Instead of a professor, rabbi or scholar-in-residence, B’nai Israel Congregation welcomes community members to address the congregation on Saturday mornings every summer.

The 101-year-old Rockville synagogue’s annual summer speaker series runs from July to mid-August. On Shabbat mornings, members of the community are invited to share how they connect their experiences to their Jewish identities, followed by a kiddush lunch.

“For the summer, we have — like probably in most synagogues — a more intimate crowd on Shabbat morning,” said B’nai Israel’s Rabbi Mitchell Berkowitz. “It’s a really nice time to give community members an opportunity to share a little bit about what they do and how they contribute.”

Berkowitz and Senior Rabbi Michael Safra work together to identify potential speakers, whether they are members of the congregation or affiliated with a local organization that partners with B’nai Israel.

Speakers can tie their experiences to who they are as Jews or their Jewish values, but that’s not a requirement, according to Berkowitz. They must keep their talk to about 10 to 12 minutes, the time slot for Berkowitz’s usual sermon on Shabbat mornings.

The speaker series kicked off on July 4 with diplomat and businesswoman Bonnie Glick, who discussed Operation Solomon, a covert Israeli military airlift that brought more than 14,000 Ethiopian Jews to Israel in 1991.

Glick drew upon her experience on an overseas tour in Ethiopia as a United States foreign service officer. Through the story of Ethiopian Jewry, she reflected on the power of Jewish peoplehood, the “dream of return,” and the centuries-long yearning for Jerusalem that made Operation Solomon possible.

She also wove in themes of America 250, reflecting on the nation’s role as a “light to all nations.”

The following Saturday featured Chana Engel, a reproductive justice advocate and Washington, D.C., resident, who explained how volunteering for reproductive justice is a Jewish value.

Engel is deeply involved in the Jewish reproductive justice advocacy space. She co-chairs Adas Israel’s Social Action Committee’s Reproductive Justice Team and is part of the National Leadership Council of the Red Tent Fund, the first Jewish abortion fund providing direct support to those seeking care.

On July 18, attendees will glean a young adult perspective from Jeremy Schooler, a program specialist with Moishe House Without Walls and lifelong member of B’nai Israel.

Schooler will discuss Mem Global — the umbrella organization that includes Moishe House — and how today’s young Jewish adults are building community.

Longtime B’nai Israel member and award-winning journalist Jonathan D. Salant will share insights from his 50-year career as a reporter and editor on July 25.

Salant, who writes for Jerusalem News Syndicate, among other publications, will reflect on the changes he’s seen in the profession and the continuing threats to citizens’ right to know and the ability to hold public officials accountable to the public, both reasons behind the First Amendment.

More than a decade after he spoke to the B’nai Israel community about the Obama-era Iran nuclear agreement, member Steve Goldberg will return on Aug. 1 to address the actions taken by the U.S. government and Iran and assess ongoing threats.

Goldberg has held many senior positions in the U.S. government and continues to advise the American Jewish Committee staff on matters related to Iran’s nuclear program.

On Aug. 8, mother-daughter duo Stacey and Samantha Shapiro will reflect on their Birthright volunteer mission to Israel.

Volunteer and healthcare professional Sarah Nebb also recently volunteered in Israel, serving with Magen David Adom, Israel’s national emergency service. Nebb will discuss her experience with the community on Aug. 15, sharing how healthcare, faith, family and service came together to teach her valuable life lessons.

B’nai Israel librarian and author Susan Kusel will close out the series with a conversation on the landscape of Jewish books, advances in the field, challenges facing Jewish authors today and the value of Shabbat. She is researching the latter for a book she’s writing.

In addition to giving Berkowitz a reprieve from a usual responsibility — “It’s nice for the rabbis to not have to give formal sermons over the summer,” he said — the summer speaker series gives members a chance to get to know one another on a deeper level.

“One of the things that I’ve seen over the years is that you can come to a synagogue every week and spend a lot of time here with people, but you don’t always have an opportunity to learn about them in [depth],” the rabbi said. “People get up and present and share a certain story about themselves or about their life, about their career, about where they’ve traveled and where they’ve been, that opens up a new side of them that members of the congregation haven’t necessarily seen.”

zbell@midatlanticmedia.com