synagogue spotlight
Narberth Havurah
Continues on in its Essential Form
Jarrad Saffren | Staff Writer
Courtesy of the Narberth Havurah
I f you click around on Narberth Havurah’s website,
you will see a synagogue with an address, a dues
structure, a Hebrew school and various activities
for members. In other words, you will see a commu-
nity with all the characteristics of a big, formal,
suburban synagogue.

But if you look deeper, you will notice a shul with
only about 45 households, no owned property and
a lay-led approach to organizing events. In other
words, you will see what the word havurah implies:
a small, informal association of people who meet for
discussion and prayer.

The Narberth Havurah is both, and that quality
has helped it navigate turbulent times with relatively
little drama. As many suburban synagogues lose
members, consider downsizing and wonder aloud
about how to attract new congre-
gants, Narberth Havurah just keeps
Narberth Havurah members often plan their
own activities.

gathering for High Holiday services,
Shabbat potlucks and other events.

The community that gathers in a church
on Woodbine Avenue has maintained
a membership of about 45 households
since its 2005 founding.

“We do have many of the features of
a larger synagogue. But the feel of our
community is very much like a havurah,”
Rabbi Simcha Zevit said.

Samantha Levy
Green, the
synagogue’s president, described Zevit
as the heart of the community and
its members as the soul. The rabbi
makes herself available to congregants
and brings Jewish knowledge and spiri-
tuality to services and holidays. Her
Narberth Havurah members gather in a sukkah.

goal, she explained, is to “help people
feel what is meaningful to them about
transition to online services. The community stayed
Jewish life.”
But then it’s the members, according to Green, together, too. After all, about 15 households have
who start the book clubs and the adult dining groups, been involved since the founding almost 20 years
as well as plan and execute holiday gatherings like ago.

Much of the rest of the congregation consists of
Passover seders and meals inside a sukkah. The
synagogue’s sanctuary is in the Holy Trinity Church, younger families, with 16 kids in Narberth’s religious
school, which runs from grades 2-6. A bar and bat
but it gathers in a variety of locations.

“I think what makes us sustainable … it’s the adapt- mitzvah program follows that schooling.

“There’s a core of really committed people that
ability,” Levy Green said.

The havurah lives on a shoestring budget, so when have sustained the community,” Zevit said.

Levy Green is one of them. And even though she’s
COVID broke out in March 2020, it was not difficult to
the president, she’s just a member taking on a slightly
bigger role. The Narberth resident moved to the area
in 2014 with her husband and young son, who was
starting to ask questions about Judaism, so they
wanted a way to educate him. But they did not want
to do so in a “larger synagogue that comes with all the
financial and social responsibilities,” the mother said.

So, they found Narberth Havurah and were drawn
to it. One Hebrew school day a week plus deep
connections to fellow members. It was all that they
wanted. “I was adamant about not just dropping my kid off,”
Levy Green said.

Miriam Shakow, also a Narberth resident, joined
the synagogue with her family after they moved to
the area in 2010. Today, the mother of two helps to
organize activities. For Tu B’Shevat this year, she
brought acorns and pots with dirt from her backyard,
so kids could plant acorns to see if they would
sprout. What Shakow loves most about the
community is “how local it is,” she said.

Her son has friends from his elementary
school who also attend Hebrew school
with him. Every Tuesday, they walk over
together. “It’s nice to have that overlap between
the different kinds of things you do. It
feels integrated and fun,” the mom said.

“And also, because it’s local it’s just nice
because you’re like, ‘Oh, this is part of my
community.’” The synagogue is not without its issues.

As Levy Green explained, “We have some
of the problems that larger institutions
have.” Kids often do not want to stay
beyond graduating from Hebrew school.

Some members have had financial trouble.

“We’ve been able to weather some of
that,” the president said.

They’ve been able to deal with it well enough to
maintain the fundamental structure of the synagogue.

Narberth Havurah is a havurah, yes, but it’s also a
community institution. It’s a balance that has always
existed, and it’s one that synagogue leaders have no
plan to change.

“We need people to renew their memberships,
and we need people to join us. Keep showing up,”
Zevit said. ■
jsaffren@midatlanticmedia.com JEWISHEXPONENT.COM
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