Temple Micah vs. Temple Sinai

[Anonymous]

Looking to join a temple in the next year. We have two kids, and one will be starting Sunday School. Any thoughts on one vs. the other? My experiences with Sinai have been that it's a pretty big place, so we are thinking that Micah might be a better fit. But Sinai is closer to our home. We are fed/non-profit lawyers, lefty politics, not very observant but like some substance to the sermons, approach, etc.

Thanks.

[Anonymous]

If you're just looking for the Sunday School part, maybe meet with both of the heads of school and see which you feel better about? A temple is only as big as you make it. If you want to make friends and be involved, Sinai will seem a lot smaller.

[Anonymous]

Don't join Sinai. Too much change in the clergy. 3 new Rabbis in like 5 years...that can't mean anything good. Why do they keep leaving?

[Anonymous]

Based on what you said, I think you might be a good fit for Micah. The sermons and adult education options tend toward the serious/substantive side and if that is something you are interested in, I would give it a try. (the Rabbi is out for the next few weeks, so you'll need to wait a little while to try it out). For example, I went last Friday to evening services and he gave a very interesting sermon about how troubled he is by the circumstances in Israel and the meeting he had with an American Palestinian leader to talk about these issues and plans to bring that leader to speak at the TEmple in the fall (lest I leave the wrong impression, the Rabbi is very pro-Israel).

We also like the smaller size.

[Anonymous]

We go to Micah. The rabbis, both Rabbi Zemel and Rabbi Lederman, are exceptional people. My DC was a recent bat mitzvah and I was extremely impressed with the process and the level of attention she received from the temple leadership. The Sunday/Tuesday school (known as Machon Micah) has been a bit of a mixed bag. However, they have just signed on a new head of school named Josh Beraha. He is extremely interested in meeting with both current and perspective families so I know he would be amenable to a meeting.

As a secondary consideration, I would ask where your children's friends attend. Both of my DC have had friends/classmates in their Sunday school class. It has been helpful for carpooling etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Don't join Sinai. Too much change in the clergy. 3 new Rabbis in like 5 years...that can't mean anything good. Why do they keep leaving?

The two senior rabbis had both been at the temple for over 25 years and they retired. Both are still members and do emeritus rabbinical services for the temple. So what it means is that just like the rest of the country, Sinai had two baby boomers who left at roughly the same time. The new Rabbis are wonderful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We go to Micah. The rabbis, both Rabbi Zemel and Rabbi Lederman, are exceptional people. My DC was a recent bat mitzvah and I was extremely impressed with the process and the level of attention she received from the temple leadership. The Sunday/Tuesday school (known as Machon Micah) has been a bit of a mixed bag. However, they have just signed on a new head of school named Josh Beraha. He is extremely interested in meeting with both current and perspective families so I know he would be amenable to a meeting.

As a secondary consideration, I would ask where your children's friends attend. Both of my DC have had friends/classmates in their Sunday school class. It has been helpful for carpooling etc.

Op here-- can you elaborate on why Micah's Sunday school was a mixed bag?

[Anonymous]

I know R' Zemel at Micah and he is a real nice guy. IIUC Micah is more traditional leaning for a Reform shul. I am Conservative, but if I were to join a Reform shul in the DC area Micah is where I would go. I do not know anything about Temple Sinai.

[Anonymous]

You should check out Adat Shalom in Bethesda. It's a newer, medium-sized shul. The rabbi is dynamic and very welcoming; the cantor is co-clergy and terrific. Services are innovative and moving. Torah school meets Saturday morning.

[Anonymous]

We go to micah. I find the Sunday school schedule absurd and annoying because it's not always on Sunday. We just need the simplicity of a regular schedule please!!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We go to micah. I find the Sunday school schedule absurd and annoying because it's not always on Sunday. We just need the simplicity of a regular schedule please!!!

What? Please elaborate!

[Anonymous]

I am a Micah member and like it a lot. There are quite a few fed/nonprofit lawyers here; you'd fit in just fine. Services are short and interesting, with nice music and a good oneg before (before is great! gives kids a snack on Friday nights so they're not hangry during services). There's a nice mix of ages and people come from different neighborhoods.

