From September to December, Jewish life can be go, go, go. From Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur to Sukkot to Chanukah, the Jewish community is very busy.
Yet despite the break from religious celebrations until Purim rolls around in March, synagogue life is still buzzing.
“Synagogues are places we go…to find shared purpose and to not be alone,” said Rabbi Tyler Dratch at Beth Am Synagogue. “I think that’s important all the time, but it’s especially important when it’s a little bit colder outside, it’s a little bit darker outside and things may feel a little bit slower for many people. That’s the time that we most want to come together and lean in.”
For Beth Am, programming doesn’t stop. Dratch said the synagogue ramps up its adult education programs and still sees regular engagement in its community programming and volunteering.
Programs such as Lox and Learn, featuring different guest speakers who will discuss this year’s theme, Exploring Change and Continuity, will start ramping up. “We have a really interesting community program coming up with Dan Rodricks…and then just the ongoing work stays busy with running our community food market, engaging in all the other relational justice work that we do,” said Dratch.
“The building is actually quite busy right now,” Dratch added. “Just this week, we had probably at least 50 folks who are participating in our community-written and organized Purim spiel, which is a full Purim play, written, directed and starring our congregants.”
Dratch added that attendance for Shabbat services also doesn’t slow down.
“Remarkably, from other synagogues that I have worked at and participated in, the attendance stays really stable throughout the years. A couple of our congregants… [leave town] during the winter, but then other folks come during the winter,” he said. “We always have nice attendance at services, even if it’s slightly different who’s attending some seasons.”
Har Sinai-Oheb Shalom Executive Director David Harrison also shared similar sentiments.
“Our calendar is full,” Harrison said. “Our community enjoys being together, and even though there are fewer holidays on the calendar, we gather each week, of course, for Shabbat, and for all of the individual programs that we offer during these months.”
While some congregants may be travelling during the winter months, the Reform synagogue still sees similar attendance numbers for its Shabbat services.
“In January, for example, we begin a series of classes on seeing Baltimore’s history through its buildings; we are hosting an event with Jews United for Justice on Martin Luther King Day; we host Weekend Backs once a month, as well as Bunches of Lunches,” Harrison added. “And yes, we are also busy planning for the next season of holidays and festivals, with our Women’s Seder and Purim committees getting into high gear.”
For the Orthodox Jewish community at Kehilath B’nai Torah, engagement within the community also stays the same.
“For Orthodox Jews, our connection to God, and our connection to our fellow Jews, is a 24/7 endeavor,” said Rabbi Jonathan Aryeh Seidemann. “It doesn’t make a difference whether it’s Yom Kippur or whether it’s Shabbos or whether it’s a Wednesday in the middle of the week. It never stops.”
Seidemann explained that many shuls in the Baltimore area will often be filled with Torah studies starting in the earlier mornings and going into the night. “I drove by a different shul, and their parking lot was full at 11:45pm, so there’s no lack of engagement.”
“That’s not only when it comes to the study of Torah,” he added. “When it comes to organizations helping their fellow Jews like this, Baltimore is not unique. It’s wonderful, but not unique. You go to other Jewish cities, Cleveland, Detroit, Lakewood certainly, Brooklyn, Toronto, and these things are the norm.”
Seidemann expressed that there is no shortage of opportunities or interest in opportunities. “You have an alphabet soup of organizations that are just here to help their fellow Jews.”
