How can you be a better friend and even be better company with yourself? In this season of renewal, how can we improve our dynamic with nature and with time itself?

Join Congregation Kehillath Israel, Combined Jewish Philanthropies and Brookline Booksmith as we share a rare visit with a father and son duo of philosophers and authors - Michael and Adam Sandel - in pursuit of practical wisdom for the path toward flourishing and higher purpose.

In person as well as on Zoom on Sunday April 9th. Book signing of Adam's new book, Happiness in Action to follow the event. A representative of Brookline Booksmith will be on site 4 to 6:30, selling copies of the book, for signing after the talk.

Happiness in Action draws on ancient and modern thinkers and on two seemingly disparate pursuits, philosophy and fitness, to offer a surprising answer to the age-old human question of the meaning of the good life. True happiness, Sandel argues, comes from immersing oneself in activity that is intrinsically rewarding and learning to see life as a journey. At the heart of his account of life as a journey are three virtues that get displaced and distorted by our goal-oriented striving: self-possession, friendship, and engagement with nature. To illustrate the struggle of living up to these virtues, Sandel looks to literature, film, and television, and also to his own commitments and adventures.

“Here, at last, is a book about what happiness really means, and why it often eludes us in our stressed-out, always-on lives.” ―Arianna Huffington, Founder and CEO, Thrive

4:00 pm Doors open for seating. Books available for purchase.

4:40 pm Welcome by Dani Weinstein, Associate Vice President of Philanthropic Connections, CJP

4:45 pm Conversation with Adam and Michael Sandel, moderated by Rabbi William Hamilton of KI

5:45 pm Concluding remarks by Rabbi Marc Baker, President & CEO of CJP

6:00 pm Book Signing

6:30 pm Event Ends

ADAM ADATTO SANDEL aka Professor Pull-ups, is a philosopher, award-winning teacher, and holder of the Guinness World Record for the Most Pull-Ups in One Minute. Author of the critically acclaimed The Place of Prejudice: A Case for Reasoning within the World, he has taught at Harvard University. He is currently an Assistant District Attorney in Brooklyn, New York.

MICHAEL SANDEL teaches political philosophy at Harvard University. His books--on justice, democracy, ethics, markets, and meritocracy--have been translated into more than 30 languages. His course Justice was Harvard's first to be made freely available online and has been viewed by tens of millions of people around the world.

CONGREGATION KEHILLATH ISRAEL is a traditional inclusive synagogue that actively embraces individuals, its community, and the world. An innovative and prominent voice in North American Jewish life since 1917, it is one of Brookline's oldest synagogues.