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The spriritual leader of a Jewish congregation is its rabbi. Rabbi Ellen Jay Lewis was ordained in 1980 and has been the spritual leader of the Jewish Center of Northwest Jersey since 1995. While technically serving in a part-time capacity, she is well known to the congregation as a "full-service" rabbi. She also serves as principal of the Hebrew School. The "Rabbi's Message" appears in every issue of the JOURNAL, the newsletter of the JCNWJ. The most recent message appears below, and past messages are also available. You can learn more about more about Rabbi Lewis, a Certified Pastoral Counselor and licensed psychoanalyst who teaches at the Academy of Clinical and Applied Psychoanalysis, at www.rabbiellenlewis.com. E-mail Rabbi Lewis |
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Monthly Message from the Rabbi:
Summer 2010
Turnout isn’t everything. After all, a minyan of ten is enough for a full worship service. In many congregations, the Shavuot service is attended only by the confirmands and their families. That just didn’t work for us. So we made a conscious choice to broaden our Confirmation congregation by moving the service to Sunday morning, by including all the younger classes in the service and by finishing the school year together. Some of the benefits have been predictable. The sanctuary is full and all the children get a chance to go up on the bimah. Parents feel proud and wonder where the years have gone. But there have been other benefits I would not have predicted. As I looked out from the bimah during the Confirmation service, I noticed the faces of the younger children as they watched the older children. We don’t have to tell our younger children why they should continue their Jewish education through Confirmation; they can see it for themselves. They hear the older students talk about how much fun they have in Confirmation. They hear them thank their teachers, the very teachers in whose classrooms they sit now. And the Confirmation students look out at these younger students and see how far they have come and how much they themselves have grown. For just a moment, they remember their younger selves. And the teachers sit with glistening eyes, taking it all in, enjoying the appreciation and feeling the importance of what they do. We are a people who believe in blessing the moment. Confirmation reminds us as a congregation to pause and enjoy that moment. It allows us to make a shehechianu together in gratitude for all that we have. May your summer be filled with shehechianu moments. Rabbi Ellen Lewis Shared Thoughts:Interfaith Marriage: Lessons I Have Learned - Essay which appeared in the Jewish News
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Copyright © 2010 Jewish Center of Northwest Jersey
Last updated: June 7, 2010