Author: Leah Kanzer

Celebrate Purim with New Synagogue Project, the event that launched our community 6 (!!!) years ago! Our focus at Purim this year will be on solidarity, sisterhood, and collective freedom. Through political theater and art we will uplift stories of cycles of liberation and oppression, including both Palestinian and Jewish liberation. Purim reminds us that JOY is a necessary spiritual practice, a form of resistance, and an opening for radical love. Purim is a holiday known for costumes, masks, identity fluidity, raucous dance, scrumptious treats, and – for grownups who partake – abundant booze. NSP goes BIG at Purim, celebrating with live entertainment, art, fundraising, and local justice organizing. Kiddos and their adults are invited to the Kids Purim Party on Sunday, March 24th and all adults are invited to our Megillah Reading & Radical Purim Party on Saturday, March 23rd. NSP’s Megillah Reading & Radical Purim Party *SATURDAY*, March 23rd​ Megillah Reading: 7:00pm Party & Entertainment: 8:00pm – midnight Location: Ivy City Smokehouse (indoor + outdoor) Tickets: $10 – $36 (sliding scale) Proceeds benefit CASA On the program, **drumroll, please** Petworth’s own kind & funny drag queen, Tara Hoot Megillah reading by NSP’s Leyn for Liberation study group A Purim Spiel, written, produced, & acted by your fellow NSP members  The first performance of NSP’s Radical Marching Band Ecstatic dance! Hamantaschen! And much much more! Register Here for NSPs Radical Purim Party Ivy City Smokehouse is both an indoor and outdoor venue. The megillah reading will happen outdoors and other performances will happen indoors. All attendees must be vaccinated against COVID-19, take a rapid COVID test before arriving (tests will be available onsite), mask while indoors, and eat and drink outdoors. ASL interpretation will be provided for the Megillah reading, spiel, and guest performance. If you have other access requests events please reach out to access@newsynagogueproject.org. All requests are welcome! In the spirit of the mitzvot (sacred obligations) of Purim, which call on us to give resources to ensure all can rejoice, ticket proceeds from our Radical Purim Party each year are donated to a local social justice group organizing to create a world of freedom and liberation. This year, we are raising funds for CASA. CASA provides critical services to immigrant and working-class families, and advocates for their rights. As a national membership based organization, CASA uses its powerbuilding that blends human services, community organizing, and advocacy in order to serve the full spectrum of the needs, dreams, and aspirations of members. Register Here to Join the Party Purim for Kids & Families at NSP NSP Kids Purim Party Party time, kid style! Kids (and grown-ups!) come in costume to make crafts, play lawn games, sing, and eat hamantaschen! Rabbi Yosef will tell the Purim story! Sunday, March 24, 10:30am-12:30pm Location: Rock Creek Park Grove #7 Register Here for the NSP Kids Purim Party Purim Cookie Baking Kids Team Hamantaschen Baking It’s time to bake cookies!! Come join the kids team for a communal baking extravaganza. Baking will occur in two shifts starting at 5pm or 7pm. Dinner will be provided! Wednesday March 20th, 5-9 pm Location: Takoma, DC (address confirmed after registration) Register to join the NSP Kids Team Hamantaschen Baking**** Space is limited & will be filled first come, first-served basis CALLING BAKING LOVERS: If you are not a parent who needs to take their kiddo to bed, and want to help close out and clean up at the kids baking event (~8-9pm), please email holidays@newsynagogueproject.org to get plugged into supporting this event! Community Purim Baking Do you enjoy baking? Or maybe just love to make a mess in the kitchen? Join fellow community members to make hamantaschen and biscochos for the Radical Purim Party. Keep an eye out for information on how to register coming soon to your inbox. Sunday, March 17th, 2-6 pm Location: Hyattsville, MD (address confirmed after registration) **Space is limited & will be filled first come, first-served basis Purim Participatory Art Build Help our Purim Spiel come to life! Join NSP community members for an art build to create set pieces, props, and art for our Radical Purim Party. No experience necessary! Sunday, March 9, 4-6pm Location: Petworth, DC (address included after registration) Register to join the Purim Art Build** **Space is limited & will be filled first come, first-served basis Jews of Color Purim Craft Party Join the NSP JOC Space for a Purim craft party for Jews of Color and multiracial families of all ages! Let’s talk about the Persian roots of the holiday, and create crafts that you can take with you or we will use to decorate the NSP Purim party.NSP’s JOC Space serves Jews of color and Jews with Sephardi, Mizrahi, and Indigenous heritage, as well as folks of color and of Indigenous heritage connected to our community who do not identify as Jewish. Saturday, March 16, 12-2 pm Location: Petworth, DC (address included after registration) Register to join the JOC Craft Party Access Information ASL interpretation will be provided for the Megillah reading, spiel, and guest performance! To request ASL interpretation or CART captioning for other NSP events, please email access@newsynagogueproject.org. We typically need at least 48 hours to fill a request; but, please reach out, even with short notice, and we’ll do our best to meet your needs! If you have any other access needs or requests, please email access@newsynagogueproject.org.

