About TBZ (Temple Beth Zion)

Located in Brookline's Washington Square, TBZ has been growing steadily with over 450 member households. TBZ is populated by an extraordinary mix of passionate people. We are families, solo parents, singles and those on single-life paths, newlyweds and longtime couples, college students, members of the LGBTQ community, newcomers to this land, people of all different ability types, interfaith and multicultural couples and families, Jews by choice, Jews of color, seekers of all kinds.

Our members come from a wide variety of spiritual and life paths. Some of us were raised in observant families. For others, TBZ is the first shul we have ever joined. Our weekly services are populated by former twice-a-year-Jews – those who, after b’nai mitzvah, would attend services only on the High Holy Days. Others among us had attended synagogues regularly, dutifully (if passively) following along in the prayer books, reading responsively and standing when asked, only to discover that something – anything; everything! – was missing. Many of us came to TBZ out of a longing we could barely begin to articulate, even to ourselves.

Unaffiliated with any one denomination, we steep ourselves in many Jewish traditions, weaving together a deeply coherent, radiantly alive Judaism enriched by borrowings from the Orthodox, Hasidic, Conservative, Reform, Reconstructionist and Renewal movements.

We practice an engaged Judaism. For us, that means caring for tradition while being mindful that tradition must change, thoughtfully, in response to changing times. Our Judaism is in motion, informed by our own ever-evolving community and remaining alert to how we can both serve and learn from the wider world.

We are a relaxed place. We laugh a lot. We ask questions, argue, sing, tell jokes. We cry when we need to. Sometimes we make room for silence, for just breathing together. We are a community of seekers and activists, of learners and teachers, of people who do not comfortably fit into neat categories of Judaism, of people who have long experience with other spiritual paths and find, to their delight, that they can achieve fulfillment within their own Jewish tradition without denigrating or negating the experiences they bring with them. TBZ is a place to find oneself. Alongside our commitment to passing on traditional forms of Judaism, we are constantly introducing innovative and creative means of expression. TBZ is an energy we carry within us and out into the world.