Congregation Mount Sinai stands on Cadman Plaza West in Brooklyn Heights, serving Downtown Brooklyn, Brooklyn Heights, and DUMBO from the home it has occupied under a long-term lease since October 1982. Officially incorporated on May 8, 1882, as Chevra Mount Sinai by Eastern European Jewish immigrants who had settled near Borough Hall and the Fulton Ferry landing, the congregation has now been a continuous presence on Brooklyn's waterfront for more than 140 years. Today it describes itself as an Independent Inclusive synagogue, one that warmly welcomes interfaith families, Jews by choice, and people of every background, family structure, age, and sexual orientation into full membership.
Shabbat Services at Cadman Plaza
The congregation's weekly rhythm centers on Shabbat, and visitors are always welcome. Friday evenings begin at 6:30 PM with Kabbalat Shabbat, the traditional service of psalms and songs that welcomes the Sabbath. Saturday mornings continue with worship at 10:30 AM, followed by a congregational kiddush at noon that often extends into the early afternoon and turns into a community meal. Prayer resources made available include a transliterated Kabbalat Shabbat guide, Torah and Haftarah blessings, and recordings of Torah service melodies, so that those unfamiliar with the Hebrew liturgy can follow along at home as well as in the sanctuary. For those who cannot be in the room, CyberSinai prayer experiences on YouTube allow remote participation, and the daily noon study and prayer session connect members wherever they happen to be.
A Hundred and Forty Years on Brooklyn's Waterfront
For its first quarter-century the young society worshipped in the homes of its members and in rented halls. On May 5, 1909, the corporate name was changed to Congregation Mount Sinai, and title was taken to a building at 305 State Street; High Holy Day services were held there that fall. The congregation's influence grew steadily through the downtown section of Brooklyn until the early hours of Sunday morning, January 4, 1948, when the State Street building was destroyed by fire. Congregation Jacob Joseph on Atlantic Avenue offered its facilities, and Mount Sinai conducted all of its services and activities there until October 1949, when it moved to 305 Schermerhorn Street. The Schermerhorn Street synagogue remained home until October 1982, when that building was sold and the long-term lease at 250 Cadman Plaza West was acquired. The congregation maintains a presence in Brooklyn Heights, DUMBO, and Downtown Brooklyn, and has served for many years as a central meeting place where Jews, Christians, and Muslims have gathered for prayer services and solidarity events.
CyberSinai, a Sanctuary Beyond the Building
A platform the congregation calls CyberSinai extends the community's reach far beyond Brooklyn's borough limits. Daily classes, prayer experiences, and education programs give members and friends around the world a way to participate. The congregation's YouTube channel hosts prayer experiences for Kabbalat Shabbat, Hanukkah blessings, Torah readings, and Haftarah blessings, while an Instagram presence keeps the community connected between gatherings. A podcast titled The Bible Blueprint is available through Apple Podcasts. B-Mitzvah spiritual education for children is offered through CyberSinai as well, so that families separated by geography, or simply navigating busy weeks, can prepare their children for Bar and Bat Mitzvah using Congregation Mount Sinai's Jewish Values and Hebrew curriculum.
The Spiritual Warrior Institute
Each day at noon, the Spiritual Warrior Institute gathers on Zoom for text study, a prayer for healing, and the mourners' Kaddish, led by Rabbi Hanniel Levenson. The Institute also offers weekly yoga and silent meditation guidance on YouTube and, throughout the year, invites guest teachers who are experts in body-mind-spirit practice. Rabbi Levenson, who joined as the community's head rabbi, is described as building a body-mind-spiritual practice at CMS that blends traditional Jewish learning with contemplative and physical disciplines. The institute's blog has explored dream incubation prayers, the Lurianic Kabbalah, Jewish mindfulness, and meditation companions such as Alan Lew's Be Still and Get Going and Arthur Green's Seek My Face. For those on a Jewish spiritual path, the institute functions as a virtual beit midrash, a study house open every day.
