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March 22, 2013
Canada-wide Shabbat
NJOP keeps expanding the breadth of its outreach.
VICKY TOBIANAH
Hundreds of synagogues across North America united thousands of Jews by celebrating Shabbat together on March 1, for the 17th annual Shabbat across America and Canada, run by NJOP, the National Jewish Outreach Program. Since its inception, the program has encouraged rabbis, Hillels, synagogues, community centres – and anyone who just wants to host a Shabbat meal in their home – to invite their friends and family, especially those who might not celebrate Shabbat, and it all happens across North America during the same weekend.
“It’s giving people an opportunity and inspiring them to reach back into their heritage and see the beauty of what we have,” said
Rabbi Elly Krimsky, NJOP program director. “It’s a beautiful time, especially when people are overworked and are spending way too much time checking their e-mails and on their phone. It [gives people] time to reboot, power down.”
There were about 400 synagogues, homes or community centres who ran the program this year – 45 of which have run it every year since it started, including Beth Emeth Bais Yehuda Synagogue in Toronto. About 17 synagogues across Canada ran the program in Manitoba, Alberta and Ontario. They estimate that, since it started, 914,000 people have participated in Shabbat across America and Canada.
This year, NJOP has expanded it internationally. The program is also taking place in Tel Aviv, Japan and Mexico. “There’s something very special about going international,” Krimsky told the Independent. The fact that so many Jews are celebrating Shabbat – no matter from where they come, or what denomination they are – is powerful, he believes. “People like the camaraderie,” he explained. “I think it’s the power of unity, of a lot of people doing the same thing. When you’re in a stadium and you’re doing the wave and there’s 30,000 people doing it, it’s a much more powerful feeling.”
The number of people participating varied by location: one synagogue in Manhattan had 500 people attend services, while in other places, rabbis hosted a few community members in their homes.
The program initially developed out of an NJOP event called Turn Friday Night into Shabbat. Similarly, it was meant to be a beginner’s service where community members would invite their Jewish friends or colleagues who were not familiar with services to attend synagogue and a Shabbat dinner that week.
“An effort was made to have arranged seating so people that are more used to Shabbat, that are members of the synagogue, would sit with newcomers and welcome them, they would be called hosts,” said Krimsky. “It was a transformational experience on a Friday night, in a way that reaches and inspires people.” Eventually, NJOP turned it into an annual campaign, and then had the idea of running one, unified Shabbat annually all across America – and then Canada was added, too.
Anyone who wants to take part in Shabbat across Canada can search the NJOP website for nearby locations that participate, or can start their own service instead. NJOP provides all the tools, for free, needed to run a service, including posters, marketing materials and information for the hosts.
Krimsky, who is also a community rabbi, and hosted a Shabbat across America meal at his synagogue before he started working for NJOP last year, said the feedback from the event is positive.
“We’re so obsessed with gathering information and being in touch with people all the time. There’s something about human contact that is very soothing and very relaxing, about talking to one another not in front of a TV,” he said.
This program hopes to give everyone a chance to experience a Shabbat at least once a year, he added. “They look forward to powering down and spending time with family and the spiritual side, which can often be neglected, even for religious people, too.”
Vicky Tobianah is a freelance writer and editor based in Toronto and a recent McGill University graduate. Connect with her on Twitter, @vicktob, or by e-mail to [email protected].
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