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Shabbat Minyan


The Beth Emet Shabbat Minyan emerged in the 1970s in order to restore the fullness of Shabbat to the congregation and Reform Judaism as a whole. Now, partly as a result of this pioneering effort, there are no fewer than three worship services at Beth Emet most Saturday mornings. The Minyan is a grassroots service led by lay congregants, combining worship in Hebrew and English with communal prayer and song. It is a shared, small-group experience, with everyone participating in Torah and Haftorah reading in an open and congenial setting.

In the spirit of Beth Emet the Free Synagogue, there is wide-ranging, lively discussion of the weekly Torah portion. Over the course of the year, the entire Torah is read and discussed, creating an engagement with scripture and with each other’s perspectives that deepens from month to month and year to year. The group discussion is supplemented by occasional D’var Torah talks by Rabbi Knobel or Rabbi London. The special character of the service is that it leaves no one out. The Minyan provides a sense of belonging for those new to Shabbat worship and for those who have come to the Reform movement from a Conservative or Orthodox background. The group welcomes worshipers who do not read Hebrew as well as those fluent in the language and knowledgeable about classic Torah commentary. It is testimony to the power of Torah to help Jews of disparate backgrounds better understand themselves, their history and the issues of their own time.

The Minyan uses a unique Siddur developed cooperatively by Minyan members under the guidance of Herbert Hubert zv. It includes traditional prayer as well as contemporary contributions by such poets and thinkers as Martin Buber, Nellie Sachs, Elie Wiesel, David Polish and Peter Knobel. Much is owed to Herbert Hubert zv, the inspiration and founder of the Minyan. As a Jew of Choice and survivor of Buchenwald, this gifted man was able to create a service that honors the timeless rituals of Shabbat while encouraging a questioning spirit that keeps the scriptures eternally relevant. The Minyan commences downstairs each Saturday morning at 9:30 a.m. It is fully attended by 10:00, and concludes at noon with an Oneg Shabbat, with food, wine and frequent celebrations of birthdays and anniversaries.

You are warmly invited to see for yourself. For more information, contact Renie Klein at 847-328-2616.