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High Holy Days More than just Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, the Jewish High Holy Days are a period of time encompassing a number of holidays and ceremonies, which, taken together, form a season of reflection, contemplation, mourning, atonement and redemption. A brief summary of each opportunity for this holiday season to be fulfilling and meaningful for all members follows.
We invite unaffiliated Jews of the community to share the High Holy Days with us. Tickets are available for $250 per adult, which includes all of the Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur services held at Flint Center at DeAnza College in Cupertino. All other services below are held at Beth Am and are free to the public, as are the Children's Services on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur afternoons at Flint Center. Please send checks to Congregation Beth Am, and be sure to give us your address so that we can send you your tickets. Click here for a TICKET ORDER FORM
Carpooling This year, Beth Am and the Beth Am Green Team would like to encourage members of the Congregation to carpool to Services to save gas, reduce traffic and spend more time together. We've included on the High Holidays webpage a simple rideshare program that lets you enter your name, location and contact info and a note specifying whether or not you'd like to offer a ride or need one, and for which service. We invite you to use this simple application for High Holidays to reduce the environmental impact of our actions and strengthen our community. Directions:
* This Rideshare program is offered at no charge by Goose Networks, a Seattle-based startup that's competing in this year's Clean Tech Open, a cleantech business plan competition for which several Beth Am congregants serve as volunteers. High Holy Day Frequently Asked Questions
Flint Center Directions/Parking Instructions Shabbat Shuvah - October 3 at Beth Am Map to Flint Center at De Anza College; Map of DeAnza College The Flint Center is located on the De Anza College campus, approximately 15 minutes by car from Beth Am. Parking Tickets for Flint Center Garage Your yellow parking ticket allows you to park in the Flint Center parking garage without a fee. Hang your parking ticket from your rearview window. If you need a ride to High Holy Day services, call the Synagogue Office and let us know which service(s), so we can help to arrange this. Handicapped Access: Any person requiring closer parking may request a BLUE handicapped parking ticket in advance. If you already possess a State handicapped tag, you may use that. The parking attendants will direct you to a reserved area. Wheelchairs will be available for anyone needing extra assistance getting from the car into Flint Center . Our youth group will be standing by and offering this wonderful service. No reservations are needed for this. Special Seating: Seating will be reserved for those requiring wheelchairs, walkers, casts, crutches and the like. Reservations MUST be made in advance – and by September 20 at the latest. Hearing Devices: Hearing devices are available at the Flint Center Box Office. Fasting: Although it is customary for healthy adults to fast on Yom Kippur, children under the age of B’nai mitzvah as well as those whose health depends upon medicine which must be taken with food, the sick, the elderly and pregnant or nursing women are exempted from the fast. In fact, it is forbidden for them to fast and they are required to eat. Babysitting will be provided by Babysitters Unlimited. Beth Am educators, staff and volunteers will provide Jewish content through age-appropriate activities. Babysitting is located at Flint Center--enter behind the Flint stage, then follow posted signs.
Notes :
Beth Am provides educational programs for a variety of age groups. Reservations for all programs are required. Programs for ages 2 -4 yrs are in Flint Center, grades K-5 are in the Campus Center, and the Teen Service is at Flint Center Patio. Youth Education Program Reservation Form Early Childhoold (2 -4 yrs), K - 2nd Grade and 3rd - 5th Grade Programs - Beth Am educators, staff and volunteers will lead these interactive and educational programs on both Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. Sign-in is from 9:00 – 9:30 am. Reservations must be made for these programs by Wednesday, September 24 . Registration is FREE. The 2-4 yr old program is limited to the first 17 reservations, with babysitting available if the program fills. Drop-ins will NOT be admitted due to space constraints. Children must be picked up immediately after the main Flint service concludes. 6th - 12th Grade Teen Program - 9:30 – 11:30 a.m. on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, Flint Center Patio, No reservations required. Teens should meet in the Flint Center patio at 9:30 am on the mornings of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. There will be an interactive and musical service as well as activities, led by members of the BATY board. On Rosh Hashanah, this service will parallel the main service and teens may be picked up afterwards. On Yom Kippur, prior to the end of the main service, teens will be escorted to a section reserved for them in the balcony. These programs provided a unique opportunity for our 7th-12th graders to reflect upon the big questions of the High Holy Day season with their rabbis and peers in a more relaxed, intimate environment. Participants will have the opportunity to discuss the core themes of the High Holy Days, ask questions, reflect on the year that has passed, and worship in a "teen friendly" style and setting. Please encourage your teenager to join us for these special services. We look forward to celebrating these Yamim Noraim -Awesome Days - with you and your family. BATY/BAJY Rosh Hashanah Pool Party for 6th - 12th Graders Tuesday, September 30, 1:00 pm (after services - 4:00 pm Join other Beth Am teens after Rosh Hashanah services for food and fun by the pool. What a great way to start a sweet new year! For more information, contact Sarah Lauing, or (650 493-4665. At all services we will be using the Union Prayer Book, Gates of Repentance. We have a VERY limited supply on hand to lend out, so please bring your own copy. Order from from bob and bob at (650) 947-7010 (4500 El Camino Real in Los Altos ) for $22 plus tax. If you want to prepay your order and pick up your book at Flint Center immediately preceding services, the deadline for ordering at bob & bob is Monday, September 22. You can also order from Amazon.com (requires a 1-month lead time).
