Beth Sholom Congregation in Frederick has switched to 100% solar energy — becoming, the synagogue says, the first religious institution in its county to do so.
With this change, Beth Sholom joins a growing movement among synagogues and other Jewish institutions that are investing in renewable, eco-friendly energy sources.
Beth Sholom, which serves Frederick’s Conservative Jewish community, is one of only three synagogues in Frederick, along with the Reform Congregation Kol Ami and Chabad Lubavitch of Frederick. While this change from traditional fossil fuels to solar energy is relatively recent, the synagogue’s rabbi says that it reflects the century-old synagogue’s long-held belief in tikkun olam.
“We’ve always deeply believed in the idea of being caretakers of the Earth. We’ve done green initiatives in the past, including changing all the light bulbs in our building to LED bulbs and putting in a native species garden and monarch butterfly waystation,” Beth Sholom Rabbi Jordan Hersh said. “Some of these things may not seem like a big deal, but they can make a huge difference. We always assumed that this energy expenditure was financially out of reach, but we sat down and worked with one of our congregants, who owns a farm, to implement a solar array.”
The congregant in question, Joe Herzog, acted as head of the synagogue’s solar committee. Herzog also used to serve on the Beth Sholom board.
“We started talking about solar three years ago, while I was on the board. It was a great fit for this congregation, and it was the environmentally responsible thing to do at the time,” Herzog said.
Beth Sholom worked with Paradise Energy Solutions, a company that specializes in solar panel installations; and Neighborhood Sun, which provides solar energy via a subscription service to one of its solar farms. Eighty-seven percent of Beth Sholom’s solar energy is collected directly from its own property, while the remainder comes from Neighborhood Sun’s solar farm.
Solar panels have become more common at synagogues in recent years. According to the Jewish Climate Action Network, at least 30 Jewish congregations had gone fully solar by 2019, with more taking the leap during the COVID-19 pandemic. Chizuk Amuno Congregation installed solar panels on its property in 2021, and The Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore recently completed construction on several solar farms meant to power its partner agencies.
In addition to the positive impact the switch to solar power will have on the environment, it will also have a positive impact on the synagogue’s finances. Beth Sholom expects that in the next 30 years, the synagogue will save $450,000 that it would have otherwise spent on powering the building. This is in part due to the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, which provides grants for nonprofit organizations looking to invest in solar power.
“It’s a large building that’s used every day of the week, especially during the school year. Between weekend operations on Shabbat and Hebrew school activities on Sundays, energy costs made up a significant part of our budget,” Hersh explained.
The Inflation Reduction Act helped remove the large cost barrier that was preventing Beth Sholom from fully investing in solar panels when Herzog first proposed the idea.
“Prior to the Inflation Reduction Act, it was not very cost-beneficial for nonprofits to invest in solar energy,” Herzog said. “It was our first time really getting a financial incentive for it, so I met with the [synagogue] president and started trying to build rapport for it.”
To commemorate the completion of its solar panel project, Beth Sholom held a ceremony on June 11, where the synagogue discussed the benefits of operating on 100% solar energy.
Beth Sholom’s commitment to becoming shomrei adamah — caretakers of the earth — has already had a big impact on the community around them. Herzog noted that he had never heard of the Hebrew phrase before Hersh explained it to him, but that it really cemented his commitment to making Beth Sholom a 100% solar-powered congregation.
“We’re hoping that this encourages other houses of worship — churches, mosques and synagogues — to consider moving in this direction. We’ve already had people reach out to us to ask about the process, and we’re putting together a working group with other Frederick County houses of worship to help them start,” Hersh said. “The more this can spread, the greater the light from the sun shines out, the more impact this will have. I hope that other congregations see this and realize that it’s achievable.”
