Who are we?
We are a small Congregation based in Sheffield, in the North of England, UK. We formed in 1989 from a nucleus of members of Sinai Synagogue in Leeds living in the Sheffield area – assisted by Rabbi Walter Rothschild (then the Rabbi at Sinai Synagogue, Leeds). We are affiliated to MRJ (the Movement for Reform Judaism - previously RSGB - Reform Synagogues of Great Britain) - and generally follow their pattern of services.
Committees
Our Management Committee is elected annually at our AGM – which is held in June or July. There are currently 7 members on our Committee. Our current Chair is Howard Saffer. We have recently created a sub-group to arrange services, festivals and some special occasions.
Services
We currently hold synagogue services three weeks out of every four – on a four weekly cycle. Friday night services are held every other week. A Shabbat morning service is held every four weeks (between two of the Friday night services). For dates of future services check the ‘Service’ list in our ‘Diary’.
Rabbi? – what Rabbi?
As a small Congregation we don’t have a Rabbi. Services are lead by lay-leaders – including some fairly recent post-Bar Mitzvah and Bat Mitzvah teenagers. Most other facilities and ‘services’ are run and managed by our Management Committee.
Meeting Places
We don’t have a synagogue building. However we meet regularly at a local community centre – and occasionally in member’s houses. Please make contact using our contact page or through a committee member for more information if you want to come along to a service or other activity.
Adult Education
In recent years we have run a new adult learning initiative – called the “Community of Learners” – developed by Leo Baeck College. This was a 8 session course. We have also run a course called the Textual Journey - which was run by Julian Resnick, from RSGB. Recently we completed the ‘Torah L’Am’ programme, run by Anna Dyson. We are now looking for new courses to run.
Book Club
Last year we started a Jewish Book Club. Participants read a book and then discuss it together. In order to keep things small – to make discussion easier – and to develop friendships in the group, this group is now full. However we welcome other people reading the books – and commenting or reviewing them. Or maybe you would like to help form a second Book Club group?
Cheder (Religious Education classes)
We run a small Cheder for children from around 7 upwards. This has been running for several years, and a number of children have progressed on to Bar and Bat Mitzvah – and even to leading services or teaching at the Cheder. We have also recently started a pre-Cheder group for younger children - with or without their parents. Check out the Cheder and Pre-cheder dates for this term in the Diary.
High Holy Days and Festivals
We normally run our HHD services ourselves – generally without Rabbinic assistance. We also organise celebrations or parties at Sukkot, Chunukah, Purim and some other occasions. We also hold a Communal Seder on the 2nd night of Pesach that is very well supported - by members and non-members alike. The 2006 Communal Seder attracted 87 persons - more than our total membership!
Omer – our Newsletter
We have recently revised the format of our Newsletter that is called ‘Omer’. (this a Hebrew word with two meanings – Omer with an ayin – meaning ‘sheaf’ – as in corn – which is a symbol of Sheffield; Omer with an aleph means ‘ to say’ – which is what our newsletter is for of course). It now comes out approximately bi-monthly – and is well read by our members and across the Jewish Community in Sheffield. Non-members may subscribe for a small annual donation. Current and back copies (in .pdf format – which can be read in Acrobat reader) are also available in a slightly revised format if you Contact Us directly.
Library without Shelves
As we don’t have a synagogue building, we also don’t have a physical library. However our members have many Books and magazines of Jewish interest – and some are available for loan. More details will be available on this later.
Cemetery and Burial
Through an arrangement with Sheffield City Council we administer our own Jewish Cemetery – in a section of a City Council cemetery. We also participate in a Reform movement burial insurance scheme that is available to all our members. We are currently progressing the provision of a mixed-faith area in our cemetery (to allow members to be laid to rest with their non-Jewish partner - in some circumstances). Please go to the Contact Us page for any enquiries concerning this.
Constitution
We have recently amended our Constitution (July 2006). Please Contact Us if you would like to see a copy.
Conversion
Although we don’t have our own conversion course, we can make arrangements with our nearest Reform Rabbi, at Sinai Synagogue in Leeds. If you might be interested, Contact Us for more details.
Circumcision
People, including non-members, often contact us about the Circumcision of their new (or soon to arrive) baby boy. We don’t have a ‘Moyel’ (someone who carries out circumcisions) in Sheffield - but we can put you in touch with a Moyel In Leeds or Manchester. Reform ‘Moyelim’ are generally Jewish doctors who have had special training to carry out this special ritual, rather than Rabbis. Please Contact Us if you require more details.
SDRJC Blog Site
We have now gone interactive - as we now have our own SDRJC Blog site! Guests are welcome to leave comments - but it is also an area where you can comment on current activities, films, books, etc.
MRJ - (formerly RSGB)
This Congregation is affiliated to the Movement for Reform Judaism (MRJ) - formerly called RSGB (the Reform Synagogues of Great Britain). They provide us with assistance and support in many areas of synagogue activity. For more information on MRJ - check out the Reform Judaism web site - which also includes an on-line forum where ‘visitors’ can ask questions - or ‘post’ information for other members to see.
RSY-Netzer
This is the youth movement wing of MRJ. We run an RSY-Netzer group in Sheffield (called the ‘Jammie Dodgers’) for our teenagers - but we are hoping to develop this further in the near future. For more information about RSY-Netzer activities nationally - including their extremely popular Summer programmes (Shemesh) - check out the RSY-Netzer web site.
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