Shabbat

Our monthly Shabbat services feature creative, non-theistic Jewish liturgy, music, and poetry. Each Shabbat service is 30-35 minutes long and is followed by an hour-long program with a speaker presenting on a topic of Jewish and/or Humanistic interest. Check out our calendar to find out when the next Or Emet Shabbat is scheduled, and read more about program topics on our Adult Learning page. Visitors are always welcome.

• Services consistently feature a “Statement of Ideals,” like a Humanistic Sh’ma (adapted from Marcia Falk), a Humanistic Kaddish, and a Humanistic Kiddush and Hamotzi—wine and bread blessings.
• We sing together, led by our talented song leader, Sarah Berman-Young, and accompanied by our pianist, Johanna Lester. Our repertoire includes Jewish traditional songs like “Hinei Ma Tov” that fit our Humanistic Jewish worldview along with adapted versions of classics (for example, we sing “Na’aseh Shalom,” meaning “Let Us Make Peace,” instead of “Oseh Shalom,” which appeals to a divine “Maker of Peace”). We also sing modern and contemporary music from the global secular Jewish canon.
• Special readings and short sermons vary each month to fit program themes (e.g. immigrant rights, archaeology, democracy, Broadway musicals), promoting rich, meaningful connections between our ritual and our educational programming.
• After the Shabbat service and program, we enjoy an oneg featuring challah, other snacks, and time to chat and connect.

What about Havdalah, the Saturday evening ritual that transitions between Shabbat and the rest of the week? Or Emet marks it annually at our summer Havdalah Picnic at a local park. Our Humanistic take on the ritual, which includes group reflection and movement, is fun for members and visitors of all ages. After our Havdalah ceremony, we nosh on a potluck picnic and often roast marshmallows.

Holidays

High Holidays – For Humanistic Jews, the High Holidays are a time to reflect seriously on how we can repair harm and improve ourselves, our relationships, and our world. Facilitating this reflection in community, Or Emet offers an Erev Rosh Hashanah service, a Rosh Hashanah Tashlich service, a Kol Nidre service, and a Yom Kippur afternoon service. All are free and open to the public—no tickets required! Services feature creative, non-theistic Jewish liturgy and music that draw inspiration from the High Holidays canon while transforming it to fit our Humanistic Jewish ethos. What does that look like? Or Emet musicians perform Max Bruch’s Kol Nidrei on cello and piano, and “Avinu Malkeinu (Our Father, Our King)” becomes “Our Brothers, Our Sisters, Our Friends,” with singing led by Sarah Berman-Young and an Or Emet chorus (open to all members). Services feature sermons by Rabbi Eva as well as Or Emet member commentaries that connect holiday themes to big contemporary issues and questions. Our Erev Rosh Hashanah service ends with a festive oneg (featuring apples and honey, honey cake, and challah), and our Tashlich service, which happens at a local lakeshore, is followed by a potluck at a member couple’s home. Our Yom Kippur afternoon service ends with a welcoming and fun catered break-fast meal open to all (no need to fast beforehand; some people who find it meaningful do fast, and many do not fast; note that there is a per-person fee to cover catering costs).

Sukkot – We celebrate this harvest holiday during Jewish Cultural Sunday School (JCSS), roofing and decorating a pop-up sukkah (hut) and gathering for a short, family-friendly ceremony. We sing, enjoy snacks, and explore, in simple language, how Sukkot connects us to ancient agricultural rhythms, our ancestors’ wanderings, and modern experiences of housing insecurity and homelessness.

Hanukkah – During winter’s short days and long nights, we celebrate light and resilience at Or Emet’s annual Hanukkah party, which draws members, visitors, and friends of all ages. Our party kicks off with a program featuring a lively retelling of the Hanukkah story, Hanukkah songs and dancing, and a community Hanukkah menorah-lighting. We have holiday craft activities and dreidels, a buffet spread with latkes and sufganiyot, gelt for the kids, and other fun.

Tu BiShevat – We celebrate Tu BiShevat, the New Year for the Trees, with a family-friendly, musical, and fun Tu BiShevat Seder during JCSS. Our Humanistic ritual riffs on kabbalistic tradition; we drink a mix of white and red grape juice and eat fruits representing the symbolic “four worlds” of action, formation, creation, and spirit. The Seder celebrates trees, touches on the holiday’s historical layers, and uplifts modern struggles to protect the environment and combat climate change.

Purim – Our Purim carnival is kid-focused and fun. It features a costume parade, simple carnival games (with prizes), and activity stations (including Purim mask-making, hamantaschen-baking, face painting, and, in recent years, a bounce house)! We also make snack bags for people in need and gift bags of Purim treats for friends and family, connecting with the Purim mitzvot of “Matanot L’Eveyonim ([Giving] Gifts to the Poor)” and “Mishloach Manot (Sending Portions).” The carnival includes a program with Purim songs and a kid-friendly “megillah” reading (we retell a short, English-language version of the Megillat Esther, the Purim story).

Passover – Our Passover Seder is another Or Emet event that draws members, visitors, and friends of all ages. We read from our New Humanist Haggadah, which guides us through the Seder and retells and interprets the Exodus story through the lens of human struggle for collective liberation. We sing Humanistic versions of “Dayenu” and other classic Passover songs, and students in our Jewish Cultural Sunday School help lead us in singing the Four Questions. Along with the Seder’s ritual foods, we enjoy a catered Middle Eastern meal, celebrating Sephardi and Mizrachi flavors. (Note that there is a per-person fee to cover catering costs.)

We touch on other Jewish holidays beyond this list in our education programs. To read more about the Humanistic Jewish approach to Jewish holidays, see the Society for Humanistic Judaism’s “Celebrate Holidays” page.

Along with our rabbi, song leader, and school director, Or Emet volunteers of all ages play an important role in planning and executing our Shabbat and holiday programming. Volunteering is a great way to make friends, share your talents, and support Or Emet.