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Temple Aliyah is an active, participatory congregation, and our worship services provide an opportunity for quiet chanting, lively communal singing, and silent reflection. Our services are egalitarian and traditional within the framework of the Conservative movement: women participate alongside men, and under the dynamic leadership of Rabbi Carl Perkins and Cantor Gastón Bogomolni, our congregation is continually seeking to deepen its understanding of and engagement in traditional Jewish worship. If you would like to learn more about how you can participate, please contact either Ritual Committee chair Jeff Fink or Vice-President of Jewish Life Keith Lewinstein.

If you wish to learn how to chant or lead any service click here or contact Cantor Gastón.

Shabbat Morning Services
Shabbat morning service begins at 9:15 with preliminary prayers and psalms intended to prepare us to recite collectively the Sh’ma and its blessings and the Amidah, a standing prayer emphasizing the holiness of the day. The centerpiece of our morning worship is the chanting of the week’s Torah portion and the recitation of the haftarah, a selection from one of the prophetic books of the Bible. Once the Torah scroll is returned to the Ark, Rabbi Perkins helps us to reflect on the meaning of the week’s portion, either delivering a sermon or leading a discussion/study session with the congregation. We conclude with an additional (Musaf) Amidah (standing prayer) and closing hymns, before adjourning to the social hall for a Kiddush luncheon and schmoozing for all.

On any given Shabbat, members of our congregation celebrate special simchas (joyous occasions) within the context of our morning service: it is not unusual for visitors to our synagogue to see a child becoming Bar or Bat Mitzvah, a couple called to the Torah to announce their impending nuptials (an aufruf), a baby girl receiving her Jewish name, or even – on occasion – a group of adults celebrating their adult Bar and Bat Mitzvah together. Whatever the occasion, the congregation as a whole marks it with spirited singing and hand-clapping, while the family celebrating the simcha might be seen gently tossing candy onto the bimah to mark the sweetness of the occasion and express their hopes for continued sweetness in life.

We welcome children of all ages into our services, but we also offer a variety of youth services, a Tot Shabbat morning service twice a month and a Friday Night once a month.

Minyan Shirah

This lively, spiritual, energetic and engaging Friday night service includes a variety of Shlomo Carlebach and Latin American melodies as well as other tunes chosen by Rabbi Perkins and Cantor Bogomolni. Typically meeting in our chapel, this intimate spiritual experience attracts people of all ages and backgrounds as our prayers and melodies reverberate throughout the synagogue. Beginning January 1, 2010, this service will be held every Friday evening. Please check the calendar.

Weekday Worship

We hold minyan Monday through Thursday evenings at 7:30 pm, as well as on Sunday mornings at 9:00 am and Monday mornings at 6:45 am. In the summer, evening minyanim are held on Tuesdays and Wednesdays only, beginning at 7:30 pm. These services, largely lay-led, offer the opportunity for daily worship, and also allow mourners and those observing Yahrzeit to recite kaddish. In order to guarantee the presence of a minyan, members of the congregation are assigned to teams and asked to attend evening and Sunday minyan several times a year. We plan in the near future to post team assignments and schedules for your reference, as well as to construct a message board for members who wish to exchange dates.

Our Monday morning minyan includes a brief Torah service, with lay volunteers preparing the weekly Torah portion reading, followed by breakfast and schmoozing.

If you wish to learn how to chant the weekday services, click here or contact Cantor Gastón.

Holidays and Festivals

Evening and morning services are held for the High Holidays (Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur), the three festival holidays (Passover, Sukkot, Shavuot), Shemini Atzerit and Simchat Torah. Check the calendar, as well as the High Holiday Booklet.

For Purim we have a festive Megillah (Esther) reading in both the evening and the morning services. We also read Eicha (Lamentations) and Kinot (dirges) on the evening of Tisha B’Av, Kohelet (Ecclesiastes) on Sukkot, Ruth on Shavuot, and Shir Ha-shirim (Song of Songs) on Passover.

Congregants are encouraged to learn to chant all of these special megillot. Instructions and MP3 ecordings are available for all who are interested. Contact Cantor Gastón.

Childrens’ services are also offered for selected holidays. Check the calendar.

Summer Services
During the summer, Shabbat services are held as usual every Saturday morning, beginning at 9:15 in the chapel. Our Monday morning minyanim are held as usual, beginning at 6:45 am.

Evening minyanim in the summer are held on Tuesdays and Wednesdays only, beginning at 7:30 pm.

Sunday morning minyanim are not held during the summer.

Additional minyanim are available at neighboring synagogues.

In addition, a maariv service as well as a reading of Eicha (Lamentations) is held on Tisha B'Av.

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