Friday August 14 | 7:00 pm – Register now!

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.

Dinner registration required by Wednesday, August 12 at 10am.

No need to register if you’re coming just for services and not staying for dinner.

Become a Makom first and save 10%.

Thank you to Green Economy Law for their generous sponsorship.

Please try to come on time for services at 7pm.

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. If you have an accessibility need or require any accommodations, please reach out to us.

Registration

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Saturday, July 25 | 9:30 am – College & Bathurst
Register Now

Join us for soulful and song-filled Shabbat morning services, followed by a delicious Shabbat lunch and stimulating learning!

Lunch registration required by Thursday, July 23.

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.

At lunch, Professor Sara Verskin will teach on “Interfaith Spa Night! The Bathhouse as a Social Experience for Medieval Women.”

In the medieval world, the bathhouse, hammam, or mikveh was a venue where women congregated together for medical and life-cycle events, away from the supervision of male religious leaders. We’ll explore writings by Jewish, Muslim, and Christian authorities about the social significance of the bathhouse and their belief that it was a place where women developed close ties with women from other religions and where they formulated their own, separate framework for understanding what the religious commandments meant to them.

Sara Verskin is an assistant professor at the University of Toronto in the departments of Religion and of Near and Middle Eastern Civilizations, where she teaches courses on Islamic family law, the history of medicine, and medieval social history.

Registration

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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, July 22
9:00 – 11:00pm
Bathurst & College
Bring Food or $$ to Donate + Flashlight

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 9:00pm; services begin promptly at 9:15pm.

FYI, in Toronto, the fast begins Wednesday at 8:51pm, and the fast ends Thursday at 9:31pm.

The post July 22: Tishah be-Av appeared first on Makom.

Friday, July 10 | 5 pm – Register now!

Join us for a joyful, family-friendly Shabbat in the Park!

We’ll begin with a relaxed arrival time for connection, playground play, and settling in together, before gathering for a Shabbat program with stories, songs, Shabbat-themed activities, and challah and grape juice. Afterward, families are invited to stay for more playground time and a bring-your-own picnic dinner.

Please note that this program is designed to give parents and kids a chance to celebrate Shabbat together (not a drop-off program). Geared for families with children ages 0-10.

All families welcome, including LGBTQ+ and interfaith/intercultural families!

Any Qs? Email Talia Levitt, Makom’s Youth Programming Coordinator, at youth@makomto.org

Presented by Makom: Creative Downtown Judaism, MNJCC’s Families @ the J, and PJ Library

Registration

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Saturday, June 27 | 9:30 am – College & Bathurst
Register now!

Join us for soulful and song-filled Shabbat morning services, followed by a delicious Shabbat lunch. After lunch, we’ll sing zemirot (table songs) together. Rabbi Aaron will teach them first, so even if you’re unfamiliar with the words or melodies, you’ll learn them and can join in!

Lunch registration required by Thursday, June 25.

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.

Registration

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Join us for Toronto’s annual Pride Shabbat

Friday, June 19 | 6:00 pm

Join us for Toronto’s annual community-wide Pride Shabbat. The evening will feature a beautiful Kabbalat Shabbat service led by queer and allied clergy, followed by a kosher dinner and time to connect.

This event centres LGBTQ+ Jewish community members and welcomes allies who want to celebrate and support inclusive Jewish life. It’s a chance to gather, reflect, and celebrate.

Pride together in a warm, welcoming space.

The post June 19: Pride Shabbat appeared first on Makom.

Join us for a fun, hands-on evening as we prepare for Shabbat together! 

Thursday, June 18 | 5:45 – 7:15pm 
@Bathurst & College
Registration required

Mix, knead, braid, and decorate your own homemade challah to take home and bake fresh for Shabbat. Plus, we’ll enjoy dinner and a Shabbat story together (choose pizza or falafel; must be ordered in addition to registration).

Registration required by 12noon sharp on Thursday, June 18.

Families of all Jewish identities are warmly welcome, including interfaith/intercultural and LGBTQ+. No Makom affiliation necessary.

This is designed to give parents and kids a chance to make a delicious challah together (not a drop-off program). This program is geared toward families with kids from JK through Grade 5; younger siblings are welcome!

Any Qs? Email Talia Levitt, Makom’s Youth Programming Coordinator, at youth@makomto.org.

The post June 18: Family Challah Bake appeared first on Makom.

Every other Tuesday: June 16 & 30
7:00pm: Soup & Socializing
7:30-9:00pm: Learning
@Makom (map)
Register Now!

