Traditional Saturday Morning Services

The core of our Sabbath religious observance is our traditional morning worship, beginning at 9:30 with Shacharit, followed by the Torah reading and Musaf.

Shomrei does not employ a cantor, in part because we have a terrific one already in Rabbi Greenstein, but more so because, even when there is no bar or bat mitzvah, our own synagogue members routinely volunteer each week to lead services, read the Haftorah, and chant parts of the Torah portion (Andy Silkowitz, our exceptionally gifted Torah-reading pro, handles the rest).

Newcomers to our shul will likely observe that Rabbi Greenstein’s style is to bypass a formal pulpit sermon in favor of an episodic, interstitial commentary in between Torah readings, often engaging members of the congregation in a dialog from their seats. Our seating plan has been deliberately rearranged to bridge the gap between bimah and floor and make the result both more traditional and also more inclusive and informal. And we have begun to introduce simple-to-use musical instruments like tambourines to add energy and fun to the service.

It all makes for a democratic, enjoyable, relaxed and very neighborly feel.

Our services are fully egalitarian, our seating is mixed, our members are welcoming and friendly, and our services are always followed by a generous, delicious kiddush.

Information: Geoff Sadow, gsadow@verizon.net, or Rabbi Greenstein, dgreenstein@shomrei.org