Read the full issue of this week’s newsletter here.

Exploring Our Future with Shir Tikvah

As many congregants know, Shir Tikvah congregation uses our sanctuary each fall to hold worship services for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. Occasionally, Shir Tikvah also holds bar and bat mitzvah ceremonies when they expect attendance that exceeds the capacity of their own space at 50th St. and Girard. In fact, they are rapidly outgrowing their building.

The collegial relationship that has developed over the past few years between Rabbi Michael Latz and Rev. Justin Schroeder, including a trip to Israel and Palestine last year, has led to a discussion of what it might look like to explore sharing physical space with Shir Tikvah. This might begin with Shir Tikvah’s more frequent use of our sanctuary or meeting space and perhaps evolve over several years into a more permanent financial arrangement. This could serve to both maximize the use of our building, support our annual budget, and offer the opportunities for spiritual growth that would accompany living in close community with a separate congregation.

For now, a small group of board members and staff from the two organizations have had a couple of meetings to start to explore these ideas in enough detail that they may, at some point, be presented to our congregation for further consideration. Keep your eye on the Liberal for further developments next year.

Eric Cooperstein
President, First Universalist Board of Trustees