at BSEC
Dear friends, As we wrap up 2023, it is always fun to look at community moments. We had so many fascinating talks and moving community moments on Zoom, but we also had a lot of in-person events. Below are a few highlights:We got together to collect toiletries for the...
Ethics for Children Service Project – Food Insecurity
In November the service project that our Ethics for Children program participated in was related to the issue of food insecurity. Our goal was to stock the Community Fridge located beside the Wyckoff Museum (5816 Clarendon Road, Canarsie). Students gathered at the...
BSEC has Hope
By Kim Brandon Thank you BSEC members for contributing such delicious food and volunteering for the Hope Dinner’s Thanksgiving dinner bags.This was the 29th Hope Thanksgiving dinner and the 35 dinner bags were overstuffed with wonderful cooked food and baked goods. ...
Screening of “NOT IN MY NEIGHBORHOOD” at BSEC
A week ago, on October 28, 2022, we had an in-person screening of the movie "Not in My Neighborhood" by Kurt Otabenga Orderson, in co-sponsorship with Imani House.Several of our members, Imani house friends as well as people from communities affected by the ill...
BSEC Members Celebrate Halloween!
Our members worry about social issues, but we also like to have fun. Below are some pictures of how some of our members celebrated #halloween this year!
Ethics for Children Service Project – Animal Shelter
Putting our ethics into action is an integral component of the Ethics for Children program. This year it quickly became apparent that animal welfare is a shared passion among our families, so our first service project centered around that theme. On the second Sunday...
NY Center for Nonviolent Communication at Brooklyn Ethical
A testimony by Rebecca Lurie This past summer I took advantage of free training offered to members of BSEC in Nonviolent Communication. It was a weekend retreat we hosted for the NY Center for Nonviolent Communication (NYCNVC) and we are doing it again! In exchange...
Art Night with Friends
This week we had a lovely event, Art Night with Friends, guided by art educator and director of our Ethics for Children Program, Angel Thompson. Participants created their own petit landscapes, enjoyed the beautiful weather, and stayed long after the event sharing...
Postcards to voters with Beth Elohim
Congregation Beth Elohim and the Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture came together in the BSEC garden on August 17 to write almost 300 postcards encouraging voting in competitive states. This postcard writing campaign is Reclaim Our Vote. Some of the pictures can be...
Postcarding to Voters (with pictures)
This past Tuesday, August 2nd, we had a Postcards to Voters - Community Day event at our building, organized by our Communications Committee. The event was outdoors and we had refreshments, a delightful brass band, Honk NYC, playing in our yard, and warm and dedicated...
Get Out The Vote Postcarding At Brooklyn Society For Ethical Culture
Brooklyn Society For Ethical Culture members and neighbors are writing postcards to get out the vote in competitive states around the country. Every weekday evening in July, from 5-7 a table is set up in front of the building at:Brooklyn Society for Ethical...
BSEC MANAGING DIRECTOR: JOB DESCRIPTION
The Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture (BSEC), a religious non-profit with an annual operating budget of approximately $450,000, seeks a Managing Director to work alongside its lay leadership and staff to nurture and grow our community. More detailed information...
Ethics for Children Service Project – Beach Clean Up
The best service day ideas come from the kids and our May service day was one of them! Our kids wanted to do something to help our local wildlife. To set up this project we reached out to the Urban Park Rangers at the Salt Marsh Nature Center in Marine Park. As it...
Plain Truths – Abortions, Births and Other Matters (Members’ Blog)
“Rather than love, than money, than fame, give me truth” Henry David Thoreau Americans in a certain respect are under-read and over-exposed thanks, in part to social media, thereby producing a population that has a highly personal and ego-centered view of themselves...
Ethics in Action – Collection for Women’s Shelter
At a time when so many people in our communities are struggling, sometimes it seems overwhelming to try to look for solutions, but even small acts can make a difference. As part of the Secular Week of Action, we had a toiletries collection to help support the CAMBA...
Ethics for Children Service Project – Show of Gratitute
Our April Ethics for Children project was a show of gratitude. The Prospect Park Board Gaming Club is a long-standing supporter of our children's program. As a gesture of gratitude, we made board game pieces for them to use. With much creativity and great patience...
In support of the victims of the Sunset Park Shooting
The Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture would like to express our concern and support for the victims of the horrific subway shooting in Sunset Park. Our thoughts go out to the victims, their families and friends.
Ethics For Children Service Project – Multigenerational Connection
With our BSEC platforms and Ethics for Children classes being held online, there have been fewer opportunities for multigenerational interactions within our community. Many of our students have never seen the BSEC building bustling with activity or enjoyed a brunch...
Announcing our new Managing Director
We would like to welcome Erin Carney as the new Managing Director of the Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture. The Recruitment Taskforce conducted an exhaustive campaign and had the pleasure of interviewing several impressive candidates; however, none matched as many...
Ways to Help Ukrainians Affected by the War
The Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture is committed to peace and human rights. We are also part of the American Ethical Union (AEU), and the statement on the Ukrainian crisis can be found below: https://ethical.nyc/aeu-statement-on-the-ukraine-crisis/ Below you will...