Shabbat services at TBT

At Temple Beth Tikvah, we celebrate the richness of the Shabbat experience by offering several different types of Shabbat services.

Our regular Friday Erev Shabbat service incorporates the standard Reform Jewish liturgy from the Gates of Prayer, and is conducted in both English and Hebrew. These services begin at 7:30 PM, include a Torah service, a sermon/d'var Torah by the Rabbi, and conclude at about 9 PM.  After the service, everyone is welcome to stay and enjoy in an Oneg Shabbat.  Musical accompaniment is provided by our Cantor and/or our song leader. The TBT volunteer Choir participates approximately every other month.

Family Shabbat services specifically cater to families with younger children. We begin a half-hour earlier, 7 PM, and conclude by 8 PM. We use special Shabbat service based on the creative writing of the students in our third through seventh grades. In place of the chanting Torah, Rabbi Sommer provides an interpretation and lesson for the children (and adults too!). Our cantorial soloist, Rick Calvert, who also serves the music teacher in our religious school provides the musical accompaniment.

Kabbalat Shabbat services are based on the mystical Jewish ritual of welcoming G-ds divine presence, represented by the Shabbat bride. These services have become a favorite at TBT and provide a warm, joyful atmosphere to catch up with friends and make new ones. We convene at 6 PM, and after a short, informal worship service, retire to the social hall for a shared dairy meal. After the meal is concluded, we break out the songbooks for an evening of singing and dancing. Rabbi Sommer, Cantor Goldberg, and Rick Calvert, our cantorial soloist/song leader, lead this joyous celebration of Shabbat.

Many of our Erev Shabbat services have particular themes:
- Learners Shabbat, in which the Rabbi and Cantor explain specific aspects of the worship service
- Healing Shabbat, in which the themes of support and comfort are explored
- Social Justice Shabbat, in which we focus on Tikkun Olam, the mending of the world

Some of our thematic Shabbat services are led by specific groups within the congregation, such the Women of Reform Judaism (our Sisterhood), Men’s Club, and the Religious Activities Committee.

Our celebration of Shabbat continues on Shabbat morning. Each Shabbat morning we gather at 9 AM for Torah Study, followed at 10 AM either by a brief Shabbat morning service, or once a month, with a Shabbat Morning Minyan service, which includes a Torah reading and an ethical discussion. The Shabbat Morning Minyan is followed by a communal dairy luncheon.

There is often a parallel Shabbat morning service in our sanctuary beginning at 10 AM, at which time our B'nai Mitzvah are called to Torah.

All are welcome to share in the celebration of Shabbat at TBT.