High Holidays 5784-2023
As we read in the Book of Samuel on Rosh Hashanah, Hannah prayed from her heart. At FTJC we too strive to pray with Hannah's intensity and hope on the High Holidays. Together we can create a deep and joyful experience of realigning our lives and our relationships, to help us become the people we aspire to be. All ages celebrate together, with children and youth programming that includes services, activities, and childcare.
How to Join Us for the High Holidays
Our High Holiday services are open to all, and all are welcome.
This year we will celebrate the holidays in our new home at the Fort Washington Collegiate Campus. All services and all children's programming will take place there.
The main service for all days will take place in the Fellowship Hall.
A second service in the downstairs Arts Room will be run by volunteers in a heimish, efficient style with no sermons, and masks required, on both Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
If you’re a member, as in prior years, High Holiday attendance is included with your membership, and registration for High Holidays is not required. There are no seating assignments. Please renew your membership here.
Ready to become a new member? Inquire about membership here!
If you are not yet a member and aren't ready to become one, that's OK too! However, you must pre-register here. We ask non-members to make a donation when registering, if you can. We depend primarily on community support for our programming, including High Holiday services, and we thank you in advance for your generosity. Our standard recommended donation is $180 per person, but no one will be turned away for lack of funds. If you would like to discuss an alternative payment arrangement, please e-mail operations@ftjc.org.
Members who wish to bring guests are welcome to do so. Please be sure they pre-register here on our non-member pre-registration form, with suggested donation as described above.
Elul Programming
The month of Elul helps us enter the atmosphere of the holidays and do our spiritual work and personal education. Elul can show the way to a powerful experience of this year's High Holidays.
Visit our Elul page to find out about Selichot, Elul Singing Circles, Elul Learning Conversations, and more.
Shofar will be sounded for the community at large by members of FTJC, the Beis Community, and the Hebrew Tabernacle. A joyful neighbor hood gathering, with thirty blasts to fulfill your mitzvah to hear shofar on Rosh Hashanah. NOTE: Because this year Rosh Hashanah's first day falls on Shabbat, when shofar is traditionally not sounded, this event takes place on the second day of Rosh Hashanah, a Sunday.
FTJC and our neighbors at the Beis Community will meet at the Little Red Lighthouse under the George Washington Bridge at the edge of the Hudson River. Please bring your own bread and some for others! NOTE: Because this year Rosh Hashanah's first day falls on Shabbat, when tashlich is traditionally not practiced, this event takes place on the second day of Rosh Hashanah, a Sunday.
Kol Nidrei Food Drive
FTJC will be collecting food donations for the Community Fridge at the Fort Washington Collegiate Campus, and financial donations for the kosher food pantry at the Jewish Community Council of Washington Heights-Inwood. Bins will be available at Kol Nidrei (and all of Yom Kippur) for nutritious food items -- including fresh fruits and vegetables, packaged please to avoid crushing -- that we will deliver to the Community Fridge on 181st Street after the holiday. Grab an extra can or box from your pantry shelves or add something to your shopping cart. Financial donations to the JCC-WHI may be made here. As we prepare for the fast day of Yom Kippur, let's remember to help those who struggle to put food on their plates. Thank you for participating in this important mitzvah.
Schedule of Prayer Services
Enter the Fort Washington Collegiate Campus via the gate at the corner of Fort Washington Avenue and West 181st Street.
