Now Showing in The Shomrei Gallery: Because I Like to Paint, The Paintings of Shomrei Congregant Jennifer Moses
For this show, Jennifer has chosen to dedicate 100 percent of profits from sales to one of three local organizations, according to the wishes of the buyer. They are:
We welcome Rabbi Julie Roth as Rabbi of Congregation Shomrei Emunah! She will begin to be at the shul on August 15.
Meeting Rabbi Julie
The Transition Team is planning many and various events to give Rabbi Julie and members of our community a chance to get to know each other. Every event will be a small, intimate get together hosted by a Shomrei member. Whether it’s 2 people or 10 it’s an opportunity for you to spend time with Rabbi Julie.
Signup
Please note many more events will be added to this signup list between now and the High Holy Days
Sign up for one welcome event here: shomrei.org/welcome
More About Rabbi Julie
When Rabbi Julie Roth became a Religious Studies major at Brown University, she didn’t know women could be rabbis. The daughter of a Holocaust survivor and a community organizer, she grew up in Cleveland in a family that sang loudly in synagogue and always invited extra guests to Shabbat dinner. In the summer of 2005, when she was ordained as a rabbi by the Jewish Theological Seminary, she saw two pathways before her, one as a congregational rabbi and one as a Hillel rabbi.
Formerly the Jewish Chaplain at Princeton University, she has extensive experience leading High Holiday services and Passover seders, teaching classes on ethics, social justice, Israel, and theology, officiating at life-cycle events, facilitating interfaith dialogue, addressing controversial topics, and counseling thousands of students and faculty. Rabbi Julie was the rabbi and co-founder of Zamru, a musically innovative, spiritually-engaging, inter-generational Friday night indie minyan based in Princeton that grew to a community of over 300. In addition, she co-founded Shabbat Katan, a creative, interactive, 5 and under service that revitalized young family engagement at her local synagogue.
Yearning to spend more time doing what she loves most – building intentional relationships, leading spiritually-alive services, giving inspirational sermons, officiating at life-cycle events, teaching Torah addressing contemporary issues, and listening with compassion – Rabbi Julie is ready to lead Shomrei. Guided by the central teaching that each and every human being is beloved, infinitely valuable, and unique, her calling as a rabbi is to connect each person with the piece of Torah, Jewish experience, or community that will help them live their lives as a sacred gift. She passionately believes Judaism contains the sparks not only to transform the world, but also to transform how we live our daily lives with greater meaning, joy, gratitude, and wonder.
An avid traveler to Israel and around the world and an extensive reader (she reads the same number of books each year as her age), Rabbi Julie loves to take walks with friends, look at the ocean, and binge-watch television series. A rusty ballroom dancer who loves to eat a delicious meal cooked by someone else, Rabbi Julie is grateful for the love of her family including her husband, Rabbi Justus Baird, and their three children, Ilan, Rafael, and Noa.
Yasher koach to the 2020-21 Board of Trustees. Special thanks to outgoing board members Sara Ann Erichson, Michael Legman, and Adrienne Shulman Lasiter.
Welcome to new officers Michael Sag and Eric Feldman, who were previously serving as trustees, Rachel Kanter, and Mara Weinstein. Welcome to new trustees Debra Caplan and Martin Kurzweil. Continue reading
Volunteers John Lasiter and Susan Rosenblatt were able to take advantage of a bounty of unopened, catered food from a recent B’nai Mitzvah Kiddush. They packaged 20 to-go meals consisting of Falaffel, Tahinah, Borekahs, Roasted Vegetables, Hummus, Salad with Feta, Baklava, A fresh Orange and a granola bar.
Shomrei Emunah in Montclair today announces that Rabbi Julie Roth will become the next spiritual leader for the synagogue on August 1. Rabbi Roth comes to Shomrei from Princeton Hillel where she has been the Executive Director and Jewish Chaplain for 17 years. She succeeds Rabbi David Greenstein who is retiring after 13 years at Shomrei. The Shomrei community is grateful for the spiritual leadership Rabbi Greenstein has provided.
An Update from the Shomrei Refugee Assistance Group
Click the player above to watch the video.
Editor’s Note: This address was originally given on Kol Nidre (Sept 2021)
Heneni – A Continuation and What it Means as a Shomrei Member
Last week I spoke to you about being present spiritually, emotionally, and physically. Well, Hineni – Here I am, again. Henei Anachnu – Here we are, again. And as we begin to return to the synagogue and to gather together after being separated for so long, I want to ask you to think about reaching out and giving of yourself. I know that every year the president stands up here and asks you to volunteer and I am no different. Heneni – Here I am – asking you to look inwardly as you do teshuva and ask God for forgiveness and to think about how you can do something differently than you did this past year.
Continue reading
Click the player above to watch the Kol Nidre sermon. (Scroll further down for his Yom Kippur sermon)
Editor’s Note: Rabbi Greenstein originally gave this sermon on Kol Nidre 5782 (Sept 2021).
Shanah Tovah!
On this Kol Nidrei night, a night in which we are so conscious of the weightiness and the lightness of our words, of how easy it is for us to forget our words, evade our words, and deny our commitments, let’s remember a woman of few words, but of fierce commitments. Let’s remember Sarah.
Join us in welcoming Ehud Klinger! Ehud will serve as Shomrei’s Synagogue Operations Director. He will be in charge of all day-to-day operations and administration.
With a background in political science Ehud has extensive experience in the field of operations. Born in Israel, Ehud also lived in New York and Japan before settling in New Jersey. Ehud has served the Jewish world as a tour educator, teacher and member of various congregations before arriving in South Orange. Most recently he has been planning educational expeditions to the Jewish destinations. Married with 2 young children Ehud loves exploring new places and spending time with friends and family.
Contact:
Ehud Klinger
(973) 746-5031 x101
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Meetings of the Shomrei Rabbi Search Committee
July 12, 2021
July 5, 2021