The observance of Shabbat and the Jewish festival calendar is central to Or Haneshamah. On the first and third Saturdays of the month, OrH-niks worship together, praying and chanting in a mixture of English and Hebrew from Kol Haneshemah, the siddur of the Reconstructionist movement, as well as supplementary readings and sources.  Shabbat services on the first Saturday of the month are led by our Student Rabbi while services on the third Saturday of the month are led by member service leaders.  Services include torah chanting and d'var Torah (commentary and discussion on the weekly portion), all followed by a potluck kiddush lunch.  Several times a year, we also have Kabbalat Shabbat services on Friday night.  Please see our calendar to verify service dates.

Festivals are also self-led, with rabbinic assistance on the High Holidays. Like most congregations, OrH devotes a great deal of attention and effort to celebrating Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. The three "major" holidays--Passover, Shavuot and Sukkot--are all appropriately observed, including holding a congregational seder for the former and building our own sukkah for the latter. Increasingly popular holidays such as Hannukkah and Purim are occasions for special events and lesser known festivals such as Tu B'Shevat and Tisha B'Av are also commemorated. Most of the festival programs feature the OrH band, which always infuses the events with special ruach (spirit.)

None of these wonderful programs can happen, however, without ongoing volunteer support so please contribute in any way you can.