Short Hills church, temple take part in a ‘magical’ exchange

by Johanna Ginsberg
NJJN Staff Writer

Lynn Magrane of Short Hills has driven by Congregation B’nai Jeshurun for years. And yet, she had never been inside the Reform synagogue until Sept. 16, when she arrived for part one of the Sabbath of Understanding.

The experience was “wonderful,” she said. “I loved the prayers. They are so meaningful, so lyrical. And the music was ethereal.”

The Friday night service kicked off a two-part interfaith exchange between B’nai Jeshurun and Community Congregational Church, affiliated with the United Church of Christ. On Sept. 25, the two Short Hills congregations came together again at the church.

The project was dreamed up by the synagogue’s Cantor Howard Stahl, who wanted to do more together with other faith communities than the annual Thanksgiving service. “I’m a great believer in interfaith work,” he told NJJN. “I thought the Sabbath would be a perfect time [for this kind of exchange.] It’s a time of rest, a time to shut out work and perhaps prejudice, too. I wanted to create a moment of understanding of each faith through worship, without feeling threatened.”

He and Rabbi Laurence Groffman thought Community Congregational Church would be a good match for B’nai Jeshurun; the two houses of worship have similar demographics, a long relationship among the clergy, and a shared musical director, Warren H. Brown.

“We live together in the same community, but oftentimes, people who live together do not know each other or each other’s religious traditions,” said Groffman.

The program offered the clergy the opportunity to serve in an official capacity in each other’s services. The Rev. Dr. Johann Bosman delivered the sermon at B’nai Jeshurun, and Groffman delivered his own sermon at the church. Both offered participants a general overview, in their talks, of the critical tenets of each one’s respective faith. “Obviously, the two sermons do not begin to cover everything you wanted to know about the religion but were afraid to ask — but it’s a beginning,” said Groffman. Both clergy also emphasized that despite their differences, they were both working for God. As Bosman said, “All of us are trying to be better children of God. No matter the differences, we always share that in common.”

And, with the backing of the two choirs, Stahl sang “Amazing Grace” at the church.

Myron Katz, a member of B’nai Jeshurun, told NJ Jewish News he did not feel at all threatened by the service; rather, he was moved to contrast the emotions it evoked in him with those of his childhood. “To be honest, I had tears in my eyes. I can remember growing up, I remember the anti-Semitism as a young boy and during the Korean war. I have a feeling today — it’s unbelievable.”

Early in the church service, Groffman sat on the floor with Bosman and youngsters in attendance. The two clergy delivered a children’s sermon, comparing and contrasting their religions, from the writing on their robes, to the kinds of things the children learn in Sunday school, to the different seasons that begin their respective years. In discussing the upcoming holiday season, Bosman asked Groffman, “When the children run into their friends while they’re off on Rosh Hashana, is there something they can say, other than ‘Thank you for the day off?’” Groffman, in what seemed to be a spontaneous but was actually a well-scripted dialogue, responded, “Have a good new year, or in Hebrew, you could say, ‘Shana tova.’” The children repeated the phrase at his direction.

For several B’nai Jeshurun members, the children’s service was most poignant. “Watching the clergy talking to the children was magical,” said Paulette Katz, Myron’s wife. “The children are so pure, so alert. They were listening intently. And they are our future. Something good has to come of it.”

Others, like Jodi Cooperman, enjoyed seeing the children as the focus of the adult service and suggested it offered a model that could be incorporated into synagogue services.

For the members of the church, it was a chance to get to know their neighbors in a new way. “I enjoyed learning about the Talmud and other things I didn’t know about,” said Linda Leiby. And Magrane felt it was especially important that both clergy focused on the idea of “working together and learning from each other.”

As Nancy Simpkins of B’nai Jeshurun said, “The message is that we’re all in this together.”

Johanna Ginsberg can be reached at jginsberg@njjewishnews.com.

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