Welcome
Temple Concord is a community of warmth and awareness where every individual matters. From singles and families, LGBTQ or straight, near or far, Jews by birth or by choice, our members come from diverse backgrounds and work in conjunction with one another to make this amazing community.
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Our Shabbat and holiday worship services are open to all, in person or online. There is never a formal dress code or fee required to attend.
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Hanukkah is coming!
Sunday, Dec. 14th-Dec. 22
In 2025, the first night of Hanukkah is on Sunday, December 14th. It ends on Monday evening, December 25th.
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Join us on Friday, December 19th when we celebrate together. See below for details!
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Still Shopping for Hanukkah?
Don't forget to visit our Judaica Store! We have menorahs, candles, dreidels, and gifts for people of all ages! The store is open during regular office hours: Tuesday-Friday from 10am to 2pm, Sunday December 7th from 10am to 2pm and by appointment. Contact Carol Herz to schedule an appointment or for more information!
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Rabbi's Leiah's Column
Everyone is invited to Shabbat Morning Services
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Shabbat Morning service like the old Kix commercial
"is not just for kids" - (an excerpt from Neirot)
​When I arrived at Temple Concord, the state of affairs as I found them was that there was an “regular” Shabbat service (i.e. “for adults”) on Friday evenings, and a “family” service (i.e. “for children”) on Saturday mornings after Torah study/religious school were over. The b’nei mitzvah ceremony for which our older students were studying was also a Saturday morning service, which made sense, as this was the service that they would have been exposed to through regular Saturday morning religious school attendance.
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Meanwhile, adult members of the congregation would tend to avoid Saturday morning services altogether, on the feeling that such services were for families with younger children and not for them. My feeling is that a congregation which maintains too sharp a distinction between programming for the old and the young, or with similar distinctions, is in danger of losing its coherence as an organic community.
While children and adults obviously have different needs, there is generally a value to be found in programming which addresses different needs at the same time, creating opportunities for people to come together, to connect with and learn from each other, instead of remaining separated off in their own little silos.
“The Saturday morning problem” — is how to present programming in a way that leaves everyone feeling included rather than excluded. Language is an issue here. A “service” sounds to families like they and their kids aren’t invited. A “family service” sounds to adults without young children as if this event isn’t for them. It’s a real dilemma, and one that can only be addressed, I think, with time and gentle persistence from those of us involved in making events happen here at the temple, as well as a certain amount of flexibility and willingness on everyone’s part to branch out and show up for something they might have assumed wasn’t “for them.”
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Events
We welcome everyone to join us for our
Hanukkah Celebration
on
Friday, Dec 19th at 6 pm.
​Bring your menorah, candles, a vegetarian or dairy dish to pass, and your enthusiasm!
Our dinner will start with Shabbat candle lighting and a few Shabbat prayers. Then we will be lighting candles in our Hanukkiahs (i.e., Hanukkah menorah's) and singing some of our favorite Hanukkah songs together.
Please feel free to bring your favorite Hanukkiah along with seven candles for the sixth night of Hanukkah.
​​Please sign up for what you plan to bring to share so that we will know that there will be a variety of foods. It will also give us a good idea as to how many latkes to make.
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The latke crew will start making latkes in the Temple’s kitchen, at 4 pm. If you like chopping potatoes and onions (in food processors), mixing ingredients together, and frying the mixture, please join us for this joyful mitzvah. Contact Rachel Coker for more information.
Join us for Tuesday Morning Book Club
Our regular meeting time is the first Tuesday the each month at 10:30 AM
Adult Education Classes weekly on Wednesdays at 6:00 PM
Current topic: Reform Responsa
Although some might assume that Reform Judaism has little or nothing to do with Jewish law, the truth is that the Reform movement in America has its own tradition of halachic decision making, as reflected in the output of the Responsa Committee of the CCAR, which publishes rulings on questions regarding Jewish Law. We will be examining Reform responsa on various topics in order to better understand how they reflect the different ways our movement's rabbis have understood the relationship between tradition and innovation in Reform Judaism.
Volunteer!
Support our CHOW Pantry
When your brother becomes impoverished and loses the ability to support himself in the community, you must come to his aid. Help him to survive whether he is a stranger or a native.
- Leviticus Behar 35
As always, thank you for helping our most vulnerable community members. Contact the Temple office if you have any questions.
Please take a moment to look in your pantry and gather unopened, non-expired food and household supplies. Or, simply add a few items to your next trip to the store.
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During September and October, please make a special effort to donate to our CHOW Pantry as part of the Mitzvah of the Month campaign.
You may drop your goods off at Temple Concord, or donate funds directly to our CHOW pantry online or via check, cash, or credit card and indicate the Social Action/Helping Hands Fund. Please contact our office if you have any questions at (607) 723-7355. We are grateful for your help!
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Rummage Sale Volunteers Needed!
We are in need of people to help staff our monthly rummage sales.
Please contact alyci2a@msn.com if you would like to join us! THANK YOU!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Join our Temple Choir!
We are in the process of expanding our Temple Choir, and are looking for folks interested in joining! At the moment the primary focus will be on music for the High Holidays, but in time we hope to expand the choir’s role to other events throughout the year.
People of all ages and levels of musical experience are welcome and encouraged to participate.
Contact Rabbi Leiah if you wish to join.
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The Judaica Shop at Temple Concord
Let us help you celebrate every day! Please come when the office is open, Tuesday through Friday 10:00 am-2:00 pm or by appointment. See what we have!
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Mitzvah of the Month
Brrr... it's getting cold outside and there are many children in our community who are without the clothes to keep warm.
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Please bring new hats, gloves, mittens, or socks for school children, many of whom lack these basic items during our cold winters. Your contributions, from toddler to adult size, will be distributed to needy children in local schools.
To participate in this important mitzvah, please deposit these items, ranging in size from toddler to adult, in the box in the Temple lobby.
We encourage you to help us seek new opportunities to engage in social justice activities and welcome your input regarding populations that could benefit from our help.
Please contact the Social Action Committee or the Temple Office to share your ideas for future activities.
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Pictures from our Recent Events
Purim Spiel put on by the Religious School with students.
Fruits and goodies at Tu BiShvat Seder
Purim Spiel put on by the Religious School with students.
Join us in person or online
You can participate in our weekly Shabbat services, holiday services, and adult learning events in person or remotely via Zoom or Facebook live.
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Zoom links found on our calendar.
Weekly Schedule
WEDNESDAY
5:30 PM Prayer Service (in person only)
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FRIDAY:
7:30 PM Shabbat Evening Service
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SATURDAY:
9:00 AM - 10:30 AM: Shabbat School
9:15 AM - 10:30 AM: Torah Study
10:30 AM: Shabbat morning Service (in person only)
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​​Shabbat evening Zoom
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