Join us for extra-joyous Shabbat-Passover morning services,followed by a light kiddush (snacks and socializing)!
In addition to usual services and Torah and haftarah reading, we’ll sing Hallel (Psalms of praise sung on holidays) and chant Shir ha-Shirim (Song of Songs, a Biblical book of love poetry).
Please bring a packaged, certified-kosher-for-Passover snack to share.
Supervised childcare will be provided in Makom’s playroom during services.
Free, but please register by Tuesday, March 31 so we know how many folks to expect:
Please try to come on time so we can start services strong with a double minyan,* especially for anyone saying kaddish.
*As a diverse and inclusive Jewish community, Makom has mens’, womens’, and all-genders’ seating sections. Female, male, and gender non-binary Jews can lead parts of services, read and be called up to the Torah, and count in our double minyanim of both 10 Jewish men and 10 Jews regardless of gender. Makom services follow the traditional Ashkenazi liturgy (prayer text).
Makom welcomes participants of all abilities. Makom’s main space is wheelchair accessible; unfortunately, the washroom and playroom are not. If you have an accessibility need or require any accommodations, please reach out to us.
Join us for a fun afternoon making and baking Matzah in an outdoor, wood-burning oven!
Sunday, March 29 | 2-5 pm – Christie Pits
See if you can mix, knead, roll and bake in 18 minutes or less! (Matzah won’t be kosher for Passover but it’s still a wonderful way to prepare for Pesah).
All ages welcome: adults, kids & teens.
Passover craft & stories for the kiddos.
Only $7/person if you register by Thursday night, March 26. ($12/person after that.)
Register for the time slot when you want to come to minimize wait time for the oven.
Teens & pre-teens recommended to register for 4pm shift.
Rain or shine! We have sheltered space.
We welcome participants of all abilities. If you have an accessibility need or require any accommodations, please reach out to us.
Supervised childcare will be provided in Makom’s playroom during services.
After lunch, Naama Baumgarten Sharon will lead an interactive learning session.
Since completing an MA in Bible at the Hebrew university in 2009, Naama has focused her professional efforts on the protection of human rights and advancement of social justice, while continuing to embrace opportunities to learn Torah and find the bridge between these two worlds.
Posted on by Ben in Makom Families, Shabbat | Comments Off on Aug 16 – Family Shabbat in the Park
Join other downtown Jewish families for a Shabbat afternoon in the Park + Picnic! Enjoy some playground time, outdoor games, stories, and songs in a relaxed environment.
Saturday, August 16 4:30 – 6:30pm @ Vermont Square Park, M5R 3G5 (map) Registration is free!
B.Y.O. Picnic Dinner, Blanket & Water Bottles!
Geared for families with children ages 0-11. This is not a drop-off program – let’s spend time together to celebrate Shabbat!
All families welcome, including LGBTQ+ and interfaith/intercultural families!
In the event of rain, the program will be cancelled.
Any Qs? Email Sarah English, Makom’s Director of Youth Education & Programming.
Presented by Makom: Creative Downtown Judaism, MNjcc’s Families @ the J, and PJ Library
Posted on by Ben in Shabbat | Comments Off on Aug 15 – Friday Night Services + Shabbat Dinner
Wind down from the week and welcome Shabbat with soulful, song-filled services, in which everyone can participate. After services, we’ll enjoy a delicious, catered kosher vegan Shabbat dinner and each other’s warm company.
Friday, August 15 7:00pm – 10pm @ Makom (map) Dinner registration required by Thursday, August 14 at 10am.
No need to register if you’re coming just for services and not staying for dinner. Become a Makom Member first and save 10%.
Please try to come on time for services at 7:00pm.
Services
Makom is a diverse and inclusive community that welcomes participants with many different approaches to Judaism, from secular to traditionally observant. Our services blend traditional and progressive practices, so our community can join together without regard to denominational labels.