| SERVICE | DAY | TIME |
| Selichot | Saturday September 9 | 11:30 PM |
| Rosh Hashanah – Minchah/Ma'ariv | Friday September 15 | 6:45 PM |
| Rosh Hashanah – Shacharit/Musaf | Saturday September 16 | 8:30 AM |
| Rosh Hashanah – Minchah/Ma'ariv | Saturday September 16 | 6:45 PM |
| Rosh Hashanah- Shacharit/Musaf | Sunday September 17 | 8:30 AM |
| Shofar in Bennett Park | Sunday September 17 | 3:00 PM |
| Tashlich at the Little Red Lighthouse | Sunday September 17 | 4:00 PM |
| Rosh Hashanah – Minchah/Ma'ariv (Learning session in between) | Sunday September 17 | 6:45 PM |
| Tzom Gedaliah- Shacharit | Monday September 18 | 7:00 AM |
| Shabbat Shuva – Minchah/Kabbalat Shabbat/Ma'ariv | Friday September 22 | 6:40 PM |
| Shabbat Shuva – Shacharit/Musaf | Saturday September 23 | 9:00 AM |
| Shabbat Shuva – Minchah/Ma'ariv | Saturday September 23 | 6:35 PM |
| Yom Kippur – Kol Nidrei/Ma'ariv | Sunday September 24 | Seating at 5:45 PM; Service begins at 6:15 PM |
| Yom Kippur – Shacharit/Musaf (with Yizkor) | Monday September 25 | 8:00 AM |
| Yom Kippur – Minchah | Monday September 25 | 4:30 PM |
| Yom Kippur – Ne'ilah | Monday September 25 | 6:00 PM; Fast ends at 7:30 PM |
| Yom Kippur- Ma'ariv | Monday September 25 | 7:30 PM |
Rimonim: FTJC's Family Learning Community
Children love the holidays, and we love children. We will be offering engaging programs and prayer services throughout the High Holidays, for a full range of age groups from infants to teens. Programs will be led by a combination of our educators, parent leaders, and volunteers.
Childcare is available for children ages 6 months to 5th grade, during the morning services on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, as well as for the Yom Kippur evening services of Kol Nidrei and Minchah-Ne’ilah.
Childcare Registration: In order to ensure an appropriate child-to-babysitter ratio, pre-registration and pre-payment is required for all families who plan to utilize child care, via this form. The deadline to sign up for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur childcare is Sunday September 10, at 11:59 PM.
The full schedule of children's programming can be found here!
Locations: Childcare and children's programming will be based in the first-floor classroom hallway, which includes the Nursery, the Magaw Room, and the North Room. The Nursery has diaper changing tables and a dedicated bathroom for small children. Stroller parking is available in the far left corner of the Atrium. Past the stroller parking, follow the corridor to reach the first-floor classroom hallway. Some programs and activities may take place in the outdoor garden, weather permitting. Middle schoolers and teens are welcome to hang out on the padded benches in the hallway between the atrium and the classrooms. Please check the signs and schedules all around, and please ask if you need help finding a room.
Please feel free to contact Reyzl Geselowitz, our Director of Youth & Family Learning, with any questions.
Good to Know for Your Access, Comfort, and Participation:
- All entrances, levels of the building, and bathrooms are wheelchair accessible. An elevator is available to move between floors. If you have questions about accessibility or accommodations, please contact operations@ftjc.org.
- For all services and children's programming, please enter via the gate on the corner of Fort Washington Avenue and West 181st Street, then pass through the glass Atrium.
- The Fellowship Hall is directly ahead through the Atrium. The Arts Room is on the basement floor via the stairs at the Atrium's far right corner or the elevator at the Atrium's far left corner.
- Men's and women's restrooms, on the basement level, are accessible by stairs or elevator. A single-user all-gender bathroom is to the left of the Fellowship Hall, as well as on the basement level. Most bathroom fixtures on the first floor and basement level are operated manually, not with motion sensors. Most bathrooms have diaper changing tables.
- When infants or small children need a break, the Nursery is available, located in the first-floor classroom hallway.
- For a quiet calming space, the Atrium and Garden are available, as is the basement lobby near the bathrooms.
- For a place to discreetly eat or drink if you are unable to or should not fast on Yom Kippur due to medical conditions, eating disorders, or other factors, the Atrium and Garden are available, as is the basement lobby near the bathrooms. If you have questions about fasting, please contact Rabbi Guy Austrian, rabbi@ftjc.org.
- Breastfeeding and bottle-feeding are welcome anywhere. Other kids’ snacks should not be eaten in community prayer spaces, please.
- Greeters will be near the entry to help you find anything.
- Children must be supervised by grownups at all times--either family, childcare staff, or program leaders--due to the high volume of people and programming. Please explain this to your children in advance. Thank you.
- A booklet will be available with service times, service outlines, sermons, readings, and more.
- Feel free to bring a cushion if it will help you sit for long periods.
- Feel free to bring a book or other reading to help you enter the spirit of reflection and teshuvah of the holidays!
