Baby naming
A blessing for a new baby during a Shabbat service, with the family called up and a kiddush afterwards if they wish.
Start byCalling the office
Shabbat comes in at sunset, and the doors open for it
Beth Shalom Community Synagogue holds services on Friday evening, Saturday morning and two weekday mornings, keeps the festivals of the Jewish year together and teaches Hebrew to children and adults. Visitors of any background are welcome; let the office know when you would like to come and the welcome team will look out for you.
Fridayevening and Saturday morning services
SundayHebrew school for ages 5 to 12
Any backgroundwelcome to visit
Services: how a winter week looks
The times below show the shape of the week and are not this week's times. Shabbat begins at sunset on Friday and ends after nightfall on Saturday, so the Friday and Saturday evening times move every week and shift by hours between winter and summer. Please check the sheet for the current week, pinned in the entrance and handed out at the Saturday kiddush, before you set off.
| Service | Day | Example time |
|---|---|---|
| Candle lighting | Friday | 15:58 |
| Friday evening service, Kabbalat Shabbat | Friday | 16:10 |
| Shabbat morning service | Saturday | 09:30 |
| Children's service | Saturday | 10:45 |
| Kiddush in the hall | Saturday, after the service | About 12:15 |
| Havdalah, as Shabbat ends | Saturday | 17:08 |
| Weekday morning service | Monday and Thursday | 07:15 |
| Sunday morning service | Sunday | 08:30 |
Festival services follow their own timetable, which goes on the weekly sheet two weeks ahead. On a summer Friday the evening service is held earlier than sunset, at a time printed on the sheet.
Coming to a service for the first time
Most people dress as they would for a family occasion, and covering shoulders and knees is appreciated. Men are asked to cover their heads in the sanctuary, and plain kippot wait in a basket by the door for anyone who would like one. Shoes stay on. A prayer book with a translation beside the Hebrew is handed to you at the entrance, and the page numbers are called out as the service goes along, so nobody needs to follow every word.
On Shabbat and festivals phones stay switched off and no photographs are taken, which is a tradition of those days rather than a rule for visitors alone. On weekdays, ask the welcome team before taking any pictures inside. Please send the form below before your first visit so someone can meet you at the door; for questions about security arrangements, please speak to the welcome team.
- Kippot to borrow by the door
- Prayer books with a translation
- A level entrance and a hearing loop
Marking the moments of a life
The rabbi and the office help families plan each occasion in good time. Every family is different, so the first step is always a conversation.
Bar and bat mitzvah
About a year of preparation in a small class and with a tutor, leading up to the young person's part in a Shabbat service.
BeginsAround age 11 or 12
Weddings
A ceremony under the chuppah in the sanctuary or the garden, prepared with the rabbi over several meetings.
BookA year or more ahead
Yahrzeit and memorial
Names read on the anniversary of a death, and a memorial plaque in the corridor if the family would like one.
Tell usA week before
Funerals and shiva
Help arranging the funeral quickly, and volunteers who bring meals and lead prayers at home during the week of mourning.
CallThe main number, any day
Learning about Judaism
Conversations with the rabbi for anyone exploring Jewish life, joining a Jewish family or returning after years away.
AskThe office
A religious wedding is not always a legal marriage as well; marriage law varies by country, and couples confirm with their registrar what the law where they live requires.
Learning for every age
Classes run in term time. Groups stay small, and adult courses are open to members and neighbours alike.
Sunday Hebrew school
Reading Hebrew, the festivals, stories and songs for ages 5 to 12, in classes by age.
Sunday09:30 to 12:30
Bar and bat mitzvah class
A weekly group for ages 11 to 13 on the meaning of the day, alongside individual tutoring.
Wednesday17:00 to 18:00
Hebrew from the first letter
An adult class in reading the prayer book, starting with the alphabet and the vowel signs.
Tuesday19:30 to 21:00
Torah study
An informal look at the week's reading over coffee, after the Saturday kiddush.
SaturdayAbout 13:00
Toddler Shabbat
Songs, stories and challah for children under five with their grown ups.
Friday10:00 to 11:00
An evening course on Jewish life
Ten evenings on the year, the home and the synagogue, with time for every question.
