Our spiritual life committee (commonly referred to in many congregations as the ‘ritual’ committee) meets the first Tuesday of every month at 7:30 pm at Shaarei Kodesh.  All members are invited to attend these meetings led by the head of the committee, Matt Weiss, in consultation with Rabbi Baum.  During these meetings, we discuss issues of prayer, Jewish law, social action/justice, and other issues related to Jewish ritual and spirituality.

Rabbis in synagogues affiliated with the Conservative movement act as the mara d’atra, or final decisor of Jewish law.  In that congregation (kehillah), Rabbis, who are members of the Rabbinical Assembly, act in accordance with the Committee on Jewish Law and Standards which write responsa on modern issues that pertain to Jewish life. Our spiritual life committee helps our Rabbi come to decisions with questions that we face in our congregation through rigorous debate. There is a famous saying, two Jews, three opinions! In other words, Jews love to debate, and it is a sacred aspect of Judaism. In a famous debate (in Hebrew, Maklochet), two famous rabbis, Hillel and Shammai debated until God spoke and proclaimed the famous words, “Elu v’Elu Divrei Elohim Chaim – those and those are the words of the living God.” Our debates are so important because it is how we bring God’s presence into our lives and how we keep our tradition living.

In the past, we have discussed issues of kashrut and prayer which has led to welcome changes in our congregation such as our new kashrut policy and changes in how we pray at Shaarei Kodesh.  If you are interested in attending our monthly meeting or have an issue that you would like discussed, please contact Matt Weiss (doogromatt@aol.com).

Click here for more information on the Committee of Jewish Laws and Standards

Our next meeting will occur on Tuesday, August 16th, at 7:30 pm.

Have you ever wanted to find out your Hebrew birthday?  Look no further than here!