Pasadena Jewish Temple & Center

Torie Shatzmiller Sepah, MD

This is not an easy review to write; I do so w/ tremendous inner turmoil as I am ultimately a member of the larger Pasadena Jewish community—a small world onto itself. Yet in the end, being a Jew who believes in Tikkun Olam, I should speak. We live 1/2 mile away-to choose to not be a member of this this temple is not minor. In fact, we have tried—1st joining in 2009 1. we left 1st time bc, we didn’t feel sincerely welcome as a young family. 2. The lack of support + direct competition w/ the struggling day school, Weizmann, where r son attended. We were committed to building Weizmann back up, keeping a Jewish Day School in the SGV. The school was on the campus of PJTC but not affiliated. Yrs of despair followed. A great deal could have been done to keep this school, for PJTC to be adaptable not static, to see why a temple should support jewish education financially. But the Day school reduced their religious school enrollment. Weizmann has since closed. PJTC’s religious school now uses the entire campus, including the playground Weizmann parents built w/ their funds, hearts, + elbow grease. This alone isn’t a reason PJTC is problematic, it is AN example of what’s fundamentally problematic w/ PJTC modus operandi as it relates to younger families. 3.W/o getting into too many details—the nail in the coffin was when the Board voted to ‘not renew’ the new Rabbi’s contract after 2 yrs. This Rabbi had moved across the country w/ his very young family for this position. And many many of us felt connected to PJTC for the 1st time bc of him. After a decade, this was the only board meeting I had asked to speak at— we had rejoined PJTC w/ the intention of being more involved in order to make it a place more welcome to younger jews (‘younger’ defined as not retired). We actively participated in recruitment of the new rabbi—who made PJTC feel like a place where crying babies + single millennials wandering in for Shabbat was normal. We felt at ‘home’. Finally. And we weren’t alone. We invited our friends who had left PJTC for similar reasons, they agreed—the synagogue felt alive, they felt welcome. For once, I personally didn’t feel like I was disturbing the congregation when I’d enter w/ my children. In the end, despite the many of us who spoke at the meeting, the Rabbi was let go. Just like that. His life thrown into quite a whirlwind. How could we treat a fellow Jew like this? My children and his children were growing up together. I couldn’t bare to be part of any institution that could dispose of a very well liked Rabbi who they had displaced for this position in such a way. 4. There was an uproar after this occurred. Many of us took to FB to show our support for the Rabbi, including myself. I received a call from a board member—who is also an attorney—asking me to ‘consider’ taking down my post about the board’s decision. To me, this was another example of how PJTC operates—lack of transparency & a disconnected board. Ultimately, PJTC didn’t seem like a temple led by a Rabbi—rather the Rabbi was to be a figurehead who would defer to the Board & the Cantor From my decade-long experience, PJTC isn’t fundamentally invested in the future of Judaism in the SGV (except for our high dues —families 40+ & religious school tuition), nor what Rabbi’s role is—the Cantor and Board felt like clergy by proxy, w/ little respect for the position of a Rabbi. 5. Lastly, this happened. After YEARS of religious school prep for his bar mitzvah, our son—who has an IEP—couldnt get through the 60 min+ ceremony w/o sig distress. We discussed w/ rabbi (B4 they fired him)—he was understanding, suggesting a modified reading.The Cantor: more $ for 1:1 tutoring, + mb I should focus less on my job, be more present as a mother, bc, “He didn’t ask to be born.” The Cantor’s decision over-rode the Rabbi’s. Mom-shaming, insensitivity to a child’s disability, all while asking me to pay more doesn’t make for a spiritual home. Perhaps things have changed, if not, that is why I wrote of my experience.

Henry Levenson

Friendly, diverse congregation with excellent Jewish day school

Leo Metivier

Friday night services are always engaging fun and full of song! Saturday mornings are very intellectual and I always seem to learn a lot about my religion

barbaralevinson1

Good people. Warm and friendly.