Advance registration is required by Friday at noon on August 5 for those planning to participate in this year’s community Tisha B’Av observances.
Those interested can register for both observances online at https://forms.gle/DLHVctseR3dQtagv9 or by clicking on the registration link found at kcrabbi.org.
The observance will begin with an outdoor service on Saturday, Aug. 6, at 9:30 p.m. at Congregation Beth Shalom. If there is inclement weather, the service will be held indoors at the congregation. Outdoor seating will be available, and those who wish may bring blankets or lawn chairs.
There will be schmoozing and singing for those who wish to arrive at 9:15 p.m. A Tisha B’Av Maariv service and Havdalah will begin at 9:30 p.m. Participating clergy in this year’s Saturday evening observance are Hazzan Tahl Ben Yehuda (Congregation Beth Shalom), Rabbis Larry Karol, David Glickman (Beth Shalom), Scott White (retired from Ohev Sholom), Beryl Padorr (Beth Shalom) and Rachel Rothstein (The Temple, Congregation B’nai Jehudah).
The observance includes study and the chanting of Eicha with English summaries from the Book of Lamentations which detail the destruction of Jerusalem through song and poems. The service will include beautiful, mournful melodies, engaging teaching, and a time for communal reflection on both painful times of our past and hope for our future.
The community Tisha B’Av observance will continue on Sunday, Aug. 7, at 5:00 p.m. at Kehilath Israel Synagogue with the viewing of the movie, "Lonely Man of Faith,” a documentary about Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, a rabbinic scholar of Yeshiva University, will be shown. The film addresses Modern Orthodoxy and how Rabbi Soloveitchik’s frustration and conflicts as a man of faith influenced the balance of tradition and tension with change.
After the movie, Rabbi Moshe Grussgott (Kehilath Israel Synagogue) will moderate a panel discussion with Rabbis Doug Alpert (Congregation Kol Ami), Mark Glass (Congregation Beth Israel Abraham and Voliner), Stephanie Kramer (B’nai Jehudah) and Hazzan Ben Yehuda (Beth Shalom). Panelists will reflect on the movie and discuss how their respective denomination navigates change. The panel discussion will be moderated by Rabbi Grussgott.
A Mincha service led by Rabbi Grussgott will begin at 8 p.m. and will be followed by a 10-minute Torah lesson and Maariv service. Conclusion of the fast will take place at 8:55 p.m. after which there will be a light breaking of the fast. Rabbi Grussgott is serving as the rabbinic coordinator for this program.
Those wanting more information can visit kcrabbi.org or contact Annette Fish, Rabbinical Association Administrator/Program Director, at or 913-327-8226.
