Shabbat at the Center, Part 2 of "Major Announcement"

Summary of Part 1 of my announcement prior to Yom Kippur.  I shared that I have begun part-time graduate studies in Eastern Classics at St. John’s College in Santa Fe, pursuing a lifelong interest in comparative religions. 

Because of this new commitment, I will need to scale back some other rabbinic activities. I will refocus my rabbinic activities on Shabbat. Below is my vision for Shabbat with Friends in the coming months and years.  Here is a link to that message:  260918 SWF MAJOR NEWS from SWF and RDG, p1.docx  RDG

Shabbat with Friends is not a synagogue—though some may assume it is. We are clear about this distinction: we are not a full-service synagogue. We do not offer High Holiday or Festival services, nor do we run a religious school or serve as a platform for Bar and Bat Mitzvahs, or many other important functions provided by the synagogue. Our sole purpose is to help people rediscover the holiness and delight of Shabbat in their lives.

Shabbat is a day set apart from the rest of the week. For millennia, Jews have honored this sacred time not only by refraining from certain activities but by intentionally engaging in those that foster transcendence, connection, learning, feasting, singing, resting, reading, and play. That playful dimension of Shabbat is called oneg—a unique joy particular to the Sabbath.

The goal of Shabbat with Friends is to offer a wide array of Shabbat experiences that help create communities of practice—spaces where we refine and deepen what it means to “remember and keep” the Sabbath. We hold that Shabbat is central to Jewish life. While we honor the diversity of Jewish expression, we believe that Sabbath awareness and sharing the day with others lie at the heart of Jewish identity. Our organization exists to set aside this day and to offer the community many ways to make the Sabbath beloved.

In our next phase, Shabbat with Friends is expanding its range of Shabbat activities—adding opportunities for learning, prayer, meditation, conversation, and play alongside feasting and singing. Each of these practices cultivates relationships, friendships, and community. Shabbat is not meant to be observed alone; it is meant to be shared—with friends, loved ones, and new faces. We strive to nurture a Sabbath rich in loving and caring relationships, grounded in compassion for people and all living things.

In my next message, I will begin to outline how this vision takes shape. We hope the Shabbat experiences we offer will provide many paths to joy. At least three Sabbaths each month, you can choose from a variety of ways—from Friday evening to Saturday nightfall—to elevate and enrich your day of rest. Feast at SWF gatherings, sing at our musical Shabbats, meditate on early morning walks, study the weekly Torah portion with friends, engage in meaningful conversation about the ideas that shape our lives, or join others in soulful prayer. As the day closes, you can mark its end with the Havdalah ritual. 

Choose the way that makes the day—and choose a day that makes a way.

In just a few days, we will pause our lives to dwell in fragile booths for Sukkot—a celebration of harvest, peace, and the miracle of shelter. We are blessed to inherit a festival-rich way of life that invites us to live with gratitude and simchah—joy associated with the festivals, just as oneg is the joy of Shabbat. This year, the first day of Sukkot falls on Shabbat—a double blessing of oneg and simchah. May we appreciate and cultivate the spiritual abundance of these sacred days, and never take their gifts for granted.

Shabbat Shalom and Hag Sukkot Sameach, 

Rabbi Dov Gartenberg