Shabbat Services

Shabbat Shalom! Gut Shabbes! A warm welcome to everyone

What a Service is Like at TI

Each Shabbat, we find time for rest and reflection through prayer, song and study. We welcome your participation in the service which is both traditional and egalitarian. If you need help following the service, ask the greeter or the Rabbi for assistance.  If you want to improve your ability to follow the service, Rabbi Seidel would love to help you.

Worship services at TI are traditional, participatory, informal and egalitarian (women have been participating fully for more than 30 years). We have no professional hazan (cantor). All services are led by lay members of the congregation, or the rabbi himself. Lay members also read the Torah.

Prayers are almost entirely in Hebrew. Our services emphasize communal singing, and provide for a question and discussion period following the drash (sermon).

Although special services and activities are offered for children, they are welcome at all times in all worship services. Teens past bat and bar mitzvah age often participate as service leaders and Torah and Haftarah readers. Younger children lead individual prayers or songs.

On Shabbat mornings there are occasionally alternative services geared specifically to families with children or to those seeking a more innovative approach.

A full Kiddush lunch (previously cooked/prepared by member volunteers) is provided every Shabbat morning following services, at which participants in all services have an opportunity to socialize, schmoze (chat), and make new friends, while children can let off steam by playing. Once a month the Kiddush celebrates birthdays and anniversaries which occur during the month.

From time to time the congregation holds a special Shabaton, addressing a religious or social topic, which is the focus of the day’s drash. Following the Kiddush, a speaker or panel further explores the topic, allowing for additional congregational inquiry and discussion. .

Shabbat Morning Traditional Service

Our main service is held in the sanctuary every Shabbat morning, at 9:00 a.m., and lasts about three hours. We do a full Torah reading. The rabbi delivers the drash once or twice a month; at other times members of the congregation, or a guest speaker, delivers the drash. Drashes are usually focused on the weekly Torah portion, but sometimes may address social and ethical issues of current interest.

On occasion, in lieu of a drash, our creative rabbi presents an original one-man (but often multi-character) play which illuminates the Torah reading or its protagonists’ lives and challenges/conflicts.

Because we are a small congregation, we generally have only about a dozen b’nei mitzvah each year. When we do, the bar or bat mitzvah, and/or their family take a lead role in conducting the service and doing the Torah reading.

Sign Interpretation of the sanctuary service is provided most weeks, starting at 9:45 a.m.

Family Service - Tot Shabbat

Frequently throughout the year a Family Service is held in the Reamer Chapel at 10:45. This is a family-oriented Shabbat service for children in grades K-6 and their parents. We include a short child- and parent-friendly davening (praying) session and an exploration of the parashah (weekly Torah portion). Participatory, joyful singing is a major part of the service.  A Tot Shabbat Service brings together families with children 5 years and under with their parents many times per year for songs, prayer and stories. Read more about Shabbat children's activities.

Friday Evening Services - Minyan and Monthly Carlebach

Kabbalat Shabbat (welcoming Shabbat) services are held every Friday evening in the Reamer Chapel at 6 p.m. (6:30 when daylight saving is in effect). These services, led by the rabbi or a member of the congregation, are very informal, emphasize congregational singing, and last less than an hour.

Once a month, the Friday Evening Service is a Carlebach-style service, and is followed by a wonderful meat or vegetarian dinner for all to enjoy. This monthly service is a joyous, energetic way to shake off the week and usher in Shabbat. It is accessible to participants of any level of Jewish background. If you like singing, you'll love it. The service is open to all, but reservations for the dinner (for which there is an extra per/person charge) by the Monday before the service. If you are a newcomer and want to experience our services, come and sing. You won't go home hungry!