Maccabeats headline Congregation B’nai Jacob celebration of Rabbi Jeff Sultar
PHOENIXVILLE >> Congregation B’nai Jacob of Phoenixville has announced an extension of its Covenantal Partnership with Rabbi Jeff Sultar as its spiritual leader.
A celebration honoring Rabbi Sultar is scheduled for Sunday, April 18, at 7 p.m., with a special Zoom live concert featuring the internationally acclaimed a capella group, The Maccabeats.
“Congregation B’nai Jacob has been blessed with Rabbi Jeff Sultar’s spiritual leadership since late 2015, and we are excited to celebrate a new 5-year contract together, said Congregation President Mark Snow. “Rabbi Sultar has demonstrated a profound sense of spirituality, deep scholarly knowledge, and leveraged his unique experiences in building our community. We are fortunate, particularly at this juncture, for CBJ to have Rabbi Sultar, with his expertise in community engagement, pastoral guidance, and Judaic teaching, to lead us forward.”
Rabbi Sultar, who is actively involved in all aspects of synagogue life, said that he looks forward to continuing to partner with the congregation, staff and lay leadership to build upon CBJ’s unique identity and vision.
Reflecting on the last five years at CBJ, Rabbi Sultar said that “together with the CBJ Community, we have studied, prayed, and socialized together, celebrated Simchas and mourned losses and continue to weather the challenges of COVID-19 together. Our congregation is a place where families and individuals come for spiritual and intellectual sustenance, a place where joy is intensified and grief is lessened by the presence of the community. I’m excited to continue to guide and grow with this amazing Community.”
For tickets to the Zoom concert featuring The Maccabeats,
go www.congbj. org/maccabeats About The Maccabeats Originally formed in 2007, as a Yeshiva University’s student vocal group, the Maccabeats have emerged as both Jewish music and an a cappella phenomenon, with a large fanbase of more than 20 million views on YouTube, numerous TV appearances, and proven success with four albums, 2010 s Voices From The Heights, 2012 s Out Of The Box, 2014 s One Day More and 2015 s A Maccabeats Hanukkah. Though the Maccabeats are not your grandfather’s synagogue choir, their ideology and identity play an important part in what they do. Their breakthrough piece, Lecha Dodi, is the epitome of this synthesis, combining some of the most beloved words of Jewish liturgy with Leonard Cohen’s meaningful and melodic “Hallelujah.”
About Congregation B’nai Jacob
Congregation B’nai Jacob is located in Phoenixville
and includes families from Chester and Montgomery counties. For more than 100 years, CBJ has welcomed and connected diverse individuals into a warm and inclusive congregation. CBJ is a vibrant synagogue, dedicated to sustaining a strong Jewish community and fulfilling our members’ spiritual, social and educational needs; encouraging the principles of Conservative Judaism, and championing social action. Our religious school extends from K through 7th grade and makes a special effort to accommodate children with different learning
styles and diverse family and cultural backgrounds. About Rabbi Jeff Sultar Rabbi Sultar is a graduate of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in Wyncote, Pennsylvania. While there, he received the Berger Prize in Practical Rabbinics and the Socolow Prize for Outstanding Essay. His undergraduate education was at Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts; he completed a concentration in English and a program in Environmental Studies. Rabbi Sultar also participated in the Institute for Jewish Spirituality for Rabbis, a two-year
program of retreats, meditation practice and weekly text study.
Rabbi Sultar wrote a book about the spiritual side of his solo, 27-month, 46-state, 16,000-mile bicycle journey throughout the United States, during which he bartered work in exchange for food and lodging in over 400 communities. His interests include movies, music, art, reading, theater, travel, nature and racquet sports of all kinds. He lets few days go by without at least a taste of chocolate. He is married to Julia Bell and has 3 children.