| RITUAL |
As the Stamford area's Conservative religious
institution, Temple Beth El lies within the mainstream
of Conservative Judaism. We are, and have been for many years, affiliated
with United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism. We take guidance from
the USCJ document E'met v'Emunah (Statement of Principles of Conservative
Judaism), but modify it where necessary to better suit our congregation.
We strive to consider ourselves as a religious institution first, and
a non-profit institution second.
Women are counted in the minyan, read from
the Torah, have aliyot, may wear talit and kipot and serve in every
capacity of Temple life. The Emahot (Sarah, Rebeccah, Rachael and Leah)
are named in the Musaf Amidah. Women have become Bat Mitzvah after
completing a course with the Rabbi and the Hazzan which includes learning
to read and chant Hebrew.
The Ritual Advisory Committee meets with
the Rabbi and acts as a sounding board. There is much dialogue and
reading about issues being discussed; in the end, the Rabbi has the
final authority to make all ritual decisions.
As the sole Conservative congregation in Stamford, a wide spectrum of regular religious services are offered:
The members of our congregation, for the most part, attend High Holy Days services. Most members attend first day Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur services, and many bring guests (usually children who have left the household and parents who live elsewhere).
Shabbat morning services have been growing steadily, with 100+ people on a "regular" (non-event) Shabbat morning, especially when our Shabbat lunches are served. There are Family Shabbat Services throughout the year which are participatory, with congregants leading the service, chanting from the Torah, and delivering the D'Var Torah (Torah lesson). In addition, on selected Shabbat mornings there are Healing Services, Beth El Cares programs and Learning Services. Occasionally, there is a Secondservice which meets in a separate room. It, too, is a participatory service and is scheduled when there is a large Bar/Bat Mitzvah in the Sanctuary. The Secondservice is an option for those who want a more intimate service.
Friday evening attendance is consistent; frequently, those who attend have Yahrzeit. A shortened early service followed by a dinner has recently been introduced on a monthly basis. There are regular Tot Shabbat Friday evening services which are open to congregants as well as the general community.
Attendance at weekday morning minyan is sporadic, with a minyan achieved about half of the time.
The 1994 Temple survey showed that
55 percent of the membership attends services more that 6 times a year.
The 1994 Temple
survey showed that about 60 percent of the membership has limited or
no ability to read Hebrew. Courses in prayer book Hebrew have been
offered often over the years but many congregants have not taken advantage
of them.
The 1994 Temple survey showed that 40 percent
of the members perceive Temple Beth El as being more traditional than
they are. In that survey, 75 percent viewed themselves as middle or
liberal rather than traditional. Some ritual changes have not been
accepted easily by all congregants. In the past few years the direction
of ritual changes has been toward the middle of Conservative Judaism
as defined by the "Statement of Principles of Conservative Judaism"
(Emet V'Emunah) and negatively viewed by some congregants as a "move
to orthodoxy".
There is no clear consensus of the congregation
about our Secondservice and about other alternative services which might
be offered in the future. Some favor the performance type of service,
which was long the cornerstone of ritual at Beth El, while others favor
a more participatory service.
The minutes/decisions of the Ritual Advisory
Committee and the Rabbi are not well communicated to the general membership
of the Temple. The lack of communication and explanation of the rationale
for changes being introduced further polarizes membership views on ritual.
Several open issues related to the differing views on ritual and to the lack of membership participation in other than High Holy Days services need to be addressed:
use of the organ - keep current policy or change it
the adult choir as "performers" during High Holiday services
making our services more participatory and less performance-style, or adding more participatory services to the calendar as alternative choices
making our services more egalitarian; for example removing all references to G-d as "He." and adding the Emahot everywhere our forefathers are mentioned.
more transliterations for those who cannot read Hebrew
more involvement of post Bar/Bat Mitzvah students - with the goal of building a paradigm for youth participation continuing into adulthood
growth of Shabbat morning service attendance
growth of new audiences (e.g.,
young couples, singles, empty nesters) for Friday evening Shabbat attendance
Temple Beth El
should continue to remain in the mainstream of Conservative Judaism.
The Rabbi and Ritual Advisory Committee should continue the practice
of taking guidance from the USCJ document E'met v'Emunah (Statement
of Principles of Conservative Judaism), but modifying it where necessary
to better suit our congregation. The Temple should maintain its position
of being a religious institution first, and a non-profit institution
second.
The Ritual Advisory Committee should continue
to serve as an advisory group for the Temple's clergy. Communications
to the congregation (e.g., Temple Bulletin articles, sermons) should
be targeted at increasing its understanding of the rationale for changes
being made in Temple practices.
Increase participation by making services more attractive. Shabbat religious services should be overflowing for Kabalat Shabbat and for Shacharit, there should always more than a minyan for daily services, and full congregational participation in services needs to be spontaneous and overwhelmingly moving and coalescing.
The Hebrew competence of the congregation needs to be raised. The congregation needs to be convinced that Hebrew literacy is a high priority. Target levels of proficiency should be established as objectives to work toward and maintain. Classes specializing in prayer book Hebrew must be provided often and at different days and times. The meaning of key words and the overall meaning of the prayers should be emphasized. The importance of this objective must be reflected in the Temple's financial and programming commitment to the corresponding level of Adult Education.
The service needs to be friendly to everyone - those who read Hebrew, those who do not, intermarrieds, new members, guests and visitors, and long time members. The service should be more participatory and less of a performance. More of the service should be offered in transliterated form for those who do not read Hebrew.
More congregants need to be encouraged to learn to participate in services, chant, read from the Torah, lead a service and deliver D'Var Torah.
A participative family Shabbat service should be scheduled as the primary service at least monthly. A participative family Shabbat service held separately from the primary service (formerly called a Secondservice) should be offered only when it is not possible to schedule such a service as the primary one for an extended period of time.
A policy of a single Bar or Bat Mitzvah
in any service should be maintained.