Low Cost High Holiday Services

This is a little awkward, because I guess this is not the area you'd think to look for a cheap deal.... but here goes!

If you are looking for low-cost (or free in some cases) High Holiday services you can go to

http://nomembershiprequired.com/

They have a listing of low cost services in over 50 cities. In my city the charge was $50 for an individual which saved me $950 on synagogue membership. So if you are Jewish and looking for bargain services or would like to see for the first time what these services are about, you have found your source. (It does not appear to me that the services in the various cities are related one to another as they vary greatly in descriptions, price, and length of service)

Good luck!

I guess I learn something new everyday on FatWallet.

Good info OP.
Thanks so much for the effort.

captaybe said: This is a little awkward, because I guess this is not the area you'd think to look for a cheap deal.... but here goes!...

No, this IS the area where you'd be looking for a cheap or "Hot" deal, hence the forum's appellation "Hot Deals". What may seem a bit counter-intuitive or even "awkward" as you put it is looking for a cheap deal on the spiritual.

Of course guilding the spiritual along with extorting money from the congregation at-large seems a bit counter-intuitive as well.

I'm going to admit my ignorance. I had no idea that a person would have to pay to attend a Jewish religious service (or to attend a synagogue, for that matter). Though it's not a discussion for this forum, I'd be curious to know the justification for that.

Chabad.org has a complete listing of Chabad Center throughout the globe where one can find High Holiday Services (Most of them don’t even charge for tickets)

ezwrighter said: All churches have some form of money collection...I wouldn't be too judgmental.I'm not being judgemental, and I don't think anyone else has been so far either. I just never knew this kind of arrangement existed or was commonplace. I don't know of any other denomination that specifically charges for its services. It *is* quite a different approach from passing the plate IMO.

captaybe said: http://nomembershiprequired.com/

"Shabbat Shalom

Our site will be re-open shortly after Shabbos (NYC time)."

The site apparently shuts down for Shabbos, and a bit early [only 5:16pm, 2 hrs before sundown].

Thanks for the link, will check it out Sunday.

99% on Chabad.org don't charge

Alot of the confusion stems from the practice of Repentance. Most can walk into a church any time and say confession. In Judaism, there is a one week period called the High Holidays, during whch your thoughts and deeds of the past year are reflected upon. On the final day,you repent (fast) and ask for forgiveness. Your fate for the year is then sealed. It's a 'beyond capacity' time

TxAggieJen said: rhinoman1 said: I'm going to admit my ignorance. I had no idea that a person would have to pay to attend a Jewish religious service (or to attend a synagogue, for that matter). Though it's not a discussion for this forum, I'd be curious to know the justification for that.

In addition to what someone else here said about meeting fire code... Synagogues tend to charge for tickets because unaffiliated Jews (those who don't want to be members or cannot afford the dues structure) almost always still want to attend the high holiday services because it is biblically commanded to do so. The non-members really shouldn't be able to get seats to services and bump paying members out of their reserved seats. Just like there are some Christians who never go to church, except on Easter or Christmas.

Another reason synagogues charge.. the expense for these services, hiring the staff, providing food (for Rosh Hashannah for instance), electricity, extra policy security, extra parking, all of these things cost money. Most synagogues don't have huge coffers of money like the Vatican to provide free services for whoever shows up to attend. Many synagogues down here in the South don't have a huge amount of members either like the ones in New York, so they have to stretch every dollar they get. Trying to provide free services for people who come in from out of town for high holidays could break a small synagogue if they didn't charge something to help defray the costs.

But.. and this is extremely important.. Don't for a second think that if someone is poor or destitute that they will be turned away from High Holiday services. I have NEVER seen a poor person be turned away from services. If a person cannot afford $50 - $100 per ticket, they will be asked to give what they can. If there truly is no room for them, which I have seen happen once, they will be referred to someplace that has the space. I've never seen Chabad services packed to the gills (and I've attended several myself while I was unaffiliated), so those who cannot afford tickets always have that option.

If you are going to make factual claims, they should be correct:
1. Still want to attend the high holiday services because it is biblically commanded to do so - where did you get that from? The bible talks about the Sabbath, but the whole once a year, high holiday observance is more of a modern interpretation.
2. Most synagogues don't have huge coffers of money like the Vatican - apples and oranges my friend.
3. Providing food - so I have only attended high holiday services at 4 or 5 different synagogues during my lifetime, but other than a snack at the end of Yom Kippur, I have NEVER seen refreshments offered to the general public.

You do make an important point - no synagogue turns away those with financial difficulties - but tickets must still be requested in advance, some type of screening process. Our synagogue also offers a separate service for the unaffiliated.

ingenue007 said: i just learned a lot about jewish churches. thanks.

Ia is no different that any other religion that "requires a temple/church" to communicate with the creator. Either by passing the plate, or requiring memberships, or by requiring tickets to the highly popular events, religious organizations generate revenu to keep the buildings running and by paying staff salaries.

I am what would be considered a non-affiliated jew. I am only a jew because I was born to Jewish parents, I don't necesarraliy believe in god, but I do find it necessary to celebrate the holidays, as it is part of my cultural heritage, history of my people as you would say.

A lot of biblical stuff (Christianity and Islam are basically branches of Jewdaism, since they all believe in the same god (Ellah=Jesus's father=Allah) it is just the prophets that differ) is nothing more than a history book with a lot of what people at the time could not explain attributed to a devine deity. Trying to explain the Big Bang theory to a religious person is like trying to explain air foil lift to a barbarian. At some point you just give up and say "God made it that way"

My wife, on the other hand, is an observant jew, so I had to learn the hard way how much it costs to belong to a temple. A high profile temple can charge $5000-$10,000/year for a family membership (where do you think Christianity gets its "10% of you pay should go to church"???), "but it includes FREE High Holiday tickets!!!"

