For some synagogues, summer is a time to take a breath.
There are fewer widely-observed holidays, religious school is not in session, and programming may be limited to some adult education courses and summer day camp.
At Beth El Congregation in Pikesville, Rabbi Dana Saroken and the rest of the clergy and staff see summer as a chance to appeal to those who might be busy the rest of the year, whether that be due to their kids’ schedules, fewer hours of daylight, decreased mental bandwidth or anything else.
“We think that the summer is a really great opportunity to engage people that might not have time during the year,” Saroken said. “So in some ways, we look at the summer as an opportunity to excite and to inspire and engage people … oftentimes [they’re] looking for fun and interesting things to do with their evenings and with their nights, and a lot of our kids are at sleepaway camps. So it’s really a good opportunity for our younger families.”
For example, there is a new program to engage families called Play, Pray and Pop. There is a new speaker series featuring members of Beth El speaking during seven different Shabbats over the summer. There is a tradition at each kiddush, where three people are asked to stand up and share about themselves, what brought them there, and three things that are bringing them joy this summer.
And it’s not just novel ideas, either. Beth El makes a point to highlight holidays that some Jews might not have heard of. Case in point, the “Aloha Ahava,” an island-themed Tu B’Av celebration. For the uninitiated, Tu B’Av is the Jewish holiday of love.
Beth El is hosting an event geared toward Jews in their 20s, 30s and 40s featuring tropical drinks and outfits to complete the theme.
While some Jews aren’t accustomed to celebrating Tu B’Av or other smaller holidays, Saroken said they can offer something unique that better-known days of worship can’t.
“Our Jewish tradition is steeped in this rich history of rituals and traditions that help us stay connected throughout the entire year. There are what I would say are sort of the more well-known holidays — things like Chanukah and Passover and Purim and Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Sukkot — and then the lesser-known holidays,” she said. “In some ways, I think [the lesser-known holidays] are an incredible opportunity for us to engage people in thoughtful, intentional, meaningful and fun ways, depending on the holiday.”
Saroken cited a Tisha B’Av as an example of the value that can come from a lesser-known holy day.
“Not everyone grew up observing the holiday of Tisha B’Av, and in some ways, it’s a day of communal and collective mourning. What we do is sit low to the ground. We come into a room that’s typically darkened and lit by candles. We as a community act like and feel like mourners for the destruction of the Temples, but also for every other calamity, destruction and expulsion that’s befallen our people,” Saroken said. “It’s a really interesting opportunity for us to feel connected to our history and our past.”
Not to mention, in a given year, a certain holiday might resonate more to the collective sensibilities than another. Tisha B’Av, for example, offers something that’s necessary now for many Jews given the state of the world.
“I think over the past few years, what we’ve really come to learn is that history repeats itself, that we are not exceptional, and that we have a lot to learn from what has happened, and hopefully [that it] strengthens us for what could happen,” she said. “How do we strengthen our Jewish foundation? In some ways, holy days like Tisha B’Av, which is a sad holy day, gives people an opportunity to connect with our past, to all the tragedies, but also to a sense of hope because we’ve endured those tragedies.”
At Beth El, there is always something going on — including during the dog days of summer. The only differences are that you might see some new faces and the air conditioning feels even better than usual.
aguckes@midatlanticmedia.com
