The Temple, Congregation B’nai Jehudah is pleased to announce the installation of Rabbi Stephanie Kramer as its 15th senior rabbi.
This event will take place Friday, Feb. 4, at B'nai Jehudah, and begins with an Erev Shabbat service and installation ceremony at 6 p.m., followed by a community dinner at 7:30 p.m.
“Rabbi Kramer joined our congregation at a very special time in our history. She is here to celebrate B'nai Jehudah’s 150th anniversary with us and to help lead us from strength to strength into our next 150 years,” said Amanda K. Morgan, B’nai Jehudah’s board president. “Her focus on relationship building and her vision to make Torah relevant and meaningful for our lives today have already had a positive impact on the B’nai Jehudah family during her first six months here. We are so pleased to officially welcome her at the installation.”
The congregation will be joined by guest clergy Rabbi Rick Jacobs, president of the Union for Reform Judaism, Rabbi Sarah Bassin, associate rabbi of Temple Emanuel of Beverly Hills and former B’nai Jehudah member, Rabbi Dan Levin, senior rabbi of Temple Beth El in Boca Raton, Florida, and Rev. Adam Hamilton, senior pastor of the United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas.
“The B’nai Jehudah family has welcomed my family and me with open arms. Our congregation has such a strong history of community and social justice, and I am honored to be able to help carry on those traditions, while we also work to develop new ideas that create connection and meaning in our lives in the 21st Century,” said Rabbi Kramer.
In addition to the installation on Feb. 4, B’nai Jehudah’s re-imagined religious school, now called Yalla!, will hold a special family service, led by Rabbi Bassin, a B’nai Jehudah religious school alum.
The family-friendly service takes place on Feb. 6 at 9:15 a.m. and provides an opportunity for B'nai Jehudah’s younger members to officially welcome her to the congregation. Due to COVID-19-related safety protocols, the family service is also notable as the first – and possibly only – family service of the year that will bring together all Yalla! families for a Sunday morning service.
B’nai Jehudah’s COVID Task Force is keeping an eye on the virus and Omicron’s impact on our community. With the Jewish value of pikuach nefesh, the preservation of life as a guiding force, B’nai Jehudah asks all who enter the building to partner in COVID-19 prevention efforts and help minimize the spread of the virus.
As part of these efforts, RSVPs are required for the installation and dinner to provide ample physically distanced seating. Boxed dinners will be provided for the dinner. Masks must be worn in the building during the erev Shabbat service and installation ceremony.
The congregation asks that anyone who is showing any signs of illness please remain at home and join the event virtually.
To join the installation in person, please RSVP by noon on Jan. 28 at ttcbj.com/installation22. RSVPs are required for in-person attendance to allow for enough seats and food available. To join the livestream installation virtually, go to facebook.com/ttcbj or vimeo.com/bnaijehudah.