The Jewish community will prepare for the approaching High Holy Days at the annual Selichot program and service on August 28, hosted at Congregation Beth Torah. There will be opportunities for multi-access participation, both in person and virtual. There will be Havdalah and then the program will begin at 9:00 p.m.
“Looking for God in all the Right Places” will be the topic of a virtual presentation presented by Rabbi Jeffrey Salkin. Rabbi Salkin serves as the senior rabbi at Temple Israel of West Palm Beach. He was the prestigious Chautauqua Society scholar in June of 2020.
Rabbi Salkin has been cited in The New York Times, The New Republic, and USA Today. He has appeared on many television and radio programs, and has spoken in more than a hundred communities, including in Israel, Great Britain, Cuba, and Poland.
His books, several of which have won national awards, have dealt with such subjects as the spirituality of career, masculinity, Israel, righteous gentiles, and Jewish history.
His new book, “The JPS B’nai Mitzvah Torah Commentary,” is the first in-depth introduction to Torah and prophets for young people and their families.
Rabbi Salkin’s blog, “Martini Judaism – for those who want to be shaken and stirred,” won the 2015 Religion Communicators Council Wilbur Award for Faith-based Blogs. His essays have appeared in numerous periodicals, including The Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Commentary, Forward, JTA, Tablet, Moment, The Jewish Week and Readers Digest.
A native of New York, Rabbi Salkin was ordained at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New York in 1981. He was one of the first Jews to earn the Doctor of Ministry degree from Princeton Theological Seminary in 1991. Rabbi Salkin has served on the boards of many national and local Jewish organizations and has been an activist for Israel and Zionism.
The Selichot service begins at 10:10 p.m. and is designed to help worshipers begin to spiritually prepare for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. The late hour and the themes articulated in the liturgy will prepare attendees for the Days of Awe and set the tone for the High Holy Days. The service will be led by area clergy and a musical leadership team of soloists from congregations across the community.
Selichot services also take place Sunday at 9:00 a.m. at Kehilath Israel, and the Selichot prayers will be said in the morning service at BIAV at 8 a.m.
Visit http://www.kcrabbi.org for information and the link to advance registration which is required. Contact Annette Fish, Rabbinical Association administrator, or 913-327-8226. The Rabbinical Association of Greater Kansas City sponsors the Selichot program in collaboration with area congregations and generous support from Jewish Federation of Greater Kansas City.
