• building self.

    Values. Character. Ethics. Spirituality. Hope. Joy.

    Building a better world begins with building a better you.

  • together.

    All personal and religious orientations are welcome to participate in our movement to build more meaningful lives inspired and guided by Conservative Judaism. 

    Congregation Habonim welcomes you home.

  • in the community.

    Congregation Habonim welcomes you.

  • religious school.

    The Anne Hahn Religious School is...

    • Steeped in Jewish values, traditions and rituals

    • Interactive and engaging

    • Meaningful and substantive

    • Challenging, dynamic and diverse

    • An active dialogue between staff and participants

    • Nurturing, warm and playful

  • upfront and personal Torah study.

    Under the guidance of our clergy and our highly qualified instructors, the Religious School students take a look at the Parsha of the week.

News & Upcoming Events

Congregation Habonim welcomes you to the Upper West Side!

Religious School at Habonim 

Nursery School Admissions for 2017-2018 School Year

Meet Our Clergy, Staff and Board

Rabbi Barry Kenter

Musings Parashat Korach/Rosh Hodesh Tammuz 5777

Korach is the man the rabbis love to hate.  Korach the kvetch.  Korach the complainer.  Korach the demagogue who leads the people on with words, questioning the leadership and authority of Moses and Aaron, uniting four separate and distinct rebellions against Moses and Aaron: Levites against Aaron, Datan and Abiram against Moses, the tribal chieftains against Aaron, and the entire community against Moses and Aaron.

If all of Israel is holy there is no need for priesthood. If, as Moses suggests in last week’s parasha, would that all of Israel were prophets, then there is no need for Moses’ mediation. Problem: prophets are not holy.  Issue seems to be who has access to God.   Who can enter the sacred space? Who prays on behalf of the people?  Who intercedes on their behalf?

All of this seems somewhat arcane and foreign to contemporary readers and listeners. For some two thousand years, from the time of the destruction of the Temples and the cessation of the sacrificial service, the avodah, priestly functions have been moot from its inception and the synagogue has been a fairly democratic institution.  We do not depend upon professional mediators between God and us; we speak to God directly through prayer.  From the time of the destruction of the Temple, when avodah ceased, the sacrificial service was replaced by avodat ha-lev, the service of the heart, prayer. Through prayer we offer ourselves to God.  When the Torah is read, God talks to us; when we pray, we talk to God.  Where we stand before God, there is the sacred space of encounter. (Continued here) 

Learn more about Rabbi Kenter here.

    Cantor Bruce Halev

 

 

 

 

Rina Cohen Schwarz, Religious School Director

 

Tina Lobel

Tina Lobel, Nursery School Director

 

 

 

 

Ann Obsatz, Associate Nursery School Director

 

 

 

Welcome from President Neil Goldstein

Elaine Witkoff

On behalf of Congregation Habonim I am pleased to extend a hearty greeting.  Our mission and goal is to provide a Jewish spiritual home for members and our community and to provide an environment in which we can learn and grow and share important life-cycle events, knowing that we are joined and supported by a caring community in a warm and welcoming environment.

 

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Tot Shabbat (ages 5 and under, with parents/caregivers)

Tot Shabbat (ages 5 & under, with parents/caregivers) - on the first Fridays of each month, September through June - is an opportunity for our youngest children to socialize in a community and to engage with other Jewish families. This is also an excellent opportunity for our non-member families to get to know us and to become familiar with our family and children's programming.

Tot Shabbat (ages 5 and under, with parents/caregivers)

Tot Shabbat (ages 5 & under, with parents/caregivers) - on the first Fridays of each month, September through June - is an opportunity for our youngest children to socialize in a community and to engage with other Jewish families. This is also an excellent opportunity for our non-member families to get to know us and to become familiar with our family and children's programming.

Community Shabbat Dinner - A Post-Pesach Mimouna Feast!

For the entire community. Kabbalat Shabbat service at 6:30 pm, followed by dinner. Join us to celebrate Mimouna, a North African Jewish holiday held after the end of Pesach. Dinner will feature traditional Moroccan food: couscous, chicken, specialty salads and other goodies, plus burger & hotdogs for our more "picky" eaters. $18 per person, $54 maximum for families of 3 or more, children under age 5 free.

Sisterhood Book Group Group (all invited)

The book will be Moonglow by Michael Chabon. Contact [email protected]. 

Sisterhood Book Group Group (all invited)

The book will be A Tale of Love and Darkness by Amos Oz. It is a long book so get started soon! Contact [email protected]. 

Tot Shabbat (ages 5 and under, with parents/caregivers)

Tot Shabbat (ages 5 & under, with parents/caregivers) - on the first Fridays of each month, September through June - is an opportunity for our youngest children to socialize in a community and to engage with other Jewish families. This is also an excellent opportunity for our non-member families to get to know us and to become familiar with our family and children's programming.

Nursery School Annual Fundraiser

Please join us as at My Most Favorite Food (a kosher-certified establishment), 247 West 72nd Street, at our Annual Winter Cocktail Party/Fundraiser as we honor our Nursery School teachers.

Proceeds benefit the Clara Zeitlin Scholarship Fund, Classroom Specialists, and Professional Development.

Purchase tickets and sponsorhips here. Contact School Administrator Roy Ramsey at [email protected] for more information. 

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