The LGBTQ+ members and allies Congregation Or Chadash (New Light) celebrated its 50th anniversary May 13 at the Reform Jewish Congregation Temple Sholom, 3480 N. DuSable Lake Shore Dr.
Or Chadash was originally founded in 1975 as a social and support group of gay Jewish men. The group quickly grew into a full-service Reform congregation focused on the LGBTQ+ community. In 2016, Or Chadash merged with Temple Sholom and has since been an active community group at the synagogue. Included in Or Chadash’s activities is a monthly LGBTQ+-focused sabbath service.
In 2006, Or Chadash was inducted into Chicago’s LGBT Hall of Fame.
Temple Sholom Assistant Rabbi and rabbinic liaison to Or Chadash Max Antman and Temple Sholom Cantor Sheera Ben-David opened the celebration with “Ani Ve’Atah” (“Me and You”), a Hebrew-language song about the power of people to change the world for the better.
Antman spoke about the longevity of Or Chadash through times of “real challenges for the queer community” and how the group provides “safety and belonging for queer people in a time when that is badly needed which is an extremely holy and blessed thing.” Antman is Temple Sholom’s first queer rabbi, and he acknowledged the queer elders in the room who laid the path for him to “be standing in this position.”
Or Chadash past president and current steering committee leadership member Lilli Kornblum pinpointed three meaningful moments that have happened in her time with Or Chadash. Kornblum said the first one took place in 1997 when Or Chadash installed Suzanne Griffel as their first rabbi. She added that this installation ceremony “told us who we are” which is a group of “dedicated and passionate [LGBTQ+] Jewish people,” who did not care that at that time they we were not accepted and would “do it our way.”
Kornblum said the second instance happened in 2016 when Or Chadash was at its crossroads, when they weren’t growing and there were also many infrequent attendees to their Shabbat services.
She added that they discussed ending Or Chadash but decided not to when a shy member who usually didn’t speak up pointed out that their community might be saving the lives of those infrequent attendees who need somewhere safe to be at that moment. This comment is what made them decide to keep going—and for Kornblum specifically it crystalized “why we are.”
Kornblum said that the official merger between Or Chadash and Temple Sholom was the other defining moment for her.
She recalled Temple Sholom’s then-Executive Director Boni Fine and then-President David Lipschultz’s enthusiasm for the merger. Kornblum, who was then the co-president of Or Chadash, added that when they were ready to sign the paperwork, Temple Sholom Senior Rabbi Shoshanah Conover insisted on being there and blessed the moment with words from the Torah.
Kornblum said that as they started to sign the documents after Conover’s blessing, Lipschultz said, “This is the most important thing I will do as Temple president.” Kornblum said this night is when she realized “where are we.”
Conover conducted a memorial for the late Norman Sandfield and others in the congregation who have been lost over the years. She spoke about how Sandfield found rabbis who would conduct funerals for those who died of complications due to AIDS in the early years of the virus, as well as cemeteries where the deceased would be able to be laid to rest, among other notable aspects about Sandfield’s life.
Temple Sholom Associate Rabbi Scott Gelman conducted the mitzvah of counting the Omer, a prayer that takes place every night between Passover and Shavuot. Alongside current Rabbis Antman and Conover, and former Or Chadash Rabbis Griffel and Laurence Edwards, Gelman led a shehecheyanu prayer celebrating so many people having gathered for the event.
Others in attendance included Or Chadash Co-Founders Bob Cohn and Frank Nussbaum; Temple Sholom’s Am Keshet LGBTQ+ group Co-Founders Edwards Buice and Andy Simmons (an LGBTQ+ group at Temple Sholom existing before the merger); and members of the Or Chadash steering committee leadership—Nathan Lamp, Rachel Bercovitz, Leo Rosen, Paige Miner and Helena Dryjanski.
An announcement was made that Or Chadash’s Pride Shabbat service will take place Friday, June 12 at 6:15 p.m. at Temple Sholom.
