Welcome to Congregation Sha'are Shalom!

The Conservative Congregation in Loudoun County

Shalom! Welcome to Congregation Sha'are Shalom. Whether you are attending a special celebration or visiting, this pamphlet is your guide to our community and our worship service. Please feel free to take this with you.

Our Congregation

Congregation Sha'are Shalom is an egalitarian community, authentically Jewish, and fully engaged in the world. Affiliated with the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, Sha’are Shalom welcomes new members and serves families and individuals through religious services, Jewish education for all ages, programs for interfaith families, and social events. Founded in 1996, our community now has more than 135 households, including couples and singles. We are a diverse community, ranging from singles just out of college to couples with young children to people in their 90s.
 
We generally follow the guidelines of the USCJ with regard to our worship services, educational methods, and approach to Jewish life. Rabbi Michael Ragozin became our first full-time rabbi in the summer of 2008. His joining us marks a significant transition in our synagogue life.

Our Building

The synagogue opened its doors for the first time on Rosh Hashanah, 5765 (September, 2004). Our new home for worship, learning and social gathering is unfinished, but we look forward to your future visits so that you can see how we build our community.

Our Worship Services

Shabbat services are held generally Friday evening at 7.30 pm and every Saturday morning at 9.30 am. We offer additional services to accommodate the spiritual and communal needs of families with young children. Led by the rabbi and by members, there are services for the High Holy Days in the fall, for the three festival holidays throughout the year (Succot, Pesach, and Shavuot), and Purim and Hanukkah in creative and most enjoyable ways. As a fully egalitarian community, women and men jointly perform the roles traditionally restricted to men.

Men and boys, Jewish or not, must wear a head covering, usually a kippah (skull cap), whenever they are in the synagogue. Women and girls may choose to wear head covering, but all must wear a head covering when they are on the bimah (the raised platform in front) during a service.

Friday and Holiday Evening

Likrat Shabbat is the prayer book (siddur) book used for Friday evening services. The service, conducted in English and Hebrew, is a spiritual celebration to welcome the Sabbath.

The Erev Shabbat (Friday evening) service begins with a spirited Kabbalat Shabbat (welcoming Shabbat). The rabbi then offers a brief drash, an explanation of some part of the Torah. The formal worship continues with the Barchu prayer which acts as the call to prayer. A series of blessings leads up to the Sh’ma Yisrael (Hear, O Israel), one of the most important Jewish liturgical declarations. Some congregants cover their eyes to better focus on the prayer. Additional blessings complete the Sh’ma, which leads into the Amidah (the standing prayer), one of the oldest and most solemn of prayers. This is recited silently while standing. Worshippers connect with God in prayer either in the words of the prayer book or in words of their hearts. The concluding prayers, the Mourner’s Kaddish, a prayer that sanctifies the name of God, commemorates departed loved ones and used to separate major portions of the service, and a final hymn complete the service.

Saturday and Holiday Morning

Sim Shalom is the siddur (prayer book) used for Saturday and holiday services. These Morning services begin at 9.30 am and usually last about two and a half hours. During the morning service, Jewish men age 13 and older are asked to wear a tallit, the traditional prayer shawl. Wearing a tallit is optional for Jewish women.

The Shacharit (morning) service begins with preliminary prayers and psalms and the Psukei D’zimra (Verses of Song), which are spiritual warm-up for the main service. It continues with Shacharit (the morning prayers). The structure is much like the evening service; it begins with the Barchu (call to prayer), the Shema and its blessings and then the Amidah. The congregation stands for the Amidah prayer; the first part of it is prayed aloud, led by the prayer leader, with the remainder prayed silently. During the festival holidays other prayers are said.

The heart of the morning service is the Torah readings. If there is a Bar or Bat Mitzvah celebration, the young adult begins participation at this point. The Torah service involves reading from a portion of the Sefer Torah, the scroll containing the Five Books of Moses. The large red volume, Etz Hayim (Tree of Life), contains the entire Torah plus supplementary readings and allows worshippers to read along. Each week’s reading is fixed by tradition, with a number of Jewish adults, seven for Shabbat, five for the festivals, called to recite a blessing before and after the actual reading. It is an honor to be asked to recite this blessing. Following the Torah readings is the haftarah, a recitation from the Prophets.

Before and after the readings, the Torah is carried around the synagogue in a processional of honor. A drash or a study session following the Torah service stimulates thinking about the reading.

The service concludes with Musaf, an additional set of prayers and blessings. This repeats much of the earlier Amidah with a few distinct differences. Musaf is followed by Aleynu, an ancient prayer, and then by Kaddish, for those who are remembering the death of a loved one.

Services are followed by a Kiddush (blessing over wine or grape juice), a prayer for washing hands, and a blessing of the bread. Often there is an informal, kosher luncheon for all present to enjoy the company of our community; there is no charge, of course.

Our Activities

Congregation Sha'are Shalom is unusually active for a small community. We offer Jewish education for all ages. Our award-winning religious school has more than 100 students; there is a separate preschool for our youngest congregants. The Sisterhood and Men’s Club meet monthly and support the congregation in a variety of ways. There is a thriving adult education program in which people can learn to read Hebrew, chant from the Torah, as well as study Jewish history and Jewish thought. A social action program gives members the opportunity to act for the welfare of the community at large.

For More Information

We're a warm and friendly community. Please do join us after services for a few minutes of food and socializing. There is always a congregational officer available for more information. You can contact us at 703.737.6500 or by email at info@sha-areshalom.org. For information about membership, call 703.737.6500 or email us at membership@sha-areshalom.org. For more information, please visit www.sha-areshalom.org.

Special Services

Family Service (especially for children) at 6.30PM, the first Friday of the month
Musical Shabbat at 7.30PM, the last Friday of the month
Tot Shabbat at 10.30 am, the fourth Saturday of the month