High Holidays Event Descriptions
In addition to evening and morning services on Rosh haShanah and Yom Kippur, we mark the season with the following offerings:
S’LICHOT SERVICE (7:30PM)
On the last Shabbat before Rosh haShanah, we gather together with the Community Chorale to begin the Days of Awe with S'lichot, a special service of penitential prayers and the ritual of dressing our Torah scrolls in their white mantles.
SHOFAR SOUNDING & TASHLICH on Rosh haShanah (5:00PM)
Join us in Jackson Park on Rosh haShanah as we blow the shofar and symbolically cast off the sins of 5784 by tossing breadcrumbs into the water. Our clergy will lead us in a brief reflection and blow the shofar. Please bring your own crumbs - they're your sins after all!
YOM KIPPUR AFTERNOON SERVICE (MINCHAH AND AVODAH) (4:00PM)
Minchah of Yom Kippur offers a unique opportunity for personal reflection, musical inspiration, prayerful confession, a dramatic reading of the story of Jonah and the whale, and a contemporary retelling of the millennia-old Yom Kippur rituals of the ancient Temple in Jerusalem.
LIGHT BREAK THE FAST on Yom Kippur (6:30 PM)
Following our concluding service, we will send everyone off with enough nosh or snack to tide them over until they get to their own Break the Fast meals. Join us outside on our Greenwood Lobby (and in our Courtyard- weather permitting) for fruit, veggies, pastries and good company.
High Holy Day Learning at KAM Isaiah Israel
The Origins of the High Holy Days: How Ancient Texts Guide Our Modern Practice With Rabbi Kirzane
Wednesday, Sept. 18 @ 8:00-9:00 pmOnline Only
The Torah doesn’t say much more about Rosh Hashanah other than we’re supposed to blow the shofar. It has a lot to say about Yom Kippur, though, and you’d be surprised how much remains relevant. Rabbi Kirzane will lead a journey through biblical texts that outline the origin of these holidays and chart their course through centuries of Jewish history. We’ll strive to connect the dots from ancient tradition to modern practice in what might be some surprising ways.
Crowning: High Holy Days Through the Eyes of New Parents With Deanna Neil
Friday, Sept. 27 @ 4:30-5:30 pm
Rosh Hashanah is the birthday of the world, and the high holy days are filled with stories and imagery of birth, creation and parenting – from the stories of Sarah and Hannah praying to conceive, to the concept of God as creator and parent. Join us for a thoughtful discussion on how these powerful texts and ideas connect to our lives as new(ish) or expecting parents, providing inspiration, reflection, and a space for meaningful conversation as we embark into the new year.
We are opening our Shoresh Parent Symposium to the wider community with this hybrid event on Friday, September 27th, from 4:30-5:30 PM, both in person at KAM Isaiah Israel and via Zoom. We hope you’ll join us!
Repentance and Forgiveness: Related Yet Distinct
Saturday, Sept. 28 @ 6:30 pm At KAM Isaiah Israel and online
This class will be followed by Selichot services at 7:30 and a dessert reception at 8:30
Teshuvah means “return,” though we use it in the sense of “repentance” during the High Holy Days. Jewish tradition outlines several key stages of repentance, the last of which is apologizing. We often think that one person’s teshuvah leads to another person’s s’lichah (“forgiveness”), but the two processes are actually separate. Rabbi Kirzane will distinguish the two central concepts and demonstrate how we can engage in either or both during the High Holy Days.
Ask the Clergy with Rabbi Kirzane and Cantor Berger
Saturday, Oct. 5 @ 12:00 pm In-person only, light Nosh
Shabbat shuvah, the Shabbat between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, is a special time for reflection. This year, Rabbi Kirzane and Cantor Berger will open the floor to your questions. Bring it on! You can inquire about Judaism, the High Holidays, or any topic that’s on your mind.
Jonah, the Prophet of Truth Saturday, Oct. 12 (Yom Kippur Afternoon) ~ 12:30 pm
With Rabbi Kirzane In-person only
Following morning services, Rabbi Kirzane will offer a close reading of the Jonah story, which is the traditional haftarah for Yom Kippur. In particular, we’ll focus on Jonah’s insistence on “truth” and the ways in which the sensational prophet struggles to see the connection between mercy and truth.
That Kol Nidrei Magical Moment Oct 9, 2024
With Cantor Berger In-person and online
For hundreds of years Ashkenazic Jews have crowded into synagogues on the eve of Yom Kippur anxiously awaiting the magical moment of forgiveness and release created by the music and ritual of Kol Nidrei. Prepare yourself this year, through examining the history of the liturgy and gaining insight into the power of the melody itself, for your own moment of magic as the lilting notes of Kol Nidrei descend upon you when we gather as the KAM Isaiah Israel community for Yom Kippur.
High Holy Days Beyond Services or Classes
Tashlich and Shofar Sounding Thursday, Oct. 3 @ 5:00 pm Jackson Park Location
Tashlich and Shofar Sounding
Thursday, Oct. 3 @ 5:00 pm Jackson Park Location
Join us for casting away our sins with this ancient, embodied tradition. Bring your own bread crumbs (and some to share if you can), and if you have a shofar, bring one of those, too! Rabbi Kirzane will invite people of all ages to do some short personal reflection and then toss their “sins” into the “sea.” Kids should feel free to play. Picnic in the park at the ‘Sky Landing’ Yoko Ono sculpture to follow
Cookies at the Kirzanes’ Friday, Oct. 4 @ 2:30-4:30 pm
Join the Kirzane family for an open-house cookie-xtravaganza! This is a great time for people of all ages to mingle and celebrate the new year and taste some of the Kirzane Crew’s favorite desserts. Meet us at 54th and Hyde Park Blvd, or better yet - join us for Second Day Rosh Hashanah services and then come on over!
Yom Kippur Reflections Sat., Oct.12 @ 2:00 pm
During Yom Kippur Afternoon, the Wellness Committee will host an opportunity to meditate, reflect, and connect with one another and with the themes of the Holy Days in a creative and supportive atmosphere.