Should people pay to pray? Synagogues debate touchy topic

Rabbi Levi Brashevitzky kisses the Tehillat HaShem after prayer Sunday at Chabad of Tidewater, one of the few local synagogues offering free worship services for the upcoming Jewish High Holidays. (Hyunsoo Leo Kim photos | The Virginian-Pilot)

By Steven G. Vegh
The Virginian-Pilot

When the Jewish High Holidays begin Wednesday night with Rosh Hashana, Chabad of Tidewater will be one of the few local synagogues where worship services are free and open to anyone.

At most synagogues around the country, limiting admission to dues-paying members and congregants’ guests – who may be charged fees ranging from $50 to hundreds of dollars – is standard practice.

But Chabad is among those in the Jewish community that think restricted admission feeds a “pay-to-pray” perception. That image, some say, repels unaffiliated Jews at the one time of year when they’re most likely to seek a synagogue.

“What kind of message are you sending to somebody if they really can’t afford it?” Chabad’s Rabbi Levi Brashevitzky said. “What happens if someone isn’t sure that the money is worth it? It’s important that everyone feel welcome.”

Synagogues counter that free, open admission to the extremely popular holiday services would undermine their message that Jews should support Jewish organizations on a year-round basis.

“If you wanted to be with us on the holidays, you need to be a member of the synagogue,” said Rabbi Rosalin Mandelberg of Ohef Sholom Temple in Norfolk. “The goal isn’t to get people to pay for High Holiday tickets; the goal is to get people to make a commitment to being part of a community.”

According to the temple’s Web site, holiday admission tickets were sent only to congregants who were paid up in their member dues as of September. The temple also was charging congregants’ non affiliated, out-of-town guests $100 each for admission.

Holiday fees and tickets are a “very sensitive topic” in the Jewish community, said Rabbi Israel Zoberman of Congregation Beth Chaverim in Virginia Beach.

“On one hand, congregations want their members to be responsible members in all aspects,” he said. On the other hand, “who would want to deny a fellow Jew a place at the holiest time of the year?”

Rabbi Levi Brashevitzky of Chabad of Tidewater says offering free worship promotes unity among Jewsduring the holidays. Yet some synagogues work with people who can’t afford cost of full membership.

The debate over admission fees stems partly from religious law that bars Jews from handling money during the Sabbath and sacred holidays.

As a result, “we don’t pass the offering plate – that’s a big difference between the Jewish and Christian faiths,” said Joel Rubin, a former president of Temple Israel in Norfolk.

Instead, most synagogues set membership dues that can range from hundreds to thousands of dollars – the amount varies with factors such as household size. Dues pay for synagogue costs including staff and utilities crucial for weekly services and ongoing programs.

The services for Rosh Hashana, which marks the Jewish New Year, and Yom Kippur – also called the Day of Atonement – are among synagogues’ most elaborate. On Yom Kippur, Jews express repentance before God and seek reconciliation with the people they’ve hurt in the past year.

Tickets and guest fees are one way synagogues cope with the holiday overflow crowd. “We have to look out first for the people paying all year long to be members of the synagogue,” Rubin said. “They have first right to a seat at the High Holidays.”

But Paul Golin, assistant executive director of the Jewish Outreach Institute in New York City, thinks synagogues should see the holidays as an opportunity to reach out to non member Jews.

“You’ve got a large number of Jewish households who’ve not yet been sold on the value of attending synagogue, and now is the time of year when they’re most thinking about it,” he said. “But high cost could act as a barrier right when they might be willing to engage.”

In Manhattan, Rabbi Judith Hauptman has offered free High Holiday services for four years, targeting unaffiliated Jews in their 20s and 30s.

“If the organized Jewish community doesn’t do something to go out and keep these people connected to us, they’re going to drift off” and ignore or leave Judaism, said Hauptman, who teaches Talmud at the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York.

At Chabad of Tidewater, Brashevitzky said free admission allows Jews to come before God as a unified people for the holidays. Chabad is a national movement that encourages Jews to become more religiously observant. Brashevitzky said his synagogue relies on donations and patrons, not membership dues.

Several other local synagogues generally guarantee free admission only to members. But exceptions can be made.

At Congregation Beth El in Norfolk, complimentary tickets are available to Jews who are new to Hampton Roads or to Judaism, Rabbi Arthur Ruberg said.

At Beth Chaverim, Zoberman said Jewish military personnel temporarily assigned to Hampton Roads get free admission. He said the synagogue also waives the guest fee for some congregants who can’t afford it.

Ohef Sholom gives tickets to military families and full-time students at local colleges.

Like several local synagogues, Mandelberg said, Ohef Sholom works with people who can’t afford the full cost of membership.

Ohef Sholom gives subsidized, reduced memberships – or “dues relief” – to about 35 percent of its 700-household congregation.

“We do not deny membership to anyone with financial hardship, ever,” Mandelberg said.

At B’nai Israel Congregation in Norfolk, Rabbi Chaim Silver said there is no charge for holiday services.

“Prayers should not cost money,” he said. “At the same time, people should realize the only reason they can come to this place is because there are others who make generous contributions to keep the facility and community alive.”

Steven G. Vegh, (757) 446-2417,

steven.vegh@pilotonline.com