Emeth Teen Programming
Temple Emeth offers a variety of ways for our teens in grades 8-12 to engage with our tradition and each other. Our programs include mitzvah projects, trips around the New York area and beyond, opportunities to lead services, and social connections with other Jewish teens.
If you have questions about our teen programing, contact Rabbi Steven Sirbu at ssirbu@emeth.org.
Emeth Teen Community (ETC) Mitzvah
ETC Mitzvah is a monthly program that invites our teens in grades 8-12 to give back to the Temple community through acts of services and leadership. Each year, our teens build the Temple's sukkah, lead a B'nai Mitzvah Learner's service, and visit Temple seniors in their homes with holiday wishes. In 2022-23, we also helped to staff the Yad Leah Dash for Dignity and assembled the Temple Emeth's 75th anniversary museum display.
Our events always include a meal and the chance to catch up with friends.
Al HaDerekh—On the Road
Living in the New York area give our teens unparalleled access to museums, historic neighborhoods and other places that can enrich and expand what it means to be Jewish. For many years, Temple Emeth brought our teens to see these sites as part of ETC on the Road. In 2022, Temple Emeth began a collaboration with Temple Sinai in Tenafly and renamed the program Al HaDerekh—On the Road.
Al HaDerekh is a yearlong program that includes approximately eight trips. Most events include lunch, and all offer the chance for our teens to reflect on their Jewish values and identity. Transportation is provided by either bus or carpool depending on the destination.
In 2022-23, Al HaDerekh visited the Jewish deli exhibit at the New-York Historical Society (after enjoying a lunch of Jewish deli), took a walking tour of the Lower East Side, and visited the permanent exhibit of the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History in Philadelphia (with bonus stops at the Liberty Bell and Ben Franklin's grave). The highlight for many was Midnight Run, a late-night project in New York City to distribute food and clothing to unhoused people in need of sustenance and human connection.
Confirmation
Confirmation is a long-standing tradition in Reform Judaism. At Temple Emeth, it is considered an honors program open to all tenth-grade students. The six-month Confirmation process includes studying the texts of Shavuot with the Rabbi, attending a film or performance on Jewish themes, and writing a short essay for the Wilford Weill Memorial Essay contest.
The Confirmation process culminates on Erev Shavuot, as the class leads the festival service and offers excerpts of their essays to reflect their beliefs about Judaism at this pivotal time in their lives.
The next Confirmation service will take place on Tuesday, June 11, 2024.
For more information about Confirmation, contact Rabbi Steven Sirbu at ssirbu@emeth.org.
Religious Action Center (RAC) Trip to Washington for grades 10-12
The Religious Action Center (RAC) is the Reform Movement’s office in Washington, which advocates in our nation’s capital for the policies and values of our movement. Every year, the RAC offers the L’taken Teen Advocacy Seminar, known informally as “The RAC Trip.” This four-day, three-night program includes programming on Reform Jewish policy positions, the legislative process, tours of historic sites in Washington, and culminates in a trip to Capitol Hill to each participant’s senators and representatives office to deliver a an advocacy speech. Eligibility for the RAC Trip is limited to 10th to 12thgraders who are currently in Confirmation, Al HaDerekh, or ETC or who have completed Confirmation. For details, go to www.rac.org/ltaken.
