Programming

Synagogues can be more than just a place of prayer. Tiferet Bet Israel is consciously shifting to a more relationship-oriented focus to make the synagogue a true center of Jewish community. It is more in response to a societal decline in lots of friendships and public relationships. Throughout history we’ve always had our first place as our home and our second place as our work. There has always been a third place where we can go and be ourselves and relax and rejuvenate. This idea is called “relational engagement.” Relational engagement being the notion that we use relationships as the central point of Jewish communal life.

TBI has already seen great success with this shift toward relational engagement. A major initiative for us is small groups. Facilitated by the synagogue, members form groups based around interests such as mahjong, canasta, crafting and Jewish discussions. “People are spending holidays together, they’re at the synagogue more often. New members are integrated more quickly into the community. The programming is demographic based, interest based & affinity based.

Tiferet Bet Israel has many groups and committees that plan and provide intergenerational programming throughout the year for our entire congregation. We have a Sukkot Congregational Dinner and a Simchat Torah Celebration to kick off our year. The year 2022 saw a wide range of extremely successful and engaging programming. The Men’s Club hosted Media Sports legend Ray Didinger in early December. This was followed by two very engaging events in the form of “Learning the Art of Braiding '' with Challah Prince from Israel and also hosting Yonina, the Israeli-American musical duo and YouTube sensation who gave a soulful performance over the Holiday. Community Purim is always a 2-day affair with the Religious School Carnival, followed by Purim Spiel & Purim Feast, Costume Parade & Community Megillah Reading. TBI has been fortunate to bring a variety of programs to our community and has received numerous kudos for programming excellence.

For more information on TBI programming, please refer to the TBI Calendar or contact our Director of Education & Programming, Karen Lewin.