About
Congregation Beth Sholom is a warm, vibrant, egalitarian Conservative synagogue that takes a fresh approach to balancing whole-hearted Jewish observance and learning with modern life. Judaism is not only who we are, it’s how we live-informed by study and reflected in our support for social justice and Israel. Congregation Beth Sholom is a multi-generational community where we reach out to and embrace one another in a spirit of acceptance and inclusion and common purpose. We are known for the joyful singing and participatory prayer that touch each person’s soul, uniting our community across generations.
Our History
Congregation Beth Sholom was founded in 1951, under the direction of Rabbi Barry Schaeffer. Already in those early years, music had become a source of the warmth and sense of community that still permeate the congregation to this day.
The principles of egalitarianism began to guide the congregation in the 1980s under the direction of Rabbi Kenneth E. Berger, who introduced changes that revitalized the synagogue. A parallel egalitarian service was established in 1981 and by 1984, women were counted in the minyan as services became fully egalitarian.
By 2001, Beth Sholom had expanded from its original site to today’s beautiful 380-seat sanctuary complex with youth programming space, a multi-purpose room, and handicapped accessibility.
In 2007, Congregation Beth Sholom and Congregation Beth Israel of Northern Valley merged.
In 2011, Rabbi Joel Pitkowsky was named the congregation's third rabbi. In 2012, Cantor Ronit Wolff Hanan came on board as Music Director after having served as High Holiday hazzan and volunteer musical resource for many years. Abby Rosen Finkel joined the professional staff as Synagogue Administrator in 2017, and rounding out the team are Whitney Blom, who in 2018 became the congregation's first Director of Family and Youth Programs, and Yoni Shear, CBS's new Youth Engagement Coordinator.
Tue, January 31 2023
9 Shevat 5783
