Worship opportunities will abound at the URJ Biennial this December! Designed not only to refresh the body and the spirit, the services also are models you may wish to bring home to your congregation or incorporate into your own personal practice.
In addition to inspiring and innovative daily worship experiences, Biennial will include a brand new format for Shabbat morning services and afternoon learning activities.
Try Something New
Worship experiences will run the gamut from Classical Reform worship to meditation and movement, incorporating technology, storytelling, and chanting. Sample worship that focuses on deepening our prayer experiences and offers resources to take it all home to your congregation.
Inspiring Worship Leaders
URJ faculty members Rabbi Elka Abrahamson, Liz Lerman, Cantor Rosalie Boxt, and Amichai Lau-Lavie will come together with other cutting-edge pulpit clergy from Jerusalem, London, and around North America to conduct imaginative and inspirational worship throughout Biennial.
World’s Largest Shabbat Dinner (That We Know Of!)
When was the last time you broke bread with 5,000 members of your Jewish family? Sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with people from across North America and beyond, welcoming Shabbat with so many people, is sure to be a transcendent experience.
Welcome the Sabbath Bride
Join the team from Temple Beth Elohim in Wellesley, MA, for a musical Kabbalat Shabbat service. Rabbi Joel Sisenwine, Cantor Jodi Sufrin, Rabbi Rachel Saphire, Rabbinic Intern Noah Aronson, and the Biennial Choir will lead us in a spiritually moving service with the Reform Movement family.
A Shabbat to Remember
On Shabbat morning, you’ll have five unique P’sukei d’Zimra (literally “verses of song,” or warm-up prayers) from which to choose, as well as five different study opportunities before we join together for the Shacharit and Torah services.
Shacharit and Torah Service: Va-y’chi
Morning services will be led by Rabbi Rick Jacobs, Rabbi/Cantor Angela Buchdahl, and the Biennial Choir. We’ll learn Torah from retiring HUC President Rabbi David Ellenson and celebrate Women of Reform Judaism’s centennial with special guests from Dance Exchange and StorahTelling.
Bring Home the Inspiration
Learning sessions dedicated to new ideas about worship, spirituality, and kavanah will be available throughout the Biennial. Follow up materials on how to utilize worship resources, how to access the music, readings and text of all tefilot will be available on-site in San Diego and/or soon after the Biennial.
Grab a Biennial Kippah!
Finally, don’t forget to order your very own Biennial kippah! With a Sol LeWitt-inspired design, this kippah will be a special addition to your collection and a keepsake of your Biennial experience. All kippot will be available for pickup at the Biennial (no shipping).
Register now to join us at the URJ Biennial, December 11-15, 2013, in San Diego.