All Kadima-niks (6th – 8th graders) are invited to a special Sukkot program in Rabbi Sam's sukkah! Come together to make your own sushi and play some games with friends. The cost to participate is $10 per participant. The deadline to register is Wednesday, September 22, so we can ensure there's enough supplies and food.
RegisterSelichot – Saturday, September 17 | ||
7:15 p.m | Mincha/Ma’ariv/Havdallah Service | Hybrid: Ellman Chapel and Virtual (Zoom) |
8:10 p.m. | Selichot Service | |
Erev Rosh Hashanah – Sunday, September 25 | ||
9–10:30 a.m. | Morning Minyan | Virtual (Zoom) |
6:00 p.m. | Mincha/Ma’ariv Service | Hybrid: Srochi Auditorium and Virtual (Zoom) |
7:12 p.m. | Candle Lighting | |
Rosh Hashanah Day 1 – Monday, September 26 | ||
8–9:00 a.m. | Coffee and Schmooze Co-sponsored by Sisterhood | In-Person: Garden |
8:00 a.m.–12:30 p.m. | Rosh Hashanah Service | Hybrid: Srochi Auditorium and Virtual (Zoom and Live Stream) |
9–10:00 a.m. | Family Service | In-Person: Outdoor Tent |
9:30–10:30 a.m. | Torah Study Led by Dr. Andrew Zangwill “Happy Birthday World!”: After each Rosh Hashanah shofar blast, we chant a short poem which begins “hayom harat olam,” a phrase often translated as “today the world was born.” This session examines this (and other) translations of ”hayom harat olam” and teases out their meaning for us today. Andy Zangwill is a native of Pittsburgh and is somehow related to the British Zionist Israel Zangwill. He has taught physics at Georgia Tech since 1985 and has helped administer the AA Torah Study since 2000. | Hybrid: Cavalier Room and Virtual (Zoom) |
10:00 a.m.–End of RH Service | Children’s Programming (0–5th Grade) | In-Person: Check-In at Ahava ELC |
12:30–1:00 p.m. | Oneg and Light Kiddush | In-Person: Garden |
6–7:00 p.m. | Mincha/Ma’ariv Service | Hybrid: Srochi Auditorium and Virtual (Zoom and Live Stream) |
7:54 p.m. | Candle Lighting | |
Rosh Hashanah Day 2 – Tuesday, September 27 | ||
8–9:00 a.m. | Coffee and Schmooze | In-Person: Garden |
8:00 a.m.–12:30 p.m. | Rosh Hashanah Service | Hybrid: Srochi Auditorium and Virtual (Zoom and Live Stream) |
9:00 a.m.–End of RH Service | Children’s Programming (0–5th Grade) | In-Person: Check-In at Ahava ELC |
9:30 a.m. | Torah Study Led by Dr. Paul Feldman “From Yom Teruah to Rosh Hashanah – A Rabbinic Journey”: The torah instructs us that, on the first day of the seventh month, there should be “teruah.” From that, it becomes a New Year where, hopefully, our Father, our King, inscribes us in the book of life. Let’s explore the rabbinic mindset that defines us as Jews. Paul Feldman has attended AA’s Shabbat Torah Study religiously for over 20 years. His interests include the historical aspects of Tanakh and the intellectual history of b’nai Yisrael through the ages. | Hybrid: Paradies Hall and Virtual (Zoom) |
12:30 p.m. | Tashlich | In-Person: Outdoor Tent |
7:30 p.m. | Mincha/Ma’ariv/Havdallah Service | Hybrid: Srochi Auditorium and Virtual (Zoom and Live Stream) |
Aseret Y’mei Teshuva (Ten Days of Repentance) – Sunday, October 2 | ||
9–10:30 a.m. | Morning Minyan | Virtual (Zoom) |
11:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m. | Family Taslich and Picnic with Shofar Blowing | In-Person: Morgan Falls Overlook Park |
2–4:00 p.m. | Reverse Tashlich | In-Person: Peachtree Creek Greenway |
6–7:00 p.m. | Evening Minyan | Virtual (Zoom) |
Kol Nidre – Tuesday, October 4 | ||
5–5:30 pm | Family Service | Hybrid: Breezeway and Virtual (Zoom and Live Stream) |
5:30–6:15 p.m. | Vegan Kapparot Yom Kippur challenges us to cleanse our souls from missteps over the past year. Our tradition seeks to imbue the ethereal nature of our good and evil, right a wrong into an object that can be consumed, cast out, or flung away. Kapparot seeks to take that which is weighing us down and swing it over our heads, casting it far away from us. We have reclaimed this medieval ritual for our modern spiritual life, replacing the killing of a chicken with the righteous act of tzedakah. Join Rabbi Rosenthal in the garden as we will recite our prayers, imbue a bag of money with our regrets for the past year, and swing it over our heads, thereby turning our shortcomings into acts of loving kindness to help others. Farmer Joe and his chicken will be on site… for petting only. | In-Person: Garden |
6:10 p.m. | Mincha Service | Hybrid: Srochi Auditorium and Virtual (Zoom and Live Stream) |
6:30 p.m. | Kol Nidre Service | |
7:00 p.m. | Ma’ariv Service | |
Yom Kippur – Wednesday, October 5 | ||
8:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. | Yom Kippur and Yizkor Services | Hybrid: Srochi Auditorium and Virtual (Zoom and Live Stream) |
9–10:00 a.m. | Family Service | In-Person: Outdoor Tent |
9:30–10:30 a.m. | Torah Study Led by Judy Marx “Everything Old is New Again”: This session explores how understanding our history through Yom Kippur’s Torah reading and liturgy lead us to repentance and forgiveness. Judy Marx is a long-time Jewish community professional. She was the Atlanta Director of the American Jewish Committee for twelve years and is currently with the Jewish Women’s Fund of Atlanta. In her free time she consults with interfaith organizations and prepares for Torah Study at AA. | Hybrid: Cavalier Room and Virtual (Zoom) |