This is not a class, but a space for you to:

• Enjoy soup and socializing 7:00-7:30pm
• Choose a Jewish text that interests you – we have a wide variety, from weekly Torah portion to ethics, mysticism to law, and much more; or bring your own book
• Find a havruta (study partner) – come with a friend or we’ll help pair you with someone with a similar interest as you
• Sit and learn together – read aloud, ask each other questions, discuss, debate, and reflect

Rabbi Aaron will be your Torah concierge to help you pick a text that works for you, find a havruta, get started, and navigate any difficulties you encounter.

Everyone is welcome, no matter your Jewish learning background!

And of course, LGBTQ+ folks, interfaith couples, and people from interfaith backgrounds are always absolutely welcome.

This program is free. Please help us cover costs by donating when you register. 

Our recommended donation amounts are lower for current Makom members. Be part of the Makom community: become a Makom member now.

What’s a Beit Midrash?

Beit Midrash is usually translated as House of Study, a place in which people come together to learn, discuss, and debate Jewish texts of all sorts. But the root of the word “midrash” means searching. When we study Torah, we’re not just trying to comprehend it intellectually, but seeking meaning from it to apply in our lives. Hence, House of Searching.

Why is this important?

As Rabbi Aaron spoke about on Rosh Hashanah, it’s the Torah that gives meaning and substance to being Jewish.

The word Torah literally means “teaching.” It refers not only to the Torah itself (the 5 Books of Moses), but to any Jewish teaching. There are so many ways to learn Torah, whether by reading the parashah (weekly Torah portion), studying the rabbinic debates of the Mishnah and Talmud, examining halakhah (Jewish law), delving into kabbalah (Jewish mysticism), and on and on.

Torah can enlighten us.  It can teach us our people’s stories, about Jewish ritual and ethics, the world, each other, God, even ourselves.

Torah – in its fullest sense – is so vast and varied, there’s definitely something that’s just right for you to learn.

Who is this for?

Torah is for all of us! It’s not some secret knowledge just for certain people. As the Torah says about itself: כִּי־קָרוֹב אֵלֶיךָ הַדָּבָר מְאֹד בְּפִיךָ וּבִלְבָבְךָ – “This thing is very close to you, in your mouth and in your heart” (see Devarim 30:11-14). House of Searching is intended for all adults; high school teens are also welcome.

Donations & Sponsorships

Sponsorship opportunities are still available. You may sponsor in honour or memory of someone or to mark a special occasion.  Please connect with Rabbi Aaron if you’re interested in supporting this program in general or for a particular week.

Donations are tremendously helpful and greatly appreciated; if you’re able, please contribute.

Registration

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Let’s Sit: LGBTQ+ Pride Mindfulness Event

Sunday, June 14 | 4:30 to 6:00 pm – College and Bathurst St.
Registration required

There are many ways to mark the month of Pride. Let’s begin together with this community sit. This gathering will celebrate through connection in a warm, loving and playful environment.

Join facilitator Aviva Chernick, Director of the Beth Tzedec Centre for Spiritual Well-Being, together with fellow community members for this opportunity to rest in loving attention through meditation, reflection and song, in a Queer and Trans Jewish space. While we honour our allies, this particular event is for those who identify as part of the LGBTQ+ community.

Presented by:
Beth Tzedec Centre for Spiritual Well-Being, Makom: Creative Downtown Judaism, Darchei Noam, First Narayever Congregation, Hillel Ontario, Miles Nadal JCC, neySHEV

The post June 14: Let’s Sit appeared first on Makom.

Jewish Stories from The Ward: A Walking Tour

Sunday, June 14 | 12:30 – 2:30 pm – University Ave. & Dundas St.
Registration required – Free – Suggested $10-20 donation to Shir Libeynu

In the 1880s, Toronto was colloquially known as the “City of Churches.” What did it mean to be Jewish in such a place? Wander back to Victorian and Edwardian Toronto, where two very different Jewish worlds took shape just blocks from each other: the city’s earliest Jewish industrialists nestled near a new wave of Eastern European Jews fleeing poverty and pogroms. From rabbis to racketeers, playground activists to the first home of kosher smoked meat, uncover how Jews adapted to the City of Churches — and how the city adapted to Jews — at the turn of the 20th century.

Please be sure to arrive on time so that the tour can proceed as scheduled.

Presented by Shir Libeynu, Makom & College Street United Church. Led by Sharoni Sibony.

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