Synagogues Offer Tickets For High Holiday Observation

The Jewish High Holidays are quickly approaching, and many synagogues, both in Bridgewater and the surrounding area, are offering services to members and non-members alike who are looking for a place to pray during Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.

Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, begins at sundown Wednesday, and lasts through sundown Friday. The holiday is observed on the first day of Tishrei, the first month in the Hebrew calendar, and observers spend the day praying in the synagogue, and listening to the sounds of the shofar, before enjoying meals with their families, including the traditional apples and honey to symbolize a sweet new year.

Yom Kippur, also known as the Day of Atonement, is the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, and follows 10 days after Rosh Hashanah, after a time known as the Days of Repentance. Jews observe the day with a 25-hour fast and a day of prayer to ask forgiveness for the past year's sins and to ask to be inscribed in the Book of Life for the coming year.

Read on for a breakdown of services and opportunities offered at four area synagogues serving Bridgewater residents.

—Temple Sholom, North Bridge Street, Bridgewater

Services begin on Wednesday, Sept. 8—Erev Rosh Hashanah— at 7 p.m., and last until 9 p.m. Services on Thursday, Sept. 9, begin at 8 a.m., with a children's service at 11 a.m., and evening services beginning at 6:30 p.m.

At 5 p.m., the synagogue will hold its Tashlich Service, from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. at Peter's Brook.  This service is traditionally held near a body of water as each person's sins are symbolically thrown into the water.

On Friday, Sept. 10, services begin at 8 a.m., with a children's service again at 11 a.m.

For more information, visit the website at temple-sholom.net.

—Congregation Knesseth Israel, 229 Mountain Avenue, Bound Brook

Congregation Knesseth Israel sees much of its membership from Bridgewater, Piscataway and Bound Brook, according to Rabbi Jack Kramer, who said the temple serves Somerset, Middlesex and Hunterdon counties.

"We've been here about 90 years," he said, adding that the synagogue is unaffiliated with any specific movement, and considers itself egalitarian liberal-conservative.

For the high holidays, Kramer said, different kinds of services are offered for the adults and children to create an accessible environment for anyone to enjoy.

"How the services are done is very accessible, and very open to the community," he said. "We do an intimate service, and the room is not overwhelming."

Normally, Kramer said, the synagogue sees up to 200 people for high holiday services.

Tickets for all holiday services are $125 per person, but member guests can purchase them for $50. The second day of Rosh Hashanah is free, with no ticket required.

For more information about tickets, send an e-mail to membership@ckibbnj.org, or visit the website at ckibbnj.org.

Erev Rosh Hashanah services, on Wednesday Sept. 8, begin at 8 p.m. Services on Thursday, Sept. 9, begin at 9:30 a.m., with a children's service beginning at 10:30 a.m.

Kramer said the children's service is for those ages eight to about 12 years. The service is led by the congregation's post Bar and Bat Mitzvah students.

Services on Friday, Sept. 10, for the second day of Rosh Hashanah, begin at 9:30 a.m. There is no children's service on that day.

For Yom Kippur, the Kol Nidre service on Friday, Sept. 17, begins at 6:30 p.m.

On Saturday, Sept. 18, the Yom Kippur service begins at 9:30 a.m., with a children's service at 10:30 a.m. and Yizkor, or memorial, services at 12:30 p.m. The holiday ends with the afternoon service and Neilah, all beginning at 5 p.m.

—Temple Beth El, 67 US Highway 206, Hillsborough

According to Sheldon Stept, marketing and communications chairman for the temple, about 30 percent of the congregation is from Bridgewater, with many members from the Martinsville area of town, as well as Hillsborough and other surrounding towns.

Tickets for high holiday services are required, but can be obtained for free by contacting the synagogue at 908-722-0674.

"There is no cost for tickets, but RSVP is required," said Hadas Elami, director of administration for the synagogue.

For members, Stept said, high holiday tickets are included in the membership package.

The schedule for the high holidays begins with a Selichot program and service on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. Erev Rosh Hashanah services are Wednesday, Sept. 8, at 8 p.m.

Services on the first day of Rosh Hashanah—Thursday, Sept. 9—begin with the morning service at 9:30 a.m. and a young family service at 2 p.m.

The synagogue will then hold its Tashlich service at Duke Island Park, on Old York Road, at 3:30 p.m.

Stept said residents are encouraged to come out for the Tashlich service that is always held at the park.

"We encourage the congregation to come out for the afternoon," he said. "You can throw away your sins symbolically."

Services on the second day of Rosh Hashanah—Friday, Sept. 10—begin at 9:30 a.m.

Kol Nidre services for the night of Yom Kippur will be held at 8 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 17.

On Saturday, Sept. 17, services begin at 9:30 a.m., with a reflection service at 12:30 p.m., and a young family service at 1:30 p.m. A healing service will be held at 2:45 p.m., followed by the afternoon service at 3:30 p.m.

At 5:30 p.m., the synagogue will hold its Yizkor, or memorial, service, followed by Neilah and the concluding service at 6 p.m. Stept said a break fast will follow the final service.

According to Stept, guests on the high holidays usually fill the entire sanctuary, so the synagogue normally opens the social halls to accommodate the about 4,500 people who are expected to attend services throughout the high holidays.

"Although with the holidays on the weekend this year, more people might be out of town," he said.

The numbers and services, Stept said, are normally pretty consistent year to year. And security, he said, will be at a high level to protect congregants.

For more information, visit the website at uahc.org/nj/bethel.

—Chabad of Greater Somerset County, 3048 Valley Road, Basking Ridge

The Chabad works with much of Somerset, Hunterdon and Union counties, including Bridgewater, Basking Ridge, Watchung, Bedminster and other nearby areas, according to Rabbi Yitzchok Moully.

"We don't charge for membership, and we do get walk-ins for the high holidays," he said. "We usually completely fill the place for the high holidays."

Including children, Moully said, the synagogue usually attracts about 450 people for the high holidays.

Services for Erev Rosh Hashanah—Wednesday, Sept. 8—begin at 7:30 p.m. On both the first and second days of the holiday, services begin at 9 a.m., with a youth service at 10:30 a.m. that attracts about 100 children, as well as the blowing of the shofar at 11:30 a.m.

Moully said the blowing of the shofar is extra special for the children, as they get to go to the front of the sanctuary and watch it be blown.

"All the kids come in to the main service, and they come to the front," he said. "It is the highlight of the service."

In addition, on Thursday, Sept. 9, the Chabad will hold its Teshlich service at 2:30 p.m. at the Passaic River, just behind the building.

"It is all woods back there, and we hike down," Moully said. "It is really beautiful."

Yom Kippur services begin at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 17, and continue at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 18. Yizkor, the memorial service, will be held at 12:15 p.m. Sept. 18, and Neilah, the concluding service, will be held at 7:30 p.m.

Moully said no membership is required to attend services, and there is no ticket charge. He said the Chabad would like RSVPs to know how many people to expect, but that is not required either.

For more information about services, visit the website at chabadcentral.org.

—To look to other synagogues besides those mentioned here, visit ssbjcc.org/links_synagogues.htm, which contains a list compiled by the Shimon & Sara Birnbaum Jewish Community Center, on Talamini Road.