Independent Jewish Shul in Brookline, MA

Contact Us: 617-566-8171 | info@tbzbrookline.org

Come as You Are

אם אין בתי כנסיות... אין הקדוש ברוך הוא משרה שכינה בעולם

Im ein batei kneisiyot… ein Hakadosh Barukh Hu mashreh shekhina ba`olam.

If there were no synagogues… the Divine Shechina would have nowhere to rest in the world.

— Midrash Esther Raba, Petichata 11

Welcome! Thank you for your interest in our TBZ community. We invite you in – to explore, to grow, to connect, and to make TBZ your home.

Here you will find a community of people participating in ways that express a commitment to each other, to joyful participatory worship, to meaningful Jewish learning, to spiritual growth, and to acts of social justice — all while building an Olam Hesed – a world of love and compassion.

Our diverse community is populated by an extraordinary mix of people who are here to welcome you and get to know you. We are families and singles, solo parents and aging sages, students and teachers, LGBTQA identified, differently abled, interfaith and multicultural, Jews by choice, Jews of color, seekers of all kinds. We strive to create a space where all feel safe and comfortable bringing our true authentic selves.

Our members come from a wide variety of spiritual and life paths and you are likely to meet someone at TBZ with a familiar story. Some of us were raised in observant families and others are joining a shul for the first time. Some were b’nei mitzvah at 13 and others joined our Adult B’nei Mitzvah group. Some used to attend services only on the High Holy Days and now come weekly to Shabbat services. Some among us had attended synagogues regularly, dutifully (if passively) following along in the prayer books, reading responsively and standing when asked, only to discover that something was missing. Many of us came to TBZ out of a longing we could barely begin to articulate, even to ourselves.

Here you will encounter a great mixture of human beings and a multitude of stories, each distinct – and all received with curiosity, compassion, dignity, and warmth.

Come as you are, bring your whole self. TBZ is open to you.