Selichot ("Prayers of Forgiveness") is a meaningful evening of reflection and worship that helps prepare for the Days of Awe. This year our Selichot program will begin at 7:30 pm with a screening of The Straight Story, directed by David Lynch and starring veteran character actor Richard Farnsworth, who was nominated for an Oscar for his remarkable performance in this film. The Straight Story is a quietly old-fashioned masterpiece -- a feel-good, inspiring celebration of family loyalty, kindness to strangers, the ending of old quarrels, dignity in the face of weakness and frailty, determination, and the wisdom that comes with advanced years. Sweetly gentle, luminously photographed, touchingly homespun and heartwarming, this simple tale is based on a real-life incident in the life of Alvin Straight, a 73 year old resident of Laurens , Iowa . Following the film, Rabbi Marder will lead a discussion about how the film’s themes relate to the High Holy Days. Then we'll join in a short Selichot service, 9:30 - 10:30 in the Sanctuary, featuring beautiful music and words of reflection on these Days of Awe.
Erev Rosh Hashanah services begin Monday evening , September 29 at 8:00 p.m. at Flint Center, DeAnza College. There will be a congregational Oneg Shabbat immediately following the service.
Morning services begin at 9:30 at Flint Center, with a parallel Teen Program (see below). The morning service is followed by a brown bag picnic at the DeAnza plaza fountain. This is a wonderful way for all families to socialize after services. After lunch, The Young Family Service, for those with young children (through 3rd grade) can attend a special service structured for their needs at 1:30 p.m. at the Flint Center. At 3:45 p.m. on Rosh Hashanah, the Beth Am community will observe Tashlikh (meaning "you will cast" in Hebrew) at Baylands Athletic Center in Palo Alto. For Centuries, Jews have gone on Rosh Hashanah to the nearest body of free-flowing water and thrown in bread crumbs, symbolically casting away sins of the past year. Tashlikh - Directions to Baylands Athletic Center - Tuesday, September 30, 3:45 pm On Rosh Hashanah afternoon, it is customary to go to a flowing body of water and symbolically cast off our sins as we cast bread crumbs into the water. Beth Am will observe Tashlikh on Tuesday, September 30 at 3:45 p.m. at the Baylands Athletic Center. Directions: From 101, take Embarcadero Road exit. Turn left on East Bayshore Road. Turn right on Pulgas Ave. Turn right on O'Connor and drive until it dead ends at the location. Parking is on the street. Click here for additional information, directions and a map for Tashlikh to participate in this uplifting and refreshing tradition.  Celebrate the New Year in a New Way!Second Day of Rosh Hashanah Outdoors Service, study and other fun activities suitable for all ages!
Bring a picnic lunch for yourself, a dessert to share, and a lawn chair or blanket. Directions:
Friday, October 3, Dedication of New Memorial Plaques, 6:15 pm, Congregation Beth Am Sanctuary Join us in our beautiful Outdoor Chapel at the conclusion of our 6:15 pm service on Friday, October 3, 2008, as we dedicate the plaques that have been added to the wall since our 2007 Shabbat Shuvah service. We will read the names of all of those who have been memorialized during the past year. This is always a moving occasion and also provides a wonderful opportunity to worship at Beth Am during the High Holy Day season. Erev Yom Kippur, Wednesday, Oct. 8, 8:00 pm, Kil Nidre Service The Erev Yom Kippur service, Kol Nidre, begins at 8:00 p.m., Wednesday, October 8, at Flint Center. The ancient music for this service is both haunting and beautiful which, combined with the fact that, traditionally, it is the only evening service of the year at which a tallit is worn, makes this a solemn and special occasion. Yom Kippur, Thursday, October 9, 9:30 am, Morning Service The following morning, services begin at 9:30 a.m. at Flint Center, with a parallel Teen Program. Yom Kippur Afternoon Study Sessions, 12:30 - 2:45 pm For a list of High Holy Day seminar topics, click HERE. Continuing the Beth Am tradition, there will be a series of congregant-facilitated workshops on Yom Kippur afternoon at Flint Center. Please join us in these engaging, participatory discussions. Take the opportunity to reflect on ethical issues and Jewish values with fellow congregants. Enjoy the chance to share in the wisdom and expertise of other Beth Am members. Young Family Service, 1:30 pm Yom Kippur Music & Meditation, 2:45 pm A quiet interlude of music and meditation begins at 2:45 p.m. Yom Kippur Afternoon Service, 3:30 pm Yizkor & Neilah, 5:00 pm The afternoon service begins at 3:30 at Flint Center, followed by Yizkor at approximately 5:00, and then the concluding Neilah service. The end of the service is marked by a final shofar blast, which provides a definitive end to the day and to the Days of Awe. If you own a shofar please bring it to Neilah for the final tekiah gedolah (shofar blast). All are invited to join the congregational break fast, immediately following services, at Flint Center.