10:00 a.m.–End of YK Service | Children’s Programming (0–5th Grade) | In-Person: Check-In at Ahava ELC |
2:30–4:00 p.m. | Beit Midrash (Study Hall) Led by Dr. Dennis Gilbride “The Golden Calf, Consuming Fire, Atonement, and Forgiveness”: This session focuses on two relatively well known, but under-studied stories in the Torah: the Golden Calf and the death of Aaron’s sons, Nadav and Avihu. By exploring midrashim and ideas that tie these two episodes together, we will provide an interesting and provocative understanding of the Jewish approach to atonement, forgiveness, and connection to G-d. Dennis Gilbride has been a professor for 32 years, first at Syracuse University and, for the last ten years, at Georgia State University in its Department of Counseling and Psychological Services. He began his career at Drake University in Des Moines Iowa where he and his family were congregants of Neil Sandler, AA’s Rabbi Emeritus. | Hybrid: Srochi Auditorium and Virtual (Zoom) |
4–6:30 p.m. | Chanting with SunMoonPie | Hybrid: Paradies Hall and Virtual (Zoom) |
5:30 p.m. | Mincha Service | Hybrid: Srochi Auditorium and Virtual (Zoom and Live Stream) |
6:30 p.m. | Neilah Service | |
7:41 p.m. | Ma’ariv/Havdallah and Final Shofar Blast | |
Many of our committees and initiatives have agreed to host and share their beautiful sukkot around Atlanta with all of us. Everybody, whether assembling a welcome kit or not, is invited to come together for the holiday of Sukkot!
If you have pledged to assemble a welcome kit, one of these sukkot parties will function as your drop-off location. Bring your kit to the sukkah, and an AARI Committee member will ensure it makes its way to the Welcome Co-Op, our partner in caring for the newly arriving refugees. Additionally, each sukkah party will have all the supplies needed to assemble a bag so more can support and share our abundance with those in need.
Below is a list of the sukkah parties going on around Atlanta. You do not need to be a part of the host’s community (i.e. involved in Kesher, Sisterhood, mAAc, etc.) to join a particular sukkah party. If you love AA Synagogue and are a part of our spiritual family, you are welcome to any party that is convenient to you. (And just think: You might meet somebody new and make a new friend.) Join a Sukkah party, enjoy snacks and camaraderie, and assemble a welcome kit for a newly arriving refugee family. We couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate the holiday of sukkot as a community!
mAAc Sukkah Party: Wednesday, October 12, 1–3 p.m., Ahavath Achim Synagogue (600 Peachtree Battle Ave, NW Atlanta GA 30327)
Kesher Sukkah Parties:
Ahavath Achim Sisterhood Sukkah Party: Thursday, October 13, 6:30 –8:30 p.m., Ahavath Achim Synagogue (600 Peachtree Battle Ave, NW Atlanta GA 30327)
Inclusion and Belonging Committee Sukkah Party: Sunday, October 16, 1–4 p.m., Home of Shelly and Allan Dollar (2192 Greencliff Drive Atlanta, GA 30345)
Interfaith Inclusion Committee (IIC) Sukkah Party: Sunday, October 16, Ahavath Achim Synagogue (600 Peachtree Battle Ave, NW Atlanta, GA 30327)
There are many that have been forced to flee their homelands to come to a new country, fearful, and facing uncertainty. Most of us are only two or three generations distant from those refugee experiences ourselves, grateful our families survived the life-threatening turmoil in their homelands and could receive any help their new communities could offer. During the month of Elul and through the High Holidays, the AARI is launching the Elul Campaign as a way for the AA community to make an impact. As a part of this campaign, volunteers will assemble welcome kits to be given to refugee families as they arrive in Georgia (kit contents detailed below). We often have to purchase personal items for people to place in their homes, so having these kits on hand is of tremendous help and saves families money.
Volunteers can do this activity in whichever location and on whichever timeline they’d like. All items should be placed in a container (reusable shopping bags are recommended), and label each kit so we know what/who it’s for. It’s a good idea to re-enforce products with liquid contents with tape to prevent spillage.
Welcome kits need to be dropped off during the holiday of Sukkot (October 11–16). After Yom Kippur, a full list of dates, times, and locations of the many sukkot around town will be emailed to volunteers. Volunteers will choose a convenient sukkah to which to deliver the welcome kit(s). Volunteers are asked to hold on to welcome kit(s) until they can be delivered to the sukkah of their choosing. Deliveries are meant to be social events, so volunteers should plan to drop off the kit(s) and socialize a bit before leaving.
Volunteers who are unable deliver to a sukkah should email Rabbi Laurence Rosenthal (lrosenthal@aasynagogue.org) who will arrange for one of the AARI Task Force members to pick up the kit(s) from their home.