Posted by Rabbi Courtney Berman, Ohev Beth Sholom

As we begin 2026, I am still carrying some of the light from Hanukkah with me. The Shabbat before Hanukkah started, our sanctuary was filled with community members of all ages. Our religious school students led us in song and shared readings they had prepared, Rabbi Jessie offered an engaging story, and our board helped bless our congregation.

The festive dinner after the service with klezmer music and time to connect with each other all made for the perfect evening. In the days leading up to that special Shabbat, as I prepared the service and searched for readings our students could confidently lead, I found myself reflecting on how we invite children into our worship. The texts in Mishkan T’filah are rich and beautiful, yet their language and structure can be a little too complicated for our student leaders. If we want our children to truly participate—to feel like they are a true part of the prayer experience and can comfortably help lead it—we must give them liturgy crafted with their voices, their understanding, and their spirits in mind.

This realization led me to make a shift. For our Hanukkah service, we used the Visual T’filah from Mishkan T’filah for Youth. Although this siddur was designed with children and school communities in mind, I found that it offers far more than a simplified liturgy. Its readings and reflections open familiar prayers in ways that speak across ages, reminding us of the meanings and intentions at the heart of our tradition, and its thoughtful artwork creates an additional sense of kavannah for children and adults alike. This experience was so meaningful that I am continuing to explore how we can make our services more accessible to our younger congregants and their families. On Jan. 23, I will once again lead services using Mishkan T’filah for Youth and invite religious school students to share readings throughout the service. We will also be officially welcoming Rabbi Jessie to our team, with meals sponsored both Friday evening and Saturday morning in her honor. In the past, our Tot Shabbat services have offered songs and a story, which were always joyful. Some parents have shared with me that they hope for something more for their children—more depth, more participation, more of a sense that their children are truly part of the prayer life of our community. I understand this, and I want to offer more as well. I want parents and children of all ages to feel at home in our sanctuary, and I want everyone to be able to enjoy dinner together after services in a way that feels natural, meaningful, and truly communal.

With all of this in mind, I am going to experiment a bit this year by intentionally planning some of our services to be more youth-friendly. This is not meant to exclude anyone who may desire a more mature or traditional experience. On the contrary, it is meant to bring all of us greater depth and variety in our worship, and to expand the ways we show that our community includes and values every generation. When we pray alongside children, we are reminded of wonder, curiosity, and sincerity. When we make room for them, our prayer is expanded, not diminished.

As we move forward into 2026, my hope is that, together, we will continue shaping a prayer life that reflects the fullness of who we are here at Ohev Beth Sholom. And may the light from our Hanukkah celebration continue to guide us as we enter the new year—toward learning, toward inclusion, and toward a community where every voice, from the youngest to the oldest, feels at home.