Shabbat for Young Professionals

By: Rachel Mauro

Following in the footsteps of DC Birthright Israel NEXT’s Shabbat Hoppin’ and Sixth & I’s 6th in the City Shabbats, YP@AI, Adas Israel’s young professionals arm, has created the monthly “Shir Delight,” a lay-led Friday night service aimed for the 21-35 crowd.

Their first Shabbat took place last Friday, July 10, with about 50 people in attendance.

The “Oneg Happy Hour” started at 7 pm, an hour before the service, and allowed for friends to schmooze over drinks and appetizers. Elie Greenberg, Adas’s Director of Informal Programming, led the hour-long service, and Associate Rabbi Charles Feinberg gave a d’var Torah on the importance of commemorating the three weeks of mourning, which we are in now, and eulogized the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem among other Jewish tragedies.

But far from tragic, this Shabbat service was upbeat with plenty of songs (and harmonies) and people wishing their friends a "Shabbat Shalom." I’ve always been a fan of these services geared towards the “young professional” age group that might feel alienated from the traditional older crowds. We certainly bring something to the table—Rabbi Feinberg even said that Friday nights hadn’t been this spirited around the synagogue for a long time! YP@AI’s next “Shir Delight” is set to take place on August 14.