Hebrew School and Tot Shabbat
Children's education at Congregation Mount Sinai begins early. Tot Shabbat, designed for children from birth through age five, meets on select Fridays from 4:00 to 4:45 PM in DUMBO, introducing the youngest members of the community to the rhythm of Shabbat with songs, blessings, and stories. The CyberSinai Hebrew School, named the Mildred B. Gold Hebrew School at CMS, serves older students with a curriculum grounded in Jewish thought, history, Hebrew language, holidays, prayer, art, music, yoga, meditation, and customs. Instruction uses the Tel Am program, and students are expected to read Hebrew fluently by the time they prepare for Bar and Bat Mitzvah. Classes are held virtually: B-Mitzvah students meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3:30 to 4:30 PM, and other students on Tuesdays at the same time. Small class sizes and individualized attention are a point of emphasis, alongside independent critical thinking and respect for diverse beliefs. The school explicitly welcomes students from secular, religious, questioning, and atheist backgrounds, believing that an inclusive Jewish education is one where every child is free to explore and question.
Pastoral Counseling and Membership
Members of the community can reach out directly to Rabbi Hanniel Levenson for pastoral and spiritual counseling. Membership is open to individuals and families of all backgrounds, and the congregation invites singles, families, and interfaith couples to join. Membership benefits include High Holiday tickets for immediate family members, synagogue mailings, Hebrew School, and voting rights. Annual dues for two adults with or without children are $2,100; a single adult with children pays $1,470; one adult member pays $1,365; two adults including a senior age 65 or over pay $1,835; and a single senior pays $1,100. Additional High Holiday tickets for non-members or guests are $225 each. The congregation notes that its membership rates and Hebrew school tuition are among the lowest in the neighborhood. The community also accepts a Yom Kippur Appeal each fall, with a Book of Remembrance published for the holiday at a suggested contribution of $18 per name; suggested giving levels for the appeal range from $54 to $10,000, named in Hebrew tiers including Chaverim, Nedivim, and Habonim.
A Lineage of Brooklyn Rabbis
Congregation Mount Sinai's history is closely tied to its spiritual leaders. From its founding in 1882 until the move to State Street in 1909, Dr. Louis Pulvermacher served as Rabbi and Cantor. After the move, the community was served in turn by Rabbis Jacob Minkin, Louis B. Michaelson, Morris Silverman, and Alexander Basel. Rabbi Isadore A. Aaron then led the congregation for nearly forty-eight years, from the fall of 1924 until September 1972, when Rabbi Joseph Potasnik succeeded him. Rabbi Potasnik served as spiritual leader for 42 years. In 1999, he was appointed Jewish Chaplain for the New York City Fire Department, and on September 11, 2001, Rabbi Potasnik and members of the Mount Sinai staff and congregation served as a triage center for people walking across the Brooklyn Bridge from Manhattan. He became Executive Vice-President of the New York Board of Rabbis, the world's largest interdenominational rabbinic organization, and today serves as Rabbi Emeritus. He is also co-host of Religion on the Line, the long-running WABC 770 AM talk radio program. Rabbi Seth Wax joined the congregation as spiritual leader in 2013, and the current head rabbi, Rabbi Hanniel Levenson, succeeded him as the community's newest leader. Together, the rabbis have given the downtown Brooklyn congregation more than a century of pastoral continuity, and the present leadership is described as eager to build a body-mind-spiritual practice for the next generation.
Practical Information for Visitors
The mailing address for the congregation is P.O. Box 24894, Brooklyn, NY 11202-4894. Telephone (718) 875-9124; fax (718) 875-4354. General inquiries go to admin@cmsbklyn.org, and the Rabbi can be reached at rabbi@cmsbklyn.org. Donations and membership payments are accepted online through a dedicated portal, and an additional support fund is organized around the High Holidays. The office provides details about Tot Shabbat in DUMBO and the current schedule for Kabbalat Shabbat and Saturday morning worship.