H eadlines
New Ambler Synagogue Darchei Noam Makes Debut
L OCA L
SASHA ROGELBERG | JE STAFF
RENEE STRAUSBERG was
17 when her grandfather died.

When she went to attend a
shiva minyan, Strausberg was
informed by her grandmother
that she couldn’t be there, as
her grandfather believed that
women didn’t count toward the
10-person prayer quorum, or
minyan. As a consolation, Strausberg’s
uncle and father created a space
for two minyans: one abiding by
her family’s traditions, the other
inclusive of Strausberg so she
could say kaddish for her grand-
father. The gesture, though small,
was, to her, transformative.

“From that point, I knew
that A) I wanted to work in the
Jewish community,” Strausberg
said. “And B) I wanted to make
sure that everybody was seen
and heard and part of that
community.” Fast-forwarding from the
1990s to today, Strausberg,
along with a small team of
clergy and administrators,
is pioneering inclusion in the
Jewish community through the
debut of Darchei Noam, a new,
nondenominational synagogue
opening in Ambler on July 1.

The shul is the brainchild of
Rabbi Danielle Parmenter and
de facto Darchei Noam President
Brandi Lerner. Hazzan Arlyne
Unger will serve as Darchei
Noam’s cantor, and Strausberg
will be the executive director.

For the team, the idea for
a new synagogue came from
the joint desire to think outside
the box to meet the needs —
both spiritual and physical — of
community members.

As COVID-19 forced some
synagogues to close and others
to rethink their programming or
become entirely virtual, for some,
finding a congregation has become
more than just searching for other
Jewish within the neighborhood.

An influx is looking for a spiritual
home that is meaningful, not just
convenient. The reason for joining a
congregation “shouldn’t be
because it geographically makes
sense,” Lerner said. “It should be
because it’s a good fit for you and
your family.”
Darchei Noam is guided
by a clear set of principles to
make meaning for its budding
congregation. “We’re based on four pillars,
alphabetically: community,
justice, kindness and Torah,”
Unger said. “We’re going to
do everything we can to make
sure that all these pillars are
always visible.”
K. 6
JUNE 24, 2021
JEWISH EXPONENT
Hazzan Arlyne Unger (left) and Rabbi Danielle Parmenter
Courtesy of Danielle Parmenter
To accommodate the diverse
needs of their new congrega-
tion, already numbering around
100, the Darchei Noam team
has committed to making
membership dues voluntary
and becoming Keshet-listed as
an LGBT-friendly synagogue, in
addition to providing sensitivity
training for staff and leadership.

Their building will include
both a wheelchair-accessible
entrance and bimah, and virtual
programming will continue to
be offered alongside in-person
events. In addition to “Teen
Chayim,” elective-style classes
and workshops for teenage
congregants, b’nai mitzvah
tutoring, and Friday night and
Saturday morning Shabbat
services, Darchei Noam will
incorporate social action into
its programming, working with
local organizations to build
community engagement.

For Parmenter, integrating
social justice into spiritual
practices presents a challenge
she is still working through, but
willing to take on.

“I really see myself as
rabbi-as-pastor rather than rabbi-
as-prophet,” Parmenter said.

She’s not planning on
preaching about politics on
the bimah. However, she also
recognizes that members may
want her to, as being politically
involved may be a congregant’s
way of putting their Jewish
values into practice.

Parmenter wants to “validate
activism as a spiritual practice”
for her congregants: “I want
to be able to create safe space
for them to dialogue with each
other that’s rooted in kindness.”
The words “Darchei noam”
come from a phrase in the
book of Proverbs that is used
in the Torah service when
returning the Torah to the ark.

According to Unger, it translates
to “pathways of pleasantness,”
which the team believed encap-
sulated their core value: that all
Jewish people should find the
Judaism that feels most authentic
to them. l
srogelberg@jewishexponent.com |
215-832-0741 JEWISHEXPONENT.COM