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A Message From Rabbi James

Shalom, and thank you for visiting Temple Beth Sholom's website.

The strength and vitality of congregational life reverberates in the walls of Temple Beth Sholom and through the actions of its staff, lay leadership and members.  We are a congregation that has always valued the involvement of our members and has sought to create new and creative ways to experience Jewish life, culture and learning.  Given our long history in Salem we see ourselves as honoring our past by continuing to build a vibrant and exciting future.  Our congregation is more than just an assembly of people and programs, it is a spiritual home where you can make a difference and impact your Jewish community through your Jewish involvement.

Temple Beth Sholom also aspires to be a community synagogue.  We are a warm, welcoming congregation and very intentionally strive to build a strong community both within our walls and with the rest of Salem.  As the only synagogue in the greater Salem area we are committed to welcoming Jews of all backgrounds, especially interfaith families and young families, to create a tapestry of Jewish experience.  Even if you are not yet a member, please be a part of our wider community and attend the variety of activities and programs that we offer to everyone.  We want your involvement and your presence. In this way we can be a blessing to each other.

Whether it be Shabbat or holiday services, Torah study, an adult education or school program or one of the many ways we try to make the world a better place through tikkun olam (social action), please join us.

If you wish to contact me please call the synagogue office (503) 362-5004, or e-mail me at rabbijames@tbsholom.org.  I look forward to seeing you soon.

...to understand, to see, to hear, to learn, to teach, to keep, to do, and to uphold with love…- The Morning Liturgy

These eight verbs from the ahavah rabah prayer implore us to recognize the blessings which are granted to us each day by the Source of All. In the recognition of these blessed moments is a theology that I would like to share with the people I serve as rabbi. It is my prayer that it will serve as a call for the liberation of people everywhere. And it is a blessing and a gift for me to continue my own internal work of seeing the tzelem elohim, the divine image, in everyone.

As I am called to serve my people, these words from the morning liturgy echo deep within my soul. By engaging in the well of tradition and by seeing these eight verbs as the statement of my rabbinic vision, I hope to serve the Jewish people as a learner, a teacher, a guide, and a fellow traveler for those seeking moments of engagement and blessing. I pray that as a rabbi I will have the strength to keep these verbs in my mind’s eye, and that in doing so I will have the ability to help all people discern God’s presence in the world as we go about continuing the divine work of creation.