So, yes, this is definitly a good deal by OP.

shank said: TxAggieJen said: rhinoman1 said: I'm going to admit my ignorance. I had no idea that a person would have to pay to attend a Jewish religious service (or to attend a synagogue, for that matter). Though it's not a discussion for this forum, I'd be curious to know the justification for that.

In addition to what someone else here said about meeting fire code... Synagogues tend to charge for tickets because unaffiliated Jews (those who don't want to be members or cannot afford the dues structure) almost always still want to attend the high holiday services because it is biblically commanded to do so. The non-members really shouldn't be able to get seats to services and bump paying members out of their reserved seats. Just like there are some Christians who never go to church, except on Easter or Christmas.

Another reason synagogues charge.. the expense for these services, hiring the staff, providing food (for Rosh Hashannah for instance), electricity, extra policy security, extra parking, all of these things cost money. Most synagogues don't have huge coffers of money like the Vatican to provide free services for whoever shows up to attend. Many synagogues down here in the South don't have a huge amount of members either like the ones in New York, so they have to stretch every dollar they get. Trying to provide free services for people who come in from out of town for high holidays could break a small synagogue if they didn't charge something to help defray the costs.

But.. and this is extremely important.. Don't for a second think that if someone is poor or destitute that they will be turned away from High Holiday services. I have NEVER seen a poor person be turned away from services. If a person cannot afford $50 - $100 per ticket, they will be asked to give what they can. If there truly is no room for them, which I have seen happen once, they will be referred to someplace that has the space. I've never seen Chabad services packed to the gills (and I've attended several myself while I was unaffiliated), so those who cannot afford tickets always have that option.

If you are going to make factual claims, they should be correct:
1. Still want to attend the high holiday services because it is biblically commanded to do so - where did you get that from? The bible talks about the Sabbath, but the whole once a year, high holiday observance is more of a modern interpretation.
2. Most synagogues don't have huge coffers of money like the Vatican - apples and oranges my friend.
3. Providing food - so I have only attended high holiday services at 4 or 5 different synagogues during my lifetime, but other than a snack at the end of Yom Kippur, I have NEVER seen refreshments offered to the general public.

You do make an important point - no synagogue turns away those with financial difficulties - but tickets must still be requested in advance, some type of screening process. Our synagogue also offers a separate service for the unaffiliated.1. One of the 613 mitzvot: To hear the Shofar on the first day of Tishrei (Rosh Hashanah) [Num. 29:1]. Kind of difficult to do that outside of a synagogue.

3. Many synagogues regularly have an oneg shabbat or kiddush following services, usually sponsored by a family celebrating a joyous event or by the temple's sisterhood/brotherhood service organization.

Most temples will provide a reduced membership fee based on income if a member cannot afford it. That said, in many communities with a sizable Jewish population, there will be several temples. People will chose a temple to affiliate with not just based on the particular branch of belief, but sometimes by membership fee, or whether or not that particular synagogue provides certain services such a Hebrew school, tot services, babysitting, the rabbi's personality, etc.

Like the old joke about a Jew shipwrecked on a deserted island and the first thing he did was build two synagogues. Years later he was rescued, the rescuers were confused and asked him why did he build 2 synagogues?

He replied "Oh that other one... I would NEVER go there!"

<rimshot>

shank said: a separate service for the unaffiliated.

That is sooooo tacky and could possibly be seen as humiliating the poor (particularly by any poor people who may be forced to attend if they have no other option and cannot afford membership). Humiliating the poor is definitely not allowed. I know I would not want to attend a service like that if it was going to be labeled as such.

Where we go charges a sliding scale, from $600 - $3,850 based only on age. I'm at the $3,850 level and can't imagine what they do with all the money.

And I'm not making much more now than what I did at the age for the $600 membership fee. Lousy system.

plane said: Where we go charges a sliding scale, from $600 - $3,850 based only on age. I'm at the $3,850 level and can't imagine what they do with all the money.

And I'm not making much more now than what I did at the age for the $600 membership fee. Lousy system.
As has been mentioned several times, there are staff salaries, utilities, security, mortgage, building upkeep, etc.

If you don't like the system at your particular shul, you've got 3 options: find another temple, run for your temple's board of directors & make changes to the system, or start another temple.

For those unable to attend services, there will be holiday services streamed live from the nondenominational Congregation Beth Adam in suburban Cincinnati. All services are free and do not require a password:

http://www.ourjewishcommunity.org/

http://www.ourjewishcommunity.org/OJC_LiveStreaming.htm

Live Streaming Service Times for 2010:

* Rosh Hashanah Evening: 8:15 PM ET on Wednesday, September 8
* Rosh Hashanah Morning: 10:30 AM ET on Thursday, September 9
* Rosh Hashanah Children’s Service: 1:30 PM ET on Thursday, September 9
* Yom Kippur Evening (Kol Nidrei): 8:15 PM ET on Friday, September 17
* Yom Kippur Morning: 10:30 AM ET on Saturday, September 18
* Yom Kippur Children’s Service: 1:30 PM ET on Saturday, September 18
* Yom Kippur Memorial Service: 4:00 PM ET on Saturday, September 18

StevenColorado said: Thanks, OP!

Please note that this list is NOT complete. I know of two synagogues in Denver and Colorado Springs that accept nonmembers free of charge on High Holidays, that are not listed. I'll contact both and suggest they get listed here.

Could you please post which one in the Springs please? I was just bumming out as I had meant to look into this ahead of time! TIA