Temple Beth Shalom 108 Freehold Road Manalapan, NJ  07726 732-446-1200

Ira J. Rothstein - Rabbi Ruth Katz Green - Cantor Richard Cohen - President Karen Ross - Executive Director Nancy Shechter - Ed. Dir. Melissa Kaplan - Youth Advisor

About Us

SHALOM

Thank you for your interest in Temple Beth Shalom.  Our Congregation is located in one of the fastest growing areas of Western Monmouth County. 

Our Temple offers a variety of programs and opportunities to be involved within a Jewish community.  We are proud of our facility and all that it has to offer.  From our Early Childhood programs to our Adult Education programs, there is something of interest for everyone.  A sense of community and the dedication of our membership has enabled us to continually meet the ongoing needs of our people. 

Please take a moment to find out more about us.  We would be delighted to answer any questions you may have by either meeting you in person, talking with you on the telephone at 732-446-1200 or by answering you via the e-mail from templebeth@aol.com

SERVICES 

Our Friday evening service is a major communal religious experience where families come together to pray.  A sense of belonging and involvement accurately describe the feeling of our congregants.  Every Shabbat children are encouraged to lead selected prayers and to read from the Torah.  During the course of the year, a number of services are geared towards relevant and contemporary themes while actively involving family members. (A congregational Shabbat Dinner followed by Services is just one example of many such services).

Friday evening services are at 8PM with the exception of our Early Shabbat Prayer Service which is dedicated to younger children and  their families which begins at 7:30PM. (Please see our TBS Calendar for next Early Shabbat Prayer Service and our TBS Alive Service which is an uplifting Shabbat service with musical instruments, song and prayer which begins at 7:30PM.  (Please see our TBS Calendar for our next TBS Alive Service).

Saturday morning services are at 9:30AM.  Services are also held during holiday festivals.  Our Rabbi and Cantor who emanate feelings of spiritual and personal warmth enhance all of our services.

Family Worship Services are held two to three times monthly on Saturday mornings at 9:30AM for children and their parents.  We believe that young people more effectively learn how and why to pray, if they share this experience with their family.  Participants have the chance to learn Saturday morning tunes; reflect upon the meaning of the prayers and to listen and learn about the Torah’s teachings.  Family Worship Services provide our children and their parents with the opportunity to actively participate in their own Shabbat morning prayer experience.  It is a service filled with fun and spirituality.

OUR PHILOSOPHY 

Temple Beth Shalom was founded in 1978.  Since then we have grown from a handful of individuals to over 500 families.   Our building was dedicated in November,1984.

Our mission is to learn and experience the relevance, power and joy of our tradition.  In order to fulfill this mission, we must perform acts of kindness, study our tradition on an ongoing basis and encourage participatory prayer.

Together we will create a caring and vibrant center of Jewish life.

Our goal is to create a Mercaz- a center of Jewish life.  In such a center, people will feel inspired to pray, study and socialize together.  If the next generation can be taught how to live Jewish values, then we will have created a sense of community and interconnection.  A Mercaz can only be created when enough people have been exposed to primary Jewish experiences.  As a result, we must ask ourselves:

1.                   Do we explore our relationship with God?  Are we strengthening that relationship?

2.                   How do we pray and what do the words mean? 

3.                   How do we celebrate holidays and what do the customs mean? 

4.                   How do we read from the Torah and what do the words mean to us? 

5.                   Do we have a place for Jewish children to meet and socialize with other Jewish children? 

6.                   Is there a place where we can spend quality time working with other Jews on programs, projects and events? 

7.                   Is there a place we can turn to in a time of need? 

8.                   Is there a place in which we can celebrate the life cycle events of our lives?

It is the mission of Temple Beth Shalom to seek answers to these questions.  It is in the “seeking” that our Judaism comes alive.

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MEET OUR RABBI

Rabbi Ira Rothstein is the spiritual leader of Temple Beth Shalom.  He is a graduate of the Jewish Theological Seminary and has been associated with Temple Beth Shalom since it's inception.  Rabbi Rothstein also holds a graduate degree in social work from Columbia University.  He is a teacher, a doer, a counselor and a friend to children and adults alike.  Rabbi Rothstein is a major strength of Temple Beth Shalom-  

MEET OUR CANTOR

Cantor Ruth Katz Green has been the full-time Cantor of Temple Beth Shalom since 1995.  Cantor Green davens at all of our Sabbath and festival services.  In addition, she teaches in our B’Nai Mitzvah program, directs our Choir and teaches Torah Reading to all who are interested.

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