We return to you and you return to us.
הֲדַרַן עַלָךְ וְהֲדַרַך עֲלָן
(hadran alakh v’hadrakh alan)

Dear NSP Community,

One year ends and another begins: a cycle completed. When the world may seem scary, unprecedented and uncertain, we return to ritual, radical imagination, and community. We return to self, the Divine, and what sustains and grounds us. We honor and learn from the past as we move toward change and transformation.

The community we have all built together is the true heart of NSP. With that spirit of togetherness, collaboration, and hope for the future, we’re thrilled to announce that registration is now OPEN for the High Holidays. We hope you can join us, in-person or online, as we usher in a new year full of hope, joyful intention, and a renewed commitment to each other and ourselves. ALL are welcome, regardless of NSP membership status or ability to pay.

Register today to join NSP for the High Holidays! Registration closes on August 31, so don’t wait. 

An important note: August 31st is an ACTUAL DEADLINE, so that we have enough time to prepare for the joyful and momentous task of putting on High Holidays programming for our entire community. Please register now, and make sure your spot is saved before August 31st!

Here’s what to expect from the NSP High Holidays this year.

A note on COVID Safety:
While we are thrilled to be gathering together in-person this year, we remain mindful of the continued risk COVID-19 poses to our members and to the wider DC community.

This year we continue to embrace a hybrid approach: Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur adult services will be held both in person (indoors) and online. We will also be offering indoor children’s services; outdoor school-age kids’ programming; an outdoor, in-person Tashlich ritual; and outdoor events with our Jews of Color Space. More details provided below about COVID safety & precautions! 

High Holiday Services:
We are thrilled to welcome back Batya Levine, who will be co-leading the adult services with Rabbi Yosef again this year, in addition to a special Tashlich ritual and shofar service on the second day of Rosh Hashanah.

In-person services will be held in an accessible location indoors (with COVID precautions), in the Columbia Heights/Petworth area. Exact locations and accessibility details will be emailed to registrants. Childcare will be provided for all adult services. Registration will close on August 31!

Rosh Hashanah

Friday, Sept 15
Jews of Color & Multiracial Families Rosh Hashanah Dinner & Seder | In person (outdoors)

Saturday, Sept 16
Adult Morning Service & Kiddush | In person (indoors) or online
Children’s Morning Service (Ages 1-5) | In person (indoors)
School-Age Kids’ Afternoon Program (K-3rd Grade/ 4-7th Grade) | In person (outdoors)

Sunday, Sept 17
Jews of Color & Multiracial Families Seudah/Luncheon | In person (outdoors)
Afternoon Shofar Service & Tashlich (Casting Away Ritual) | In person (outdoors; bring your own picnic!)

Yom Kippur

Sunday, Sept 24: 
Kapparot (Community Support Ritual) | In person (outdoors)
Kol Nidre (Yom Kippur Evening) Service | In person (indoors) or online

Monday, Sept 25:
Adult Morning Service | In person (indoors) or online
Children’s Morning Service (Ages 1-5) | In person (indoors)
Yom Kippur Learning Spaces and Quiet Spaces | In person (indoors or outdoors)
School-Age Kids’ Afternoon Program (K-3rd Grade/4th-7th Grade) | In person (outdoors)
Ne’ilah (Closing) Service | In person (indoors) or onlineBreak-fast | In person (outdoors)

For more details, including service times, visit the High Holiday Services section of our website!

NSP High Holiday programs are free of charge to be as financially accessible as possible. We ask those who are able to support our programs by making a sliding scale donation when reserving your High Holidays ticket. NSP is a volunteer-driven, non-profit organization, and your support allows us to continue to serve our community and keep our services open and affordable to all.

We also need and appreciate extra hands for the High Holidays! If you are interested in volunteering for any of our services or programming, please let us know when you fill out the registration form. 

COVID Precautions:
We want programming to be available to as many congregants as possible, while maintaining our commitment to pikuach nefesh, safeguarding life, as a central value: “We hold that to save one member of our community is to save and preserve the entire community of NSP and beyond.” 

In accordance with NSP’s COVID policy, all attendees who are eligible must be fully vaccinated for in-person events. Masks will be strictly required for all indoor High Holiday events, in addition to rapid testing. Rapid tests and N95/KN95 masks will be supplied on site for those who need them. For more details, please visit the High Holidays COVID Safety Information page on our website.

We recognize that some people may still prefer to avoid large in-person gatherings. We encourage you to join us for High Holidays online, and/or in whatever way feels best and safest to you! Please reach out to us if there’s anything we can do to make your High Holiday experience safer and more comfortable.

Accessibility Information:
We are committed to making the High Holidays accessible and inclusive for all who wish to attend, including CART captioning, ASL interpretation, and wheelchair/mobility aid accessible locations. 

For full details on how we are planning to meet our community’s access needs, please visit the High Holidays Accessibility Information page on our website. If you have any access needs that aren’t met by these plans, please email access@newsynagogueproject.org, so that we can work to meet them.

Ready to register? Click here to join NSP for the High Holidays!

Still have questions? Email our High Holidays team at administration@newsynagogueproject.org.