Beth Am in Baltimore is teaming up with Hinenu: The Baltimore Justice Shtiebl, Repair the World Baltimore and other local Jewish and LGBTQ organizations to hold their first-ever Pride Shabbat event.
On Friday, June 23, and Saturday, June 24, the synagogue is encouraging LGBTQ congregants and allies to meet up and celebrate Shabbat in an inclusive manner. Saturday’s services, which include a panel discussion, is set to end in time for attendees to go to the Baltimore Pride Parade.
The Shabbat service is part of a recent push from Beth Am to create spaces for LGBTQ people in their congregation, which they have also done with their Rainbow Circle group, founded in 2022. Previously, Beth Am had circles for other groups of congregants, such as families with young children and those who enjoy outdoor activities.
When the Rainbow Circle was first created, the synagogue’s administration met to brainstorm events for the group.
“We looked at June on the calendar and said ‘It’s Pride Month, we have to do a Pride Shabbat event,’” said Barry Kessler, one of the Pride Shabbat co-chairs. “It’s a great way to get everyone involved and bring the congregation front and center.”
A Beth Am congregant, Kessler was an active member of the LGBTQ community during the 1990s and was inspired by pride services held by Christian churches when planning Pride Shabbat.
“Our synagogue has celebrated Pride Month for a long time,” Assistant Rabbi Tyler Dratch said. “We’ve done different things for it over the years, so this was a new iteration of extending that celebration in June.”
The Friday event is set to feature a card-writing campaign, where guests can write to politicians urging them to support pro-LGBTQ policies; a musical Kabbalat Shabbat service held by Dratch and Hinenu’s Rabbi Ariana Katz, featuring musical performances from both synagogues; and a keynote address from Harriette Wimms, The Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore’s Jews of color engagement fellow and a psychologist who specializes in helping LGBTQ people.
The goal of the event was to incorporate as many local Jewish and LGBTQ organizations as possible to bring people in and make it a real community gathering. Kessler cited this year’s earlier LGBTQ Passover seder at Bolton Street Synagogue as an inspiration for Pride Shabbat. Hinenu was brought in because of a significant overlap in congregants between the two synagogues, with many congregants attending both.
Due to Repair the World Baltimore’s involvement, the event is planned to have a focus on service learning — teaching through the incorporation of community service activities that help LGBTQ people. The card-writing campaign was included in the event to meet this need, so attendees will be able to work toward making a meaningful change by attending and participating.
“Celebrating is great, but it’s also about learning,” Kessler said.
Pride Shabbat’s main goal is ensuring that Jewish people of all sexualities, genders and backgrounds feel welcomed. Being religious and in the LGBTQ community can be a difficult and isolating experience, one that Kessler is intimately familiar with.
“For a long time, I felt as if I was the only gay Jewish person in my congregation, and one of the few out gay Jewish people in Baltimore,” he said. “It is overwhelming in happiness and satisfaction to realize how many people in so many congregations are speaking out, standing up and coming together to celebrate our multiple identities together in a Jewish way.”
Dratch added that Beth Am wanted their Pride Month event to be connected with a Jewish ritual like Shabbat to show that Shabbat is for everyone, and that Jewish rituals should be inclusive of all identities.
“We continue to work to make sure that our institution is a safe space for people to be who they are, and that they know they’ll be safe here,” Dratch said. “I hope people know that our community has space for them and honors and loves them.”
