A return to normalcy

Charles Flum, President

We are back in person! At the Unitarian Universalist church, where Naples Jewish Congregation, a Reform synagogue, meets, there is a covered outdoor area in which we are meeting rather than inside. Being outside, masks are not needed. However, we do request the attendees be vaccinated. Please do not come if you are not vaccinated. Services are at 7 p.m. on Fridays.

Due to an abundance of caution, we have canceled this year’s Artist in Residence program, which had been scheduled for March 10. Hopefully, next year we will hold it when larger gatherings are safe. We invite the community to join us to hear whoever the Artist in Residence is in 2023.

NJC Flamingle get-together

Our sisterhood had its kick-off luncheon on Dec 7. Ann Markham Walsh talked about her book, “Dancing Through Darkness.” Other programs are to be announced.

Thanks to a generous donation from the Crell family, along with congregation members, we have been able to replace our Torah and bima covers as well as the parochet for the Aron HaKodesh. We now have royal blue covers for Shabbat and white for Rosh Hashonah and Yom Kippur. We also replaced our Ner Tamid with one that represents the flames of the burning bush.

On Jan. 11, Rabbi Herman continued our adult education program with a talk entitled, “Are Jews White and Does it Matter?” Two other adult education programs are scheduled for February and March, with dates and topics to be determined.

A recent adult education program concerned Israeli politics and U.S.- Israel relations. Rabbi Herman shared information about the current state of politics in Israel as well as how relations stand between the U.S. and Israel. There was a lively discussion, which caused the session to run for one-and-a-half hours rather than the scheduled hour.

Naples Jewish Congregation has instituted a unique program called Flamingle. Approximately once a month, we gather in a park, bringing a dish to share for lunch. The purpose of our gathering is to get to know each other. At a recent Flamingle, we were asked to share something funny, if possible, about ourselves that the others did not know. Each gathering has been very entertaining and enjoyable. Flamingle is quite popular, with more than one-quarter of the congregation participating each time.

When one is looking to join a synagogue, most people do not want to make a large financial commitment just to check out the rabbi and congregation.

That is why Naples Jewish Congregation instituted “Pay from the Heart.” The first year when people join, they only pay what they wish. That makes it easy to learn all about “The Little Temple with the Big Heart.”