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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:Ilya
Welfeld
Welfeld Public Relations Consulting, L.L.C.
201.439.1010
ilya@welfeldpr.com
YEAR AFTER YEAR,
SHABBAT ACROSS AMERICA/CANADA
REACHES OUT TO NORTH AMERICAN JEWS
Shabbat Across America/Canada
2004
NEW YORK, February 21,
2004 The National Jewish Outreach Program (NJOP) announced today
the launch of its 2004 Shabbat Across America/Canada (SAA/C) program,
scheduled for the evening of Friday, March 12th. SAA/C is a continent-wide
program dedicated to providing a Shabbat (Sabbath) experience to
Jews across North America. After 7 years, NJOP's Shabbat awareness
campaign is still going strong, and, this year, over 600 synagogues
and Jewish centers (expecting approximately 60,000 participants)
will join together for the 8th Annual Shabbat Across America/Canada.
To explain the continuing appeal of SAA/C, one need only look to
those synagogues which have continued the program year after year.
"We view SAA/C as an opportunity to reach out to the unaffiliated,"
noted Rabbi Ross Singer of Shaaray Tefilah in Vancouver, B.C. For
Rabbi Singer's traditional congregation, SAA/C is a not only an
opportunity to reach out to those around them, but also to reach
within themselves and grow. While the number of participants has
increased each year, Rabbi Singer sees the fact that through the
SAA/C experience "people have learned how to have a meaningful
Friday night" as the most significant aspect of the program.
Congregation Adath Yeshurun in Manchester, N.H., has also found
SAA/C to be a particularly effective "jumping off" point
for spiritual growth. Keeping in mind the Talmudic tradition that
if all the Jews observed only two Sabbaths in a row the Messiah
would come, Congregation Adath Yeshurun brought SAA/C to Manchester,
hoping to do their part to hasten the ultimate redemption.
Inspired by SAA/C's interactive "Learning Service" material,
the synagogue has begun to conduct a more "user-friendly"
service on a regular basis. By making the services more "haymish"
(homey), the congregants are able to make it their own. This change,
brought about by SAA/C, has brought about an increase in membership
and congregational participation.
While an increase in membership is one of the desired effects of
SAA/C, the program has also become a highlight of many synagogues'
social calendars. Congregation Mikveh Israel in Philadelphia, Pa.,
continues to run SAA/C because, "We get a very positive response.
People, particularly singles, see it as a wonderful opportunity
to meet new people."
Singles and young couples are often drawn to SAA/C, especially in
New York City, which has the world's most active Jewish "scene."
For outreach-focused synagogues like the Upper East Side's Kehilath
Jeshurun (KJ), the young crowd's enthusiasm for SAA/C is the engine
behind its continued success. KJ runs SAA/C because people who have
never before enjoyed a Shabbat program participate thanks to the
ubiquitous advertising. The entire community of KJ is dedicated
to the long term goal of bringing more knowledge to Jews who have
not had the opportunity to learn about their history and heritage.
Other synagogues choose to participate in SAA/C in order to be part
of something larger, something continental. Indeed, whether this
is the first year or the eighth year, synagogues and locations from
Bangor, Maine, to San Jose, California, are attracted by the broad
inclusiveness and vast geographic scope of the program.
"By participating in SAA/C, we feel that we are not isolated,
we are not alone. We are doing what hundreds of other synagogues
are doing - welcoming people into our synagogue," remarked
Rabbi Daniel Friedman of Beth Israel Synagogue in Edmonton, Alberta,
Canada. As part of SAA/C, they will join hundreds of synagogues
across North America in opening their doors to invite unaffiliated
and marginally affiliated Jews to experience a traditional Friday
night Shabbat service, a festive meal, and singing and dancing with
family and friends.
A full list of U.S. and Canadian locations that will be hosting
SAA/C is posted on NJOP's Web site at www.njop.org. SAA/C is based
on NJOP's popular and memorable Turn Friday Night Into Shabbat program,
which, since 1987, has introduced more than 485,000 North American
Jews to the beauty of the weekly Shabbat practice.
National Jewish Outreach Program (NJOP) was established in 1987
by Rabbi Ephraim Buchwald, and has become one of the world's largest
and most successful Jewish outreach organizations. Offering free
programs such as Read Hebrew America/Canada and Shabbat Across America/Canada,
NJOP has successfully reached more that 730,000 North American Jews
and engaged them in Jewish life. To register for SAA/C, call NJOP
toll-free at 888-SHABBAT, or visit its web site at www.njop.org
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