Saturday, September 4th

The evening will begin with a reading of Merle Feld's powerful and moving play, The Gates Are Closing, set in a synagogue on Yom Kippur.  The Temple Isaiah congregants will play the roles of ten very different characters who struggle to come to terms with questions of meaning, doubt, responsibility, forgiveness, regret, identity, loyalty, and betrayal.  The teenager, the social worker, the cantor, the medical student, the businessman, the husband and wife--each of us is sure to see ourselves in one of these memorable characters.

Play Reading, Discussion, and Refreshments:  8:30 pm
Selichot Service: 10:30 pm

Selichat is a special service traditionally held close to midnight on the Saturday before Rosh Hashanah.  After the play reading, discussion, and refreshments, we will begin with Havdalah, separating Shabbat from the rest of the week.  We will then have a special ritual of changing the Torah covers.  Finally, the Selichot prayers and poems will focus on taking steps to improve our behavior in the year to come.  Please rsvp to the Temple office by August 30th.