Every shul-goer matters. We must do more to win them all back

ON SUNDAY, the United Synagogue brought together more than 100 of our lay leaders at Stanmore and Canons Park Synagogue. It was our first inperson training event for two years and it was wonderful to be in the company again of our chairs, honorary officers and synagogue council members. And, yes, the food was great too.

The spectre of Ukraine loomed large and we prayed at the start of the conference for a swift end to the fighting. Our hearts go out to the people there, including its sizeable Jewish community.

The gathering — our Inspired Jewish Leadership Conference — gave our lay leaders the opportunity to engage in conversations with us and with each other on a range of subjects including vision setting, making shul programming more engaging for our young people, and ways to better involve women in our communities.

Also discussed was phasing out disposables from our kiddushes; making our communities more inclusive for people with special educational needs or disabilities; exploring how the pandemic has changed volunteering; and creating engaging educational programmes.

All of these subjects offer new ways of inspiring our members and connecting them to their community and their faith.

But it’s no secret that across the board, we have work to do to welcome back many of our members – in particular, those whose regular attendance at shul services was interrupted by the pandemic and is yet to restart.

If we do nothing, I am very worried that the connection which was once so strong could be severed forever.

It’s not all bad news. Over the last few months, we have seen attendances rising again across our shuls. Some are reporting that numbers attending services are back to what they were before the pandemic. Others have found that the proliferation of online events and learning opportunities has meant that more people are participating in programming than pre-pandemic.

Kiddush is back, providing a welcome and much-missed chance to catch up with friends while enjoying a l’chaim or two.

And with the government removing the final Covid restrictions and the success of the vaccine and booster programmes, more people are feeling comfortable returning again to in-person community life.

But I still feel that as an organisation, we need to do more.

The United Synagogue is rightly known for its warm and welcoming services. But the pandemic showed us that when we were forced to make Shabbat morning services shorter, we were able to do so in a way which allowed us to daven properly without cutting corners or quality.

And what’s more, many members liked a service that was zippier and at times more inspiring than previously.

Our membership survey last year revealed that 41 per cent of respondents wanted their shul to maintain the streamlined services.

I will be working with our dedicated rabbinate to consider what might work for individual shuls.

We have to be inspiring and relevant, proud of and committed to our traditions, while able to articulate the value Judaism can add to our modern lives.

This is why we have launched Project Welcome, an initiative that does exactly what it says on the tin. We want to — and we must — welcome back people we’ve not seen for some time. Every member matters.

In partnership with the Chief Rabbi and his office, Project Welcome will provide strategic support and significant financial backing to help each community to seize this opportunity.

At Sunday’s conference, the Chief Rabbi challenged us not simply to think about how we can return Jewish and shul life to how it was before the pandemic, but how we can and must re-energise and invigorate our communities to lift them to greater heights.

In the words of the Chief Rabbi, we need to be radical. May God send us all blessing and success.