Independent Jewish Shul in Brookline, MA

Contact Us: 617-566-8171 | info@tbzbrookline.org

Sukkot – Shmini Atzeret – Simchat Torah

Sukkot

Sukkot starts the evening of Wednesday, October 16.

The TBZ sukkah is open all Sukkot for anyone who wants to enjoy it. Please feel free to come, sit, and use it! This includes staying after services to eat meals (bring your own vegetarian/kosher) or stopping by at other times during the holiday, even if the synagogue is closed.

The entrance is along the walkway, to the left of the ground-floor entrance. There is a plug to turn on the lights, the outlet is on the bottom right side by the side door. Please make sure to always unplug the light when you leave. There are some programs planned during Sukkot in the sukkah, so please check the calendar to know when those are happening. We will leave a lulav and etrog set in the sukkah for those who would like to do the blessings during the week.

Join us throughout the festival week:

  • Wednesday, October 16, 5:45pm: Beit Rabban families are invited to join us for BYODinner in the sukkah!
  • Thursday, October 17, 10:00am: Sukkot morning service (in person and online)
    Includes blessing the lulav – bring your own

  • lulav and etrog set or use TBZ’s
  • Friday, October 18:
    • Office closed (second day of Sukkot)
    • No Sukkot service
    • 6:00pm: Shabbat evening service (in person and online)
  • Saturday, October 19:
    • 10:00am: Shabbat chol ha’moed (holiday) service including the reading of Kohelet (Ecclesiastes) (in person and online)
    • 10:30am: WonderMinyan (in person)
    • 1:00pm: B’Mitzvah Group (in person)
    • 1:00pm: Tikkun Olam Kiddush Table (in person)
  • Sunday, October 20: Unearthing Sarah’s Story with Tzivia Gover
    Prepare for Simchat Torah and restarting the Torah reading cycle in a powerful way! It might seem that to gain the full stories of the matriarchs of the Hebrew Bible we need to read between the lines. But there is also much to discover and explore within the texts themselves where hints and information about these powerful women are hiding in plain sight. In this workshop, author, poet, and Certified Dreamwork Professional Tzivia Gover will share her process of rediscovering the biblical matriarch Sarah and invite participants to find their place in this foundational story as well. Using text study, guided discussion, and creative writing we will dive into key passages about the first Hebrew matriarch, Sarah, to rediscover her on the pages of our sacred texts, and as an archetypal presence within ourselves. Everyone is welcome, whether they consider themselves a writer or not, and at all levels of Jewish education, experience, and all gender identities. Register here.

Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah

Please note that there is no Beit Rabban on Wednesday, October 23 due to the holiday.

  • Thursday, October 24, 10:00am: Shemini Atzeret service, including yizkor (in person and online)
  • Thursday, October 24, 6:30pm: Simchat Torah service and celebration (in person and online)
    Come celebrate Torah as we dance joyfully as a community! We will hear the end and the beginning of the Torah together. The music on Simchat Torah is being sponsored by Lilly Pelzman and Jeffrey Borenstein in honor and memory of our dear Zina Pelzman z”l. Zina loved music and dancing!
    • 6:30pm: Ma’ariv service, followed by unrolling the sefer torah (Torah scroll) and reading a summary of the whole Torah
    • 7:15pm: Hakafot (dancing/circling) begins
    • Ends around 9:00pm
  • Friday, October 25, 9:00am: Simchat Torah day service with Rabbi Ebn Leader (in person)
    • 9:00am: Shacharit and Hallel
    • 10:30am: Hakafot, chanting and walking (this should take approximately 1.5 hours)
    • 12:00pm: Torah reading (we will do group aliyot rather than individual aliyot for every person, in order not to lose the energy of the Hakafot), followed by silent time for Mussaf before concluding the service