Services

The Days of Awe are celebrated at CBI with song, prayer, and contemplation. As always, the voices of children are welcome in our sanctuary.

Selichot (a Saturday night near Rosh Hashanah)

The Days of Awe begin with Selichot – usually on the Saturday night before Rosh Hashanah, unless Rosh Hashanah begins early in the new week, in which case tradition calls us to hold Selichot on a Saturday that is at least one week before the new year.

Cemetery Service (Sunday After Selichot)

On the Sunday that is the day after Selichot, we convene at CBI’s beautiful cemetery in the hills of Clarksburg. We pray a short afternoon service and then take time to place pebbles on the graves of our dead. This opportunity to reflect on our mortality and on the traditions that connect us can be meaningful even for those of us whose family may be buried far away.

Rosh Hashanah Evening

Our Erev Rosh Hashanah services introduce the theme for this year’s Day of Awe. We will welcome the new year with togetherness, poetry, and song.

Rosh Hashanah Days

We celebrate two days of Rosh Hashanah. Rabbi Rachel leads us in prayer using traditional high holiday nusach (the melodies of the season) as well as other tunes, both familiar and contemporary. First Day Rosh Hashanah services are also uplifted by the participation of our Music Director, community musicians, and community choir.

We use a custom machzor (high holiday prayerbook) that interweaves traditional materials with contemporary poetry and artwork, designed for screen-sharing so we can offer a meaningful and accessible spiritual journey both to those on-site and to those online.

On the second morning of Rosh Hashanah, our services are more contemplative and informal.

Rosh Hashanah Afternoon – Tashlich

After the first morning of Rosh Hashanah, we convene at a nearby suspension bridge for the ritual of tashlich, symbolically casting away what we need to let go. The gently swaying bridge, the trees in their autumnal finery, and the rushing waters make this ritual sweet and serene.

Shabbat Shuvah (Saturday between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur)

The Shabbat between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur is called Shabbat Shuvah, “The Shabbat of Return.” This service is contemplative, concentrating each prayer into a single line that we can chant many times. Words and melodies soak into us as we open to change.

Kol Nidre  (Yom Kippur Evening)

Before sundown, we hear the stirring words and melody of Kol Nidre, the prayer from which this service takes its name. Many of us choose to wear white on Yom Kippur, symbolizing holiness and new beginnings. We awaken our bodies by knocking on the heart as we sing selichot prayers, imploring it to open.

Yom Kippur Morning

The journey of Yom Kippur continues with morning services with song, prayer and poetry, Torah readings, and a creative reweaving of the haftarah from Isaiah that is traditional on this day. We sing the prayers of selichot again and notice how they may feel different this morning. 

After morning services, some of us write kvitlach, little notes to God expressing whatever we need to say; we crumple them into tiny balls and tuck them into the crevices of our mini-Kotel (western wall) beside the labyrinth.

Yom Kippur Afternoon Mincha

The afternoon Torah reading culminates in the verse at the literal heart of Torah: the mitzvah of loving our neighbor, our “other,” as ourselves. Then we dive into the book of Jonah, which we experience anew each year with its lessons about repentance and return. Some years we do a Jonah play, or slide show, or text study and discussion. As the angle of the sun changes and the end of the day approaches, energy shifts within us. Some of us walk the meditation labyrinth.

Ne’ilah (Yom Kippur Closing Service)

The closing service of Yom Kippur is intense and special. We sing the prayers of the selichot service for one final time this year. We stand in body or spirit before the open ark. There is an opportunity to whisper whatever we most need to say to God into the open ark while Rabbi Rachel plays music of the season on her guitar. By the time we reach the final tekiah gedolah, we feel wrung-out and exhilarated, purified and ready to begin anew.

Break-the-Fast 

We hold a communal break-fast after Ne’ilah – an opportunity to dine, socialize and connect with each other. 

Sukkot

Four days after Yom Kippur comes Sukkot, our harvest festival and celebration of impermanence. Our synagogue sukkah is roofed with local corn stalks, surrounded by the glory of our wetlands and hills. Usually, we have at least one congregational gathering in the sukkah. Meanwhile, all are welcome to drop in all week long: bring meals, read a book, gaze at the moon through the corn stalks, or even bring a sleeping bag and camp out overnight!

Shemini Atzeret / Simchat Torah

We celebrate Shemini Atzeret (“The Pause of the Eighth Day”) with a contemplative morning service over Zoom that includes the Yizkor memorial prayers recited four times each year. On this day, we linger a little longer with our beloved words and melodies – and with one another.

We celebrate Simchat Torah with our community band, singing seven songs for seven circle-dances with the Torah. Often, there is also a potluck meal before or after; check our calendar for updates on whether or not there’s a potluck this year.

*For Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, we do not require membership or a donation. However, we ask people to register in advance for security and capacity reasons.