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The Jewish community has lost some of the most sensitive spiritual souls of this generation. They are Jews who were looking for God and found spiritual homes outside of Judaism. Their journeys traversed the Jewish community, but nothing there beckoned them. The creation of synagogue-communities in which the voices of seekers can be heard and their questions can be asked will challenge many loyalist Jews. It will upset and enrage them. But it would also enrich them.
—from Chapter 18
In this fresh look at the spiritual possibilities of American Jewish life, Rabbi Sidney Schwarz presents the framework for a new synagogue model—the synagogue community—and its promise to transform our understanding of the synagogue and its potential for modern Judaism.
Schwarz profiles four innovative synagogues—one from each of the major movements of Judaism—that have had extraordinary success with their approach to congregational life and presents practical ways to replicate their success.
Includes a discussion guide for study groups and book clubs as well as a new afterword by the author describing developments in synagogue change projects since the book was first published.
Rabbi Schwartz is the founder and president of PANIM: The Institute for Jewish Leadership and Renewal, an educational foundation dedicated to the renewal of American Jewish Life. Here, he profiles four innovative synagogues, one from each of the movements in the American Jewish community, and shows how a revitalized approach to congregational life can transform the Jewish experience of individual Jews, whatever their affiliation. Each chapter is accompanied by a personal narrative tracing the experience of one member of each congregation. The book concludes with 10 strategies for transforming your congregation. This should be required reading for the boards of all our synagogues, not only for those people who have despaired of transforming their synagogues into spiritual homes.