The History of Interfaith Outreach at CBS

The Federation of Jewish Men’s Clubs took the lead to create an Interfaith Outreach initiative to embrace interfaith couples and families within our community. Their goal was simple: to create a welcoming environment within the Conservative Movement that would enable these families to participate in our community, explore what congregation affiliation can offer to their families, and to provide educational and community service opportunities in which the family could participate to the extent of their interest. This initiative is called Keruv, which means “bringing people close”.

Keruv is a journey rather than a destination. We are now beginning the fourth year of Congregation Beth Shalom’s Keruv program, which welcomes people whose lives are touched by, or who are involved in, interfaith relationships. Over the last two years, we have developed a variety of programs to understand the needs and concerns of our congregation, promote open discussions about the issues and opportunities involved in reaching out to the interfaith couples and families within our community, and to understand their needs and desires for synagogue affiliation. This year, we continue to offer Keruv specific programming, but more importantly, we are encouraging interfaith families to participate in a broad range of synagogue programs.

We invite you to explore this entire website to learn more about our Keruv programs and plans, and the full range of CBS programming and activities which we would like you to experience.  We also invite you to contact us to discuss your specific questions and needs.

We look forward to your involvement and participation!