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Four prominent rabbis, each representing a different movement, will convene next month in hopes of proving that "Jewish unity" isn't an oxymoron.

But with topics such as "Where are Jews headed?" and "Should Orthodoxy continue its claim as the true Judaism?" a little bit of luck might be in order.

The free event, called "Forum on Jewish Unity," takes place Thursday evening, Feb. 3 at the Laurel Heights Conference Center in San Francisco. Participating San Francisco rabbis include Alan Lew of Conservative Congregation Beth Sholom, Stephen Pearce of Reform Congregation Emanu-El and Pamela Frydman Baugh of Renewal Congregation Or Shalom. In addition, Rabbi Herschel Yolles, the Brooklyn-based head of the Samborer Chassidic movement, will participate.

The moderator will be Professor Andrew Heinze, director of the Swig Judaic studies program of University of San Francisco.

One of the organizers of the event, Morton Fleishhacker, a prominent member of the local Jewish community, said the forum idea sprang from several meetings he'd had with Yolles. The rabbi is a descendant of the Ba'al Shem Tov, who founded Chassidism in the 1700s. Yolles has traveled to the Bay Area a number of times.

The first meeting with Yolles took Fleishhacker by surprise, he said. "I had never met the man before," Fleishhacker said. "He was referred to me by a friend, and just appeared at my office a couple of years ago, out of the blue."

What resulted was a one-hour rap session that ran the gamut, but stopped short of any conclusions. "I was waiting for the kicker, but it never came," Fleishhacker said. "I really wondered what he was driving at."

Apparently, the rabbi just wanted to talk. The rap sessions, which occurred almost every time Yolles was visiting San Francisco, gave Fleishhacker the motivation for creating the unity forum.

"I think that the fractions within the Jewish community warrant an event like this," said Fleishhacker, a past president of Emanu-El. "When it comes to defining 'Who is a Jew?' a lot of the progressive branches are feeling left out of the dialogue."

Stressing that the forum will not be a panacea, Fleishhacker expressed doubt that anyone leaving the event would say, "Golly gee, I'd really like to join that shul.

"It's an intellectual exercise, not a call to action."

The other organizer of the discussion, Robert Jaffe, said the event struck a personal chord with him. A member of Congregation Kol Shofar in Tiburon and Aquarian Minyan in Berkeley, as well as a supporter of Chabad of Marin, Jaffe is no stranger to different streams of thought.

"I think all the pathways have something to offer," Jaffe said. "And I believe that there's an urgent need for Jewish people to become aware of their collective identity."

Noting that the need to argue is deeply embedded in the "Jewish psyche," Jaffe said he hoped nonetheless that people attending the forum would leave with a heightened sense of optimism.

"The speakers are all gifted, eloquent spokespeople who are committed to exploring the common Jewish heritage, and articulating an inclusive vision for the future."