Last night, I went to the final Shabbat service at Temple Beth Torah; they are in the process of closing up operations. During the dinner and subsequent service, I reconnected with congregation members I had built close relationships with during my years there in the early 2000s. I ruminated on my adage that I’m a part of every congregation I’ve ever been at. I built up friendships at TBT, and I’ve offered to be an ambassador of any TBT member to TAS (if they wish to explore our congregation). I look at the Temple Beth Hillel Brotherhood, and the friendships and bonds I built there.

As I walked into that last service, I picked up a Gates of Prayer. It was dedicated on the occasion of Jay Sculler’s Bar Mitzvah by his parents. It made me think about the friendships I’ve made at TAS, for it is because of TAS and MoTAS I got to know the Scullers. I thought of the bonds built between the men in MoTAS, between MoTAS and Sisterhood (it was a joint MoTAS/Sisterhood activity that bound me to the Scullers), and between everyone in the congregation.

Building that bond is necessary if an organization or a congregation is to survive. However, it can be difficult in a congregation as large as TAS. There are, however, answers. MoTAS and Sisterhood. We are organizations that allow you to build that bond in a group of a more manageable size. Through MoTAS and Sisterhood, you build friendships for life. Through service and fellowship, the connections between people become almost unbreakable. I invite you to join us in celebrating those bonds at the MoTAS Shabbat on Friday, January 29th.