As always, these services (1:30 pm) do not require tickets and are open to all. Note that at the Rosh Hashanah Young Family Service we will have a special blessing for all babies born this past year. On Rosh Hashanah, we encourage you to bring a picnic lunch and join the Beth Am community outside by the fountain for lunch between the main service and this service. On Yom Kippur, we understand that children need to be fed, so feel free to pack a lunch for them to eat by the fountain. Beth Am Community Sukkah - Let's Build & Decorate Our Sukkah Together Build and Decorate the Beth Am Sukkah with Beth Am Men and Beth Am Women The Beth Am community comes together to build our congregation's sukkah and prepare the decorations to beautify it. To Build: Sunday, October 12, 12-3 pm Needed: at least 10 Men, Power drill with Phillips head screw driver attachment, Pot Luck (Drinks and snacks). Contact Amir Matityahu. To Decorate: Sunday, October 12, 12-5 Calling for creative hands of all ages to build and make decorations for the Beth Am sukkah. We will create decorations from noon to 3:30 p.m. and then decorate once the sukkah is built. Bring old New Year's cards, greenery and decorations. Information: Deb Radin To Celebrate: First Night of Sukkot - Local Honey and Wine Tasting in the Sukkah October 13, 6:00-7:30 pm, Beth Am Sukkah Come celebrate the first night of Sukkot with your Beth Am community. Bring your own dinner to enjoy in the Sukkah and continue enjoying the sweetness of the New Year with a variety of local honeys, new fruits of the season and hand-selected Israeli wines. What a wonderful, sweet way to bring in this beautiful holiday. Save Sunday, October 26, 1:00-3:00 pm for the Sukkah Take Down Needed: at least 10 Men, Power drill with Phillips head screw driver attachment, Pot Luck (Drinks and snacks). Contact Amir Matityahu. Annual Sukkot Open Homes - Celebrate Sukkot With your Friends and Neighbors Celebrate Sukkot with friends and neighbors! Last year hundres of people celebrated Sukkot with new and old Beth Am friends and neighbors. Come shake the etrog and wave the lulav! Join the fun with your Beth Am community to schmooze, eat, relax and meet new friends in sukkot at members' homes. Last year's sukkah goers really enjoyed our Sukkot Open Homes: I loved seeing the unique and creative sukkahs... Please consider volunteering to host or sponsor a gathering! To attend, please RSVP, and we’ll match you up with a Sukkot gathering in your neighborhood. For information or to volunteer, call or e-mail: Lori Shaffer or Diana Friedman . The following websites will help you learn more about how you can make Sukkot meaningful, inspiring and fun! Sukkah kits for sale Simchat Torah Come share in Simchat Torah, the Joy of Torah, as we complete our annual reading of the Torah and immediately begin reading our story anew! Hear the end of D’varim (Deuteronomy) and the beginning of B’reishit (Genesis) as the cycle continues, just as it has for generations before us. The evening has something for everyone with the consecration of our newest students as they formally begin their Jewish learning, study opportunities for adults with Rabbi Marder, and a song session for all the kids. After the service, we will move to the social hall for live music and dancing with the Torah.
We will consecrate our kindergarteners and other students new to Beth Am during our Simchat Torah service. For families of a kindergartener who will participate in consecration: Please bring a picnic dinner to eat in the Sukkah at 5:15 p.m. If you would like your child to participate in consecration, please R.S.V.P. to Linda King in the Beth Am office by Tuesday, October 7. Festival/Yizkor Service and Brunch--Sh'mini Atzeret, On Sh'mini Atzeret, the concluding day of the festival of Sukkot, it is customary to recite the yizkor (memorial prayers) in remembrance of our loved ones. At the conclusion of this service a light brunch will be served. We will gather in community to create together a peaceful time of prayer, song and remembrance as we mark the festival of Sh’mini Atzeret, the holiday that follows immediately after the seventh day of Sukkot. Literally, Sh’mini Atzeret means “the eighth [day] of assembly.” The Torah designates this day as one of solemn assembly and prohibits labor. As the first day of Sukkot is a yom tov (full holiday), so also its conclusion is a yom tov, while the days in between are known as intermediate festival days (chol ha-mo'ed). In
The service begins at 9:30 a.m. in the Beit Kehillah and is followed by a light brunch. Click here for detailed instructions on each of the different kinds of honors. Click here for a Flint Center floor plan for those carrying the torah in the procession. Click here if you are being called up for an aliyah (to bless the torah). Click here for the audio Blessing for Before Reading from the Torah. Click here for the audio Blessing for After Reading from the Torah. Click here if you are reciting the HaMotzi (blessing of the bread).
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