By Jon Marks
There’s a delicate balancing act going on at Mishkan Shalom, the Reconstructionist synagogue not only located within city limits but dedicated to making sure it maintains its city ties.
On one hand, the folks in Roxborough want to stand with Israel and the plight of the hostages. On the other, they don’t want to ruffle the feathers of members who are sympathetic to Palestinians.
“It’s an issue affecting all congregations who deal with it in different ways,” said Mishkan President Sharon Gornstein, who has served on various committees and on the board since joining MS in 1992. “We’ve been very conscious of not burying it in the sand. We confront our differences by having a number of meetings and events to bring people together. So far, we’ve been successful keeping everyone talking to each other, being respectful of each other and inclusive. We’ve always been a congregation, although we have differences of opinion; it’s not anywhere as wide as the general Jewish community.”
Mishkan Shalom was founded in 1988 by Rabbi Brian Walt, after one of those disagreements led to him leaving his Main Line shul and setting up shop in Haverford. From there, it moved to Chestnut Hill before settling in its current location in 2002.
“We have a lot of increasingly multifaith and multicultural families,” said Rabbi Shawn Zevit, who arrived in 2013. “So we have 10 to 15% who might identify as Jewish — or not Jewish in a person of color or some other minority ethnic background. There’s a lot of people committed to our principles and living that type of spiritually active Jewish life. Because our community itself has lots of different roots and backgrounds, I come to the table with that understanding. I grew up with multiculturalism. That influences me, too. The sense of being part of a community that has diversity.”
It’s also appealing to longtime congregant Jennifer Coburn, who plays mahjong here.
“It’s a pretty warm and welcoming place as synagogues should be,” she said. “I like their mix of spirituality, political activism and community. It feels right.”
Something else that hasn’t changed are their standards.
“The community pillars of evolving spirituality, tikkun olam, social justice and caring for each other, those are all core tenets,” Rabbi Zevit explained. “We serve people with special needs, LBGTQ individuals and people committed to both Israel and Palestine. That’s baked into our DNA. Even as the community continues to change and expand, those core values are at the center.”
But the rabbi and other Mishkan leaders want more. Specifically, they want to embrace the younger generation and get them more involved. That’s why new director of engagement and communications Daniel Ricken has created YAMS: Young Adults of Mishkan Shalom.
“I have the mentality that a synagogue should be somewhere people come to for spiritual connections, education or social connections,” said Ricken. “I think we do spiritual really well and education fairly well. The piece I’m looking to expand is making this a social community that has vibrancy. Having new folks engage in a really exciting way is why I started the YAMS program. We did a potato party in December and a latke and vodka night. Manayunk is a really exciting location for 20s and 30s folks, so we’ve gone to their street fairs and festivals.”
While youth must be served, a big part of Mishkan Shalom’s attraction is its history and the array of artwork you find everywhere you look inside the building. Start with a colorful panel with wooden artifacts representing the 12 tribes of Israel. Move over to the Yahrzeit and Holocaust Memorial, which remains lit night or day. Then check out the board shaped like a tree meant to address climate change put together by both the artist members and kids.
Finally, head into the Heschel-King room, where there’s a photo commemorating Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel marching for civil rights with Martin Luther King Jr. “Everything here has been designed and developed by our artist members and kids,” said Rabbi Zevit.
“The state of our principles is the trunk of the tree and all the values in Hebrew and English are the leaves. The next part is, how do we express that Jewishly? Part of Reconstruction Judaism is balancing creativity and tradition. That’s everywhere in what we do.”
What they also do is host a school for foster care children and flip the chairs around from behind the bimah, which lets Citylight Church parishioners use their main sanctuary for Sunday services. Considering that Mishkan Shalom means “Sanctuary of Peace,” it’s only fitting.
Finally, walk outside and you’ll find an amphitheater used as a sanctuary for summer services surrounded by flowers, trees and rocks next to a flowing stream. In May, it will be dedicated as an arboretum.
“To become an arboretum means you have at least 30 varieties of trees,” said the rabbi.
“You see outside we have a lot on the hillside and a whole amphitheater where we use natural rocks. It’s a testimony to our members, because the grounds are all maintained by volunteer members. They’re the ones planting the variety of trees and nurturing the flowers.”
Jon Marks is a Philadelphia-area freelance writer.
