Visitors are welcome. Please be aware of our slightly tricky schedule: on the first weekend of each month instead of our usual morning Shabbat service at the synagogue, we meet for Erev Shabbat (Friday evening) at someone's home.

Clothing

Normal attire for Shabbat services is not necessarily formal, especially in summertime when we may all go to a picnic in the park after services. Some congregants wear a suit or sport coat or nice dress, and others wear jeans and a t-shirt. We only ask that clothing provide decency and be respectable: it would be impolite to distract someone else from focusing on God because you dress in a manner intended to make others look at you.

Tallit (prayer-shawls) and kippot (the little hats, also called yarmulke) are available for visitors who wish to make use of them. This is optional and these items have significance. Tallit are normally worn by people who have had a Bar or Bat Mitzvah; wrapping a prayer shawl around your shoulders seems like a hug from God and helps a person focus on worship. Kippot are normally worn by men and boys of Jewish lineage.

What happens

We encourage families to sit together during services. The entire service is appropriate for children, but we do have a nursery for little ones who need sleep or a quiet place. It is appropriate for children too young to follow the sermon to quietly entertain themselves; we have crayons and paper as well as toys from the nursery, or such items may be brought from home. Some noise from children is expected, and a normal part of being together as a spiritual family.

The morning Shabbat service contains roughly equal portions of liturgy, teaching, and music/dance. There are also times of praying alone, in pairs, and as a congregation.

At the conclusion of our Shabbat service we have an oneg: challah and juice, maybe other snacks, announcements, and some time for chatting or more dancing. During the service people will be asked to share questions and comments about the Torah passage, sermon, etc. Please save general questions and comments for the oneg.

Part of resting on Shabbat is avoiding handling money. No offering is collected during services. Visitors are not expected to support the congregation financially. If you are planning on visiting and have a request for financial assistance, if possible please contact the congregation before sundown on Friday.

Our Erev Shabbat (Friday evening) services include a pot-luck meal and time of celebrating communion. First-time visitors need not bring food if they provide the congregation with a few day's notice that they will be attending. At least one vegetarian and gluten-free main dish is usually present: if you require this, please contact the congregation to make sure it will be available. If you wish to bring food, please keep scripturally kosher (no pork or shellfish). Since some of our congregants also keep Rabbinically kosher, please avoid mixing milk and meat in the same dish.

Other things

Occasionally on Erev Shabbat or Rosh Chodesh we will do a Sudat haMashiach meal. This is a remembrance and affirmation of Yeshua's covenant, so we ask that only people who have entered into that covenant participate.

The congregation maintains two e-mail lists: one for announcements of events, and one for local prayer/help needs. These e-mail lists are used not only by the people of P'nei Adonai but by many others from the local community to stay connected in the local Messianic Jewish community. If you wish to join either or both of these e-mail lists, during the oneg please give your name and e-mail address to someone in leadership.