We offer men’s, women’s, and mixed (all-genders) seating sections. All genders may lead parts of services. We need an egalitarian minyan of 10 Jews and a non-overlapping traditional minyan of 10 men to start the maariv service, so we encourage you to come on time.
Accessibility Information
Makom welcomes participants of all abilities. Makom’s main space is wheelchair accessible; unfortunately, the washroom and playroom are not. There are wheelchair accessible washrooms one block away at the coffee shop at the corner of Bathurst and College. If you have an accessibility need or require any accommodations, please reach out to us.
Posted on by Ben in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Aug 2 – Tishah be-Av
Please join us for a powerful, contemplative evening marking historical Jewish loss and ongoing brokenness in the world as we usher in Tishah be-Av, the ninth day of the lunar month of Av.This date marks the destruction of the Temples in Jerusalem and other tragedies in Jewish history. It is traditionally observed with fasting, refraining from wearing leather, and other mourning customs. (For more background, see here.)
Saturday, August 2 10:00 – 11:30pm @Makom (map) Bring Food or $$ to Donate + Flashlight No registration required
We’ll pray the brief evening service and listen to the Biblical book of Eikhah/Lamentations, hauntingly chanted by community members. We’ll also sing somber songs; read kinnot (elegies) for ancient calamities, the Holocaust, and October 7; and chant niggunim (wordless melodies).
As signs of mourning, it’s customary to sit on the floor of the synagogue with the lights dimmed, so please bring a flashlight.
Please BRING FOOD, CASH, or CREDIT for our neighbours at Fort York Food Bank, in keeping with the spirit of Isaiah 58:6-7, “This is the fast I desire… It is to share your bread with the hungry.” Fresh produce, grains, and canned or boxed foods are all welcome, as are cash and credit card donations.
Doors open at 10:00pm; services begin promptly at 10:15pm.
FYI, in Toronto, the fast begins Saturday at 8:38pm, Shabbat ends at 9:28pm, and the fast ends Sunday at 9:27pm.
Posted on by Ben in Shabbat | Comments Off on July 26 – Shabbat Morning Services + Lunch n’ Learn
Join us for soulful and song-filled Shabbat morning services, followed by a delicious Shabbat lunch and stimulating learning! At lunch, we’ll learn from Prof. Alan Verskin on the topic: “Maimonides & the Identity Crisis of a Jew by Choice”
Saturday, July 26 9:30am – 2:30pm @ Makom (map) Lunch registration required by Friday, July 25 at 12 noon.
Services don’t require registration – no need to register if you’re not staying for lunch! Become a Makom Member first and save 10%.
Supervised childcare will be provided in Makom’s playroom during services.
Please try to come on time so we can start services strong with a double minyan,* especially for anyone saying kaddish.
At lunch, Prof. Alan Verskin will teach us on “Maimonides & the Identity Crisis of a Jew by Choice.”
The Middle Ages were famously a time of forced conversions of Jews to other religions, but less well known are the instances of conversion to Judaism. Rabbi Moses Maimonides, who himself may have lived for a time as a Muslim, was deeply interested in the ramifications of conversion, both for the converts themselves and for the communities which they joined. In this talk, we’ll discuss both Maimonides’ legal theory about how to treat converts to Judaism and his correspondence with one particular convert named Obadiah, who asked for Maimonides’ help in navigating his conversion and crisis of identity.
Professor Alan Verskin is the Samuel J. Zacks Chair of Jewish History at the University of Toronto. His areas of research include religious, legal, and social history in both Jewish and Islamic contexts, from the middle ages through the nineteenth century. He is particularly interested in travel, translation, and the migration of ideas between religious communities. He is also interested in intellectual responses to religious persecution and minorityhood. What unites and connects all of these areas is an emphasis on paying attention to the first-person stories of those whose perspectives have been marginalized. Read more…
Services
Makom is a diverse and inclusive community that welcomes participants with many different approaches to Judaism, from secular to traditionally observant. Our services blend traditional and progressive practices, so our community can join together without regard to denominational labels.