I don't have kids in Machon Micah but it does seem kind of complicated when I've been at temple to observe it. In an effort to make it flexible and allow kids and families a choice, it gets chaotic. My wife and I have actually talked about the fact that depending on what kind of kids we have when they reach school age, we could imagine changing congregations to a more traditional school model, especially closer to our home. With that said, I LOVE that they do skype Hebrew tutoring so kids can work at their own pace. I was super into Hebrew as a kid and loved any enrichment; it was frustrating to feel held back by other kids, and I'm sure they were frustrated if they needed a slower-paced class than what they got.

Rabbi Beraha is the new head of Machon Micah. Meeting with him and reading the Mahon Micah web page could help you figure out if it would be a good fit.

[Anonymous]

Another Micah member and one that has had kids go through Machon Micah already. As with most (probably all) Hebrew schools, some things are great, some less so. The use of Skype for Hebrew/tutoring is awesome! works really well and avoids the pain of having all the kids have to listen to each other read Hebrew, etc. Highly recommended for that alone. The classes are good for the most part but it depends a bit on the teachers and the make up of the class. Some are just better than others although I think the overall quality is good. The new education director rabbi will I am sure be making changes to shore up some things and I think he will be very good. The effort is constantly being made to find ways to engage the kids and make the school something other than a boring slog. Things don't always work but I appreciate the effort to make it something the kids will find less like "school" and not entirely dread. My kids especially liked that as older kids they got to choose what classes they went to on Tuesday so they had some control over what they were doing. We found the overall educational/growing up process in the synagogue to be very good and loved that by the time we got to the bat mitzvahs our kids knew the rabbis and cantors well and felt comfortable there. (Your experience will be much better if the whole family participates in community life rather than just dropping kids off for Machon).

I don't see the schedule as being a problem as PP indicated. There are some weeks where instead of having a Sunday morning session, the congregation has an educational event at another time (usually Saturday) that is part of the education program. Often this is tied to a holiday or a particular Shabbat service. The schedule for all of this is sent out at the beginning of the year and is always available on the web site so I don't see why it is such a big deal to see when there is a different schedule put it on the calendar and go if you can go. In any event, it is not so often that it was ever a big problem for us.

[Anonymous]

This conversation saddens me. A synagogue is not like a restaurant or gym or something that you can easily review on YELP (although some do). A synagogue is a constant work in progress, its strength determined by the participation and spirit of its members. It cannot be measured by the means we use to judge other institutions in our lives. There is something qualitatively different about a religious institution, about religion altogether. It should speak to the soul, to something more than the consumer. Each person experiences religious life in his or her own way. The experience is not one to be measured or assessed, but rather, continually reflected upon, over time. To speak of a synagogue or a synagogue's education program based on schedule misses the point. I understand that people wish to share information, but an online forum can in no way substitute for personal experience, for truly immersing yourself in a place, in a community.

A religious institution does not exist merely to serve, but to be built by its members, consonantly improved upon by caring individuals who concern themselves with the future of a just world.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This conversation saddens me. A synagogue is not like a restaurant or gym or something that you can easily review on YELP (although some do). A synagogue is a constant work in progress, its strength determined by the participation and spirit of its members. It cannot be measured by the means we use to judge other institutions in our lives. There is something qualitatively different about a religious institution, about religion altogether. It should speak to the soul, to something more than the consumer. Each person experiences religious life in his or her own way. The experience is not one to be measured or assessed, but rather, continually reflected upon, over time. To speak of a synagogue or a synagogue's education program based on schedule misses the point. I understand that people wish to share information, but an online forum can in no way substitute for personal experience, for truly immersing yourself in a place, in a community.

A religious institution does not exist merely to serve, but to be built by its members, consonantly improved upon by caring individuals who concern themselves with the future of a just world.

What you said in bold. Some people are only going to approach a shul in the way that saddens you. Some will do so at the start, but then will find the community brings out that spiritual thing in them. The way I would respond to them is not to make them feel guilty for where they are now, but to try to lead them to the place that is mostly to bring out that spritual thing in them.