We have reached the mid-point of our fiscal year (June 1 – May 31).  A question I have often heard since we introduced our new dues model is “how are we doing?”  I am pleased to report that we are doing quite well. Here are just a few highlights:

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Chanukah––the festival of lights! It always strikes me as fascinating that we light the menorah at the darkest time of the year and that each night we light another candle bringing in even more light into the darkness.

Chanukah is not the only event that brings light into our lives at Shomrei during this time of year, Hinei Mah Tov (HMT) –– our intergenerational Shabbat service –– is also a bright source of light. Recently invigorated by the collaboration of JLC Education Director Sara Birnbaum, HMT chair Allison Fishman Task, our new song leader Mitch Radler and the families who regularly attend HMT and now lead it on a rotating basis, Hinei Mah Tov is becoming a powerful community-building event. When HMT families and their children come upstairs at the end of their service to join the regular service at its conclusion and everyone then walks into the social hall to partake of the Kiddush, all of us get an immediate sense of what Shomrei is all about and what it can be. Continue reading →

This article is adapted from a speech given on Erev Yom Kippur:

About three years ago with the encouragement of Rabbi Greenstein and our president at the time, Rich Epstein – a group began to meet, initially on an informal basis, to explore critical questions related to our future. The group represented a cross section of our community. The purpose was to look at what we needed to do in order to have a viable and meaningful future in a very changing world. A world in which the assumed synagogue affiliation of younger people could no longer be counted on and synagogues across the country were grappling with declining membership.

This group eventually became known as the 2020 committee and it was chaired by Fern Heinig – our current Executive Vice President – and Andy Silver a former board member and longtime member of our community. The group looked at every aspect of synagogue life and last year made recommendations to the board on two critical issues. One was for our congregation to explore the adoption of a new membership model. The other was to adopt core values to guide us as a community – and in our work on the board. All this ultimately resulted in the congregation’s adoption of the new model and what we at Shomrei now call Open Door Judaism. Continue reading →

The following speech was given on Rosh Hashanah:

Shanah Tovah! A very warm welcome to all of you. Whether you have been a member for decades, or just a few days, or somewhere in between, whether you are here as a guest, or a prospective member, today we are all part of the Shomrei family and Shomrei welcomes you with open arms.

We have accomplished a lot this year by creating what we call Open Door Judaism. With the adoption of the sustaining share membership model we have taken a bold stand on who we are and what we aspire to be. This model recognizes that each of us has a different capacity to give. Therefore, we do not “require” a specified membership fee, but instead rely on each of our members to determine the amount to which he or she can commit to ensure the continuing vitality of our community. Some pay more, some pay less, but in the end the goal of sustaining our community, a community which sustains us in so many ways, is shared by all. And, the response has been very promising indeed with many members contributing more than they have in years past. Continue reading →

The Days of Awe are approaching––the High Holy Days. Time when we take stock and attempt to redeem ourselves before our Creator. So often, as the actual days arrive, I find myself feeling somehow unprepared. The holidays seem to demand that we be prepared, that we reflect, that we seek forgiveness from those that we have wronged in any way, and finally to seek forgiveness from God. A tall order. Not something that we can leap into by arriving at synagogue just in time for the holidays and taking our seats.

I do not come from an observant background, so some of the ritual still remains somewhat new to me. But, what I do yearn for is some meaning that I can take away from these ten days, and Shomrei and our Rabbi never fail to deliver. How well I remember the first sermon the Rabbi gave upon his arrival five years ago on the dangers of a society being consumed by fear. Sadly, not much has changed in the world. We still are a society that is dominated by fear and “talking heads” who scream at each other, never taking a moment to reflect or think about what they are saying. Continue reading →

With the adoption of the sustaining share membership model and the approval of a no-nonsense bottoms-up budget, Shomrei begins a new era, one which I believe will usher in energy and a new sense of possibility. The challenge now is to keep the momentum going. Our plan is to do just that. The next task for us is to develop a comprehensive volunteer program that speaks to the desire of our stakeholders to be more engaged and invested in our community. The kick-off event will be a High Holiday Volunteer Workshop to be given Wednesday, September 9th at 7:30 PM. Everyone in our community – including, but not limited to our experienced ushers, gabaim, greeters, etc.–– is invited to participate as we discuss the opportunity that the HHDs present to welcome and embrace our members, guests, and visitors in the holiday season. Our goal is to ensure that all attending are greeted warmly and welcomed into our community.

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This past Shavuot a number of us attended a Tikkun Liel Shavuot sponsored by Shomrei and four other synagogues in the area. The guest speaker was Rabbi Norman J. Cohen. His topic… Midrashim on Hineni. I found his lecture particularly illuminating as I have always thought about Hineni (Here I am) in a biblical context. However, he talked about it in modern terms, illustrating his point with several stories about his father and the need for him as a son to be present in his father’s life as his father entered his senior years and cried out in different ways for the attention of his son. What Rabbi Cohen described was the need and the power of declaring one’s presence in other people’s lives.

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