18 | AUGUST 6 • 2020 

but relationships were second-
ary,
” explains Rabbi Nicole 
Auerbach, who is in charge of 
congregational engagement and 
small groups at the 
Central Synagogue 
in New York. 
“
A synagogue is 
not a building or a 
set of programs. We 
want to make sure 
that everyone feels 
seen and recognized and has a 
sense of connection,
” she said. 
The congregation has a group 
for dads with young children, a 
Jewish cookbook group, a group 
interested in photography and 
another focused on social justice. 
“What is powerful is that 
people build really deep rela-
tionships — people who are 
there for them,
” Rabbi Auerbach 
said, adding that the goal is for 
congregants to be co-owners and 

co-creators of their community 
and to feel their Judaism without 
a rabbi in the room. 
While groups may be activi-
ty-based, discussion groups have 
“explicitly Jewish content,
” she 
said. Group leaders receive train-
ing and may later use those skills 
for other synagogue roles. 
Locally, prior to the pandem-
ic, Congregation T’
chiyah was 
developing a different small 
group model — based on groups 
of individuals who live close to 
one another with designated 
point people for check-in and 
to facilitate connections. These 
groups are providing lay-led 
social support and mutual aid, as 
well as connection, to counteract 
isolation during this pandemic, 
Ehrlich explains.

A NEW APPRECIATION
While synagogues are closed 

now, rabbis are encouraged by 
their congregants’
 continued 
involvement. They believe 
that synagogues will survive, 
although perhaps with signifi-
cant changes.
“People are now realizing 
how important synagogues 
are in their lives. All have been 
engaging their congregations 
with new modalities for prayer, 
education and connection,
” said 
Rabbi Jacob Blumenthal, exec-
utive director of the Rabbinical 
Assembly and United Synagogue 
of Conservative Judaism. 
“I think that a significant 
impact that this crisis will have 
on synagogue life will be one of 
decentralization: synagogues will 
need to see themselves as facil-
itators of home-, community- 
and online-based Judaism, rath-
er than a physical ‘
one-stop shop’
 
for Jewish life,
” Ehrlich said.

“Synagogues will be needed 
more than ever. We want com-
munity. We want support. We 
want validation,
” said Rabbi 
Bergman. “There is a craving 
for connection and community. 
There will be surface changes 
through technology.
”
He anticipates continued use 
of Zoom and online program-
ming, social distancing and 
some form of hybrid services “at 
least for the next few years, due 
to the health and age of so many 
people, until there is a vaccine 
that works.
” 

Rabbi Nicole 
Auerbach

continued from page 16

YOUR VOICE
What can synagogues do 
to grow their members? 
Do Jews need shul to stay 
connected? Let us know at 
letters@renmedia.us

Jews in the D
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