Shabbat and Holiday Services

Shabbat Service

Friday, March 31 at 6:15 pm (in-person indoors or live streamed)

Friday night services will be held indoors in the Sanctuary, where masks are optional and everyone is expected to be vaccinated and boosted (if eligible).  

We invite you to celebrate a special moment with us.

Would you like to celebrate a special occasion for your family? Consider sharing it with the congregation by sponsoring an Oneg following Friday night services at WRT.

Torah Study

Saturday, April 1 at 9:00 am (in-person in the Sifriyah or Zoom) 

Each Shabbat morning we gather informally to read and discuss the week’s Torah portion. The morning begins with a brief Shabbat service at which mourners who wish to say Kaddish are warmly welcomed. The group is led by volunteers, with clergy participation. No prior experience with Torah is necessary.  

Programs and Special Events

Adult Learning: Introduction to Talmud

Thursday, March 30 at 10:15 am (Zoom)

Join Rabbi Blake and fellow learners for a weekly deep dive into the spiritually nourishing and intellectually challenging world of the Babylonian Talmud. For this midwinter learning series, we will explore signature Talmudic passages that shed light on Jewish philosophy, ethics, observance, and law, with a focus on the content and form of rabbinic thought and debate. No prior text/Hebrew experience is required. All are welcome.

Empty Reusable Bags and Non-Perishable Food for Mt. Vernon Food Bank

Now through March 31, 2023

The Mt. Vernon Food Bank, one of our Cooking4HOPE partners, has an immediate need for empty Fresh Direct (or similarly sized reusable bags). If you have extra empty bags, or non-perishable food supplies, please drop them off at the entrance of the garage of 65 Hutchinson Blvd, 10583 for donation to the food bank. If you are donating food, please email Yoel.magid@gmail.com when to expect food drop offs.

MRJ Blood Drive

Sunday, April 2, 9:00am - 1:30 pm in the CJL

MRJ is hosting its Annual Blood Drive in partnership with Kol Ami, in memory of Alan Broadwin z'l, who was instrumental developing many of the MRJ programs in the past few years. Blood donors are urgent needed. On average, nearly 42,000 blood components are used by patients daily. Walk-ins are welcome, however appointments are suggested.

Passover Donations: HOPE Kosher Food Pantry

Now through April 5, 2023

HOPE Community services, which has the only kosher food pantry in Westchester, provides Seder plates and Kosher for Passover meals for kosher clients throughout Passover, including to members of our own WRT community. Help HOPE raise the necessary funds to meet these needs.  Donate here and select “Kosher Program” under “Campaigns/Programs” and please indicate “WRT – Passover” in the notes or make a donation directly through WRT by donating to the WRT Housing and Food Insecurity Fund and noting that the donation is for Passover. This Passover, as we say the words “let all who are hungry come and eat,” let’s be able to say we were part of feeding those hungry. 

Passover Festival Service

Thursday, April 6 at 10:00 am, in the Center for Jewish Life (CJL)

Meditation Lab

Beginning Friday, April 7

8:30 - 9:00 am: via Zoom

11:00 - 11:30 am: in-person at WRT

Norm Goldstein, a WRT congregant who has practiced and taught meditation for over 20 years, joins Rabbi Blake and Rabbi Baken in leading weekly meditation sessions, in two formats, weekly for 7 Fridays ( April 7 to May 19). Don’t miss your chance to engage in mindful awareness with your rabbis and this transformational coach (www.coachnorm.com).

RSVP for in-person sessions to Lisa Vega at WRT: lisa.vega@wrtemple.org.

Zoom link is https://us02web.zoom.us/j/3793384936?pwd=Vm1QV0lZQkVWQ2orYTlyQjRIcVpCZz09

Men of Reform Judaism Meeting

Tuesday, April 11 at 7:00 pm

Come join the MRJ for the monthly meeting, where we kibbitz and plan the many events and activities held throughout the year. 

Passover Yizkor Service

Wednesday, April 12 at 10:00 am, in the Center for Jewish Life (CJL)

Nurture Your Body/Kindle Your Soul:

Movement for All Ages and Abilities

Thursday, April 13, 1:30 pm – 2:30 pm

An oneg will follow the class until 3:00 pm.

Back by popular demand are three afternoons (4/13, 5/11, 6/8) of gentle chair yoga/Pilates for all ages and abilities. Chairs, supplied by WRT, will be the main prop with classes that will adapt to participants’ needs. Friends are welcome. 

R.S.V.P.: http://bit.ly/3YDArpS or receptionist@wrtemple.org or (914) 723-7727. 

Co-Sponsored by the Caring Community and WRJ.  

Mussar - Measuring What Matters

Led by Rabbi Sasha Baken

Friday, April 14 at 12:00 pm (Zoom)

Between the 11th and 18th centuries, individual Jewish scholars developed the study and practice of Mussar as a field of Jewish thought and spiritual growth. In the modern era, Mussar is recognized as a spiritual practice that utilizes tools such as text study, journaling, and meditating in effort to understand various character traits (middot, literally “measures”) that each of us embodies such as generosity, anger, humility, and trust.