Thursday19:30, twice a year
Hebrew school asks $30 a month for each child and adult courses $6 a session towards costs; nobody is kept away by cost, and a word with the office is enough. Teachers and tutors who work with children are vetted as the law in this country asks.
The hall and rooms for a simcha
Members have first choice of dates, and the rooms are also hired to neighbours for gatherings in keeping with the synagogue.
Community hall
a day, from$480
For a kiddush after a bar or bat mitzvah, an engagement party or a family celebration.
- Tables, chairs and linen
- A stage and a sound system
- Caretaker on site
Garden and sukkah
an afternoon, from$220
A walled lawn for a summer gathering, with the sukkah standing in it during the autumn festival.
- Shade and benches
- Access to the hall toilets
Meeting room
an hour, from$25
A quiet room for a study group, a committee or a family meeting before a wedding.
- Tea and coffee
- Level access
The kitchen is kept kosher, so food for events is prepared there or brought by a caterer the office can suggest. Rooms are not hired out for parties on Shabbat or on festival days.
Through the Jewish year
The festivals bring the whole community together, and many of the gatherings welcome neighbours too.
- Rosh Hashanah and the shofar
- Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement
- Meals in the garden sukkah
- Dancing with the scrolls on Simchat Torah
- Hanukkah candles each evening
- Purim in costume
- A community seder at Passover
- A Shavuot evening of study
Festival dates follow the Hebrew calendar, which keeps time by the moon and adds a leap month some years, so each festival lands on a different civil date every year. Seats for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are arranged through the office in late summer, and visitors who would like to come are asked to get in touch first.
Inside Beth Shalom
Pictures taken on weekdays, when no service was running.
Words from visitors and members (example reviews)
Thirty two pupils came for a religious studies visit. The guide opened the ark, explained the scroll and the reading desk, and took every question, even the awkward ones.
A first Friday evening after moving to the area, with a seat found, the page numbers whispered across and an invitation to the Saturday kiddush before the end of the service.
The bar mitzvah year was calm from start to finish. The tutor knew when to push and when to slow down, and the office answered every question about the hall within a day.
What visitors usually ask first
Do visitors need to be Jewish to come to a service?
No. People of every faith and none are welcome, whether alone, with friends or as a group. Please send the form or call before your first visit so the welcome team knows to expect you.
What should visitors wear?
Clothes you would wear to a family occasion, with shoulders and knees covered. Men are asked to cover their heads in the sanctuary, and kippot can be borrowed at the door. Shoes stay on.
Can visitors take photographs?
Not on Shabbat or festivals, when phones and cameras are put away by tradition. On weekdays, ask the welcome team first, and please never photograph children without their parents' agreement.
Why do the Friday times move every week?
Shabbat starts at sunset on Friday and ends after nightfall on Saturday, and sunset moves through the year. The weekly sheet in the entrance gives the exact times for the coming Shabbat.
How does a family begin planning a bar or bat mitzvah?
Call the office about two years ahead to choose a Shabbat. Preparation starts about a year before, with the weekly class and a tutor, and the rabbi meets the family along the way.
How is the synagogue paid for?
By members' yearly contributions and by donations. Contributions are set so that nobody is kept away by cost, and the accounts are presented at the yearly members' meeting. Nobody is asked to give in order to attend, visit or learn.
Arrange a visit or ask about an occasion
Give a date, a rough head count and the reason for getting in touch. The office replies within three working days to confirm, suggest another date, or explain when a day falls on a festival.
- A guide for every school or group visit
- Life cycle events planned with the rabbi
- No charge to visit
Reaching the office
The office answers the phone in its hours and reads emails every weekday.
The synagogue office
A short walk from the high street, beside the public gardens, with cycle racks at the side gate
When the office is open
| Office, Monday to Thursday | 09:30 to 15:30 |
| Office, Friday | 09:30 to 12:30 |
| Shabbat and festivals | Services only, office closed |
| Sunday | Hebrew school, 09:30 to 12:30 |
Supporting the synagogue
Beth Shalom runs on members' yearly contributions and on donations from people who care for it. Gifts can be made through the office, and the accounts are presented every year at the members' meeting for anyone to question.