We offer men’s, women’s, and mixed (all-genders) seating sections. All genders may lead parts of services. We need an egalitarian minyan of 10 Jews and a non-overlapping traditional minyan of 10 men to start the maariv service, so we encourage you to come on time.
Accessibility Information
Makom welcomes participants of all abilities. Makom’s main space is wheelchair accessible; unfortunately, the washroom and playroom are not. There are wheelchair accessible washrooms one block away at the coffee shop at the corner of Bathurst and College. If you have an accessibility need or require any accommodations, please reach out to us.
Posted on by Ben in Makom Families | Comments Off on July 12 – Family Shabbat in the Park
Join other downtown Jewish families for a Shabbat afternoon in the Park + Picnic! Enjoy some playground time, outdoor games, stories, and songs in a relaxed environment.
Saturday, July 12 4:30 – 6:30pm @ Vermont Square Park, M5R 3G5 (map) Registration is free!
B.Y.O. Picnic Dinner, Blanket & Water Bottles!
Geared for families with children ages 0-11. This is not a drop-off program – let’s spend time together to celebrate Shabbat!
All families welcome, including LGBTQ+ and interfaith/intercultural families!
In the event of rain, the program will be cancelled.
Any Qs? Email Sarah English, Makom’s Director of Youth Education & Programming.
Presented by Makom: Creative Downtown Judaism, MNjcc’s Families @ the J, and PJ Library
Posted on by Ben in Shabbat, Uncategorized | Comments Off on July 11 – Friday Night Services + Shabbat Dinner
Wind down from the week and welcome Shabbat with soulful, song-filled services, in which everyone can participate. After services, we’ll enjoy a delicious, catered kosher vegan Shabbat dinner and each other’s warm company.
Friday, July 11 7:15pm – 10pm @ Makom (map) Dinner registration required by Thursday, July 10 at 10am.
No need to register if you’re coming just for services and not staying for dinner. Become a Makom Member first and save 10%.
Please try to come on time for services at 7:15pm.
Services
Makom is a diverse and inclusive community that welcomes participants with many different approaches to Judaism, from secular to traditionally observant. Our services blend traditional and progressive practices, so our community can join together without regard to denominational labels.
We offer men’s, women’s, and mixed (all-genders) seating sections. All genders may lead parts of services. We need an egalitarian minyan of 10 Jews and a non-overlapping traditional minyan of 10 men to start the maariv service, so we encourage you to come on time.
Accessibility Information
Makom welcomes participants of all abilities. Makom’s main space is wheelchair accessible; unfortunately, the washroom and playroom are not. There are wheelchair accessible washrooms one block away at the coffee shop at the corner of Bathurst and College. If you have an accessibility need or require any accommodations, please reach out to us.
Posted on by Ben in Shabbat | Comments Off on June 27 – Friday Night Services + Shabbat Dinner
Wind down from the week and welcome Shabbat with soulful, song-filled services, in which everyone can participate! After services, we’ll enjoy a delicious, catered kosher vegan Shabbat dinner and each other’s warm company.
Friday, June 27 7:15pm – 10pm @ Makom (map) Dinner registration required by Thursday, June 26 at 10am.
No need to register if you’re coming just for services and not staying for dinner. Become a Makom Member first and save 10%.
Please try to come on time for services at 7:15pm.
Services
Makom is a diverse and inclusive community that welcomes participants with many different approaches to Judaism, from secular to traditionally observant. Our services blend traditional and progressive practices, so our community can join together without regard to denominational labels.
We offer men’s, women’s, and mixed (all-genders) seating sections. All genders may lead parts of services. We need an egalitarian minyan of 10 Jews and a non-overlapping traditional minyan of 10 men to start the maariv service, so we encourage you to come on time.
Accessibility Information
Makom welcomes participants of all abilities. Makom’s main space is wheelchair accessible; unfortunately, the washroom and playroom are not. There are wheelchair accessible washrooms one block away at the coffee shop at the corner of Bathurst and College. If you have an accessibility need or require any accommodations, please reach out to us.
