Building boom underway to create more classroom and worship space
By: Michael Arges
EAST WINDSOR – Area synagogues and temples are finding their memberships climbing, forcing many to build as quickly as possible.
According to some, the cause is a search for a spiritual anchor in fast-changing, sometimes chaotic times, making more and more Jews serious about their religious heritage.
"Things are really moving quickly in Nutsville!" commented Rabbi Jay Kornsgold, of Beth El Synagogue in East Windsor. "The world is a very complicated, fast moving place. People are looking to religion for some kind of stability."
Jewish congregations are growing "big time" in central New Jersey, noted William Moshinsky, a member of Beth El Synagogue. "At the synagogue we belong to, Beth El Synagogue, they’re really starting to plan now for a building addition. The temple in West Windsor, Congregation Beth Chaim, is planning an addition."
The Shalom Torah Academy, the Orthodox school in Twin Rivers has recently completed an addition and the synagogue there, and Congregation Toras Emes also looking to expand, Mr. Moshinsky noted. Jewish congregations seem to be growing even faster than the general population growth in the area, he added. "Those aren’t all Jewish people moving in!"
Jewish religious renewal is especially evident during the fall High Holidays. But it is not confined to this time of the year. Often people have an urge to go deeper spiritually in the summer, when schedules are less hectic and there is more time for reflection, said Rabbi Yisroel Nadoff, director of the Shalom Heritage Center of Twin Rivers.
"So then you find a time of tremendous spiritual awakening; people are searching. OK, so I worked all year for vacation. Now I’m here, so now what? Where am I really going?"
He recalled one working mother commenting that she needed to "get back on track spiritually" to regain her "moral compass" after the summer hiatus of study programs at the heritage center.
A thirst for deeper understanding of their Jewish heritage is the beginning motivation for many people, noted Rabbi Kornsgold.
"When you have people who are starting to learn more, they tend to go to the next level of being more observant."
Going beyond the superficial was a prime motivator for Ilene Watrous, who has been studying through the Shalom Jewish Heritage Center in Twin Rivers. In the last few years she has been more interested in learning Hebrew and understanding the deeper meaning of traditional Jewish prayers and ceremonies.
"Growing up I didn’t know enough about the meanings behind certain things that we do as Jews. What is interesting about Judaism is all the history and the spiritual meanings. The superficial things are kind of blah!- ot as interesting," she said. She likes the fact that there are so many different explanations for Jewish tradition and Torah.
"There’s no one dogmatic answer-it’s a discussion back and forth."
Stages of life can have an impact on personal renewal, but everyone’s story is different.
"At a certain point in their lives people want to come back to their roots, and they look at their roots as a source of stability," Rabbi Kornsgold noted. "Religious faith is something that’s gone on and on and on and will continue to go on."
Concern for children often goes hand-in-hand with parents’ personal renewal of involvement.
"Having two boys, I felt it was important for them to know where their roots are, to know who they are." commented Cara Moshinsky, a member of Beth El Synagogue. "I don’t know if I was ever really away from Judaism spiritually. I just felt like I really wanted to get more involved in the Jewish community and get to know other Jews in the area to learn together about my religion."
Having children was also one of the factors that led Ms. Watrous to become more observant.
"I had had children, so that made me reevaluate the practices I had in my house. Judaism is a lot about things you do in the home; it’s not just going to the temple."
The various Jewish home rituals are a great occasion for family unity, Ms. Moshinsky added. "Doing all those ritualistic things forces you to do things together as a family. My husband and I both have careers and it forces us to focus in on each other and spend time together."
The death of his father was an event that gradually led Larry Epstein to serious practice of his Jewish faith. He was very comforted by Jewish traditions of mourning that brought him together with members of his father’s congregation for prayer and mutual support.
"It gives you a feeling of community, that people are around you; it started the healing process," he recalled.
In the 11 months following the funeral, he determined as much as possible to fulfill the tradition by attending services at Beth El Synagogue and saying the "kaddish" prayer in memory of his father. There he found himself more and more interested in the rabbi’s sermons, the way he raised questions and related scripture texts to daily living. He rediscovered the every-day symbols of Jewish life as constant reminders of God’s presence. His brother also became more observant after their father died.
"When you lose somebody important in your life, a parent or spouse, it makes you stop and think about what’s important in life," Mr. Epstein noted.
The spiritual resurgence is also encouraged by area stores and restaurants that make it easier to be an observant Jew.
"It was always possible to be observant, but it was more an issue of difficulty, and how much commitment are you going to make, how much are you going to put out in order to make it happen," Rabbi Kornsgold noted. "Here in East Windsor the Shoprite has made things real easy for people. In our communities in general there is more and more kosher food, more and more kosher restaurants. That has made things easier for people. If it’s not hard for people to do, I think they find it very rewarding."
The hardest thing is getting people to start being observant, Rabbi Kornsgold suggested. "Once they start going to the synagogue they see that its interesting and they can meet people, and that they can have a community of people who are there for them in good times and bad times. Then they realized that it’s something that they’ve missed."