Tot Shabbat

Friday, April 14 at 5:30 pm

Experience the joy of Shabbat with children, parents, grandparents, siblings, and friends. Designed for families with children of preschool age and younger, Tot Shabbat starts with songs and stories led by our clergy, followed by a family-friendly dinner. Children must be accompanied by an adult for this service (no drop-offs). 

Mother’s Day Mitzvah Supporting My Sister’s Place

Good Drive, now through April 21

April 28, 2023, 9 – 11 am, Westchester Reform Temple

The ECC Mitzvah Corps invites you to help make Mother's Day a happy holiday for local women in need, in partnership with My Sisters' Place! Please donate items from this Amazon wishlist (be sure to select "Sharon Stiefel's Gift Registry Address") by April 21. Feel free to share the link with your extended networks! Join us on April 28 from 9-11 am at WRT to assemble the gift baskets and learn more about MSP. RSVP here. 

New York Jewish Climate Summit

April 23, 2023, 1 – 4:30 pm, Temple Shaaray Tefila, 250 E 79^th St, NY, NY

Join members of WRT and reform Jews throughout New York to gather, learn, organize, and take action to tackle the climate crisis together. Build relationship, share organizing and advocacy skills, and learn how to make a meaningful climate impact in NY State and in our congregation. Organized by Dayenu and RAC-NY. Learn more and register here.

Rabbi Jonathan Blake in conversation with Pulitzer Prize-Winning Journalist and Author Jodi Kantor

Thursday, May 11, 2023 at 7:30 pm

Jodi Kantor is a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter and best-selling author whose work has revealed hidden truths about power, gender, technology, politics and culture.

In October of 2017, she and Megan Twohey broke the story of Harvey Weinstein’s decades of sexual abuse allegations. Their work helped ignite the #MeToo movement, shift attitudes, and spur new laws, policies and standards of accountability around the globe. Together with a team of colleagues who exposed harassment across industries, they were awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service, journalism’s highest award.

The movie, She Said, based on her New York Times best-selling book entitled She Said: Breaking the Sexual Harassment Story That Helped Ignite a Movement, is now streaming on Peacock. This event is made possible by a grant from The Rabbi Jacobs & Susan Freedman Fund for Innovation in Jewish Life at Westchester Reform Temple. There is no charge for this event, but please RSVP by May 1st, using the button below.

2 Amazing WRT Trips to Israel for WRT Congregants ages 6+

Run by J²Adventures, we will offer an adult-only trip led by Rabbi Blake, and a family trip led by Cantor Kleinman, with special moments of gathering all together as a WRT community in Israel. These 12-day trips (including travel days), December 20-31, 2023, will provide memories for a lifetime. Please note that Adults and Families will register separately, even though both groups are traveling at the same time.

Registration is now open! Watch the information session here.

STAND UP FOR ISRAEL AS A JEWISH, DEMOCRATIC STATE

Rabbi Blake recently returned from a trip to Israel where he joined over 250 Reform Rabbis from around the world in meeting with Knesset officials, Jewish leaders, and in joining with hundreds of thousands of Israelis who are peacefully protesting a recent set of initiatives that would undermine a pillar of Israeli democracy, which is its independent judiciary. Supporters of Israel who care about the preservation of its democratic institutions, representing a broad swath of Israelis and her allies, from across the political spectrum from right-of-center to left-of-center, have denounced these proposed “reforms” as a harmful lurch away from democracy that would undercut Israel’s credibility, security, and economic vibrancy. 

Following his trip, Rabbi Blake offered remarks and a slideshow of powerful images, during Shabbat services at WRT on March 3rd. The presentation can be viewed by clicking here.

WRT joins with our Reform Movement partners and the Israel Religious Action Center in making it easy to express your support for Israel as the world’s only Jewish State and the Middle East’s only democracy. Click on this link to reach out to Knesset leaders to convey your words. You can also adapt the language provided here to contact your local and national elected officials in Congress. 

Together, we will stand with Israel and for democracy. 

*SAVE THE DATE: Mitzvah Fair *

Sunday, May 21st 11 am - 1 pm at WRT

WRT's music series for the 2022-2023 calendar year.

We know that music has immense power to connect us, lift us up, and inspire us, and what better way to be in community than to experience the beauty of music with fellow congregants and leading Jewish artists, cantors, and composers! To discover our wonderful artists in this series, please visit the website, https://bit.ly/3MSTYfV

Visit the Jewish Learning Lab (JLL)

For WRT members: If you would like to receive notifications of birth announcements and deaths within the WRT community, please email receptionist@wrtemple.org with your full name and email address. Please specify if you would like to be added to one or both of these notification lists.  

For more information about Inclusion at WRT, click here.

For more information about Our Jewish World, click here.