Renewing tradition in community

Congregation Eitz Or has been Seattle's alternative/Jewish Renewal community since its inception in 1990. Eitz Or started as a havurah in the late 1980s and officially became a non-denominational congregation in January 1990, under the leadership of Rabbi Vicki Hollander.

Our Torah

In the mid 1990s, under the leadership of Rabbi David Wolfe-Blank z’’l, Eitz Or affiliated with ALEPH: Alliance for Jewish Renewal, a worldwide, post-denominational movement founded by Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi and grounded in Judaism’s prophetic and mystical traditions.

Eitz Or holds services and celebrates holidays in space rented in the University Unitarian Church in a Seattle neighborhood surrounded by four other synagogues, a Jewish library, a Jewish day school, and a Jewish Community Center. Eitz Or owns a beautiful Torah. Artists in our community created our ritual objects, including the Torah cover, ark, banners, plaques, and wood sculptures.

Our aims and values include:

• Vibrant worship drawing on Kabbalah, Hasidism, meditation, and feminism as well as mainstream pathways.
  
• Creating a loving community that welcomes families, singles, gays, lesbians, and people of all ages and backgrounds, providing a unique niche within the larger Jewish community.
  
• Political activism (Tikkun Olam)—“praying with our feet” in the words of Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel.
  
• Educating ourselves and raising the next generation—an active program of ongoing education—for children, young people, and adults.

Saying "Motzi" at an outdoor service

We join together through:

• One Shabbaton per month using a siddur (prayerbook) in Hebrew, transliteration, and English to support all levels of participation, followed by an oneg Shabbat or vegetarian potluck.
  
• Holidays and life-cycle events.
  
• Family-oriented holidays or other events, and children’s programs at some services.
  
• Tikkun Olam activities with ongoing and one-time opportunities to participate.
  
• A quarterly newsletter, a Web site, and an e-mail list-serve that keeps members informed of community activities.

Shofar Service at Tashlich

Our vision of the future includes:

• A strong community connection in which large-scale get-togethers (such as Shabbats and holidays) are supplemented by smaller chavurot, as well as study groups, affinity groups, and other ways to work and learn together.
  
• Stronger member participation and a culture of volunteerism
  
• More depth and breadth of Jewish learning, leading to greater member participation in ritual life.