A Home in Southwest Portland
Congregation Neveh Shalom occupies a single campus on SW Peaceful Lane in southwest Portland, Oregon, where it has been rooted since the mid-1960s. From there it serves as the home of Conservative Jewish life for the Portland metro area, an egalitarian congregation that describes itself as "a vibrant, inclusive Conservative Jewish community in the Pacific Northwest, dedicated to meaningful Jewish living, learning, and celebration across generations." Senior Rabbi Eve Posen speaks of a community "rooted in tradition and innovation" that "embraces diversity, fosters deep connections, and works together to create a more humane world."
More than a synagogue, CNS is a network of religious, educational, cultural, and social programs that touches families with newborns, teens preparing for b'nai mitzvah, couples getting married, empty-nesters looking for community, and mourners sitting shiva. Its campus includes a Main Sanctuary, the smaller Stampfer Chapel, the Zidell Chapel, Birnbach Hall, the Olds Family Youth Lounge, classrooms for the Foundation School preschool and ALIYAH K-12 religious school, the Feldstein Library, Marla's Kitchen, and the Holzman Plaza. Members and visitors can park on site, and ramps and elevators connect the building's two levels.
From Two Shuls to One
Neveh Shalom is itself a marriage of two earlier congregations, and the oldest Conservative congregation on the West Coast. Ahavai Sholom was founded in 1869 by traditionally minded Prussian and Polish immigrants, and Neveh Zedek was founded in 1892 by Russian Jews fleeing persecution. The two congregations lived side by side in southwest Portland for nearly seven decades before voting in 1961 to merge and build a single home together. The new building on SW Peaceful Lane was dedicated on March 6, 1965, almost one hundred years after the community's earliest beginnings.
The earlier congregations had weathered their share of history. Ahavai Sholom formally joined the Conservative movement in 1921, rebuilt after an arson fire two years later, welcomed German refugees in the 1940s, and was forced to relocate when Portland's South Waterfront urban renewal project razed most of what had been the Jewish neighborhood. Neveh Zedek built its own synagogue in 1911 and ran a Sabbath school for 144 students. Both congregations produced cantors, choirs, women's organizations, and Hebrew schools that laid the groundwork for what Neveh Shalom is today.
One early leader, Rabbi Joshua Stampfer, arrived at Ahavai Sholom in 1953 and would serve the congregation for more than six decades. He guided Ahavai Sholom through the merger, helped found Camp Solomon Schechter, the Institute for Judaic Studies, the Jewish Historical Society of Oregon, the Oregon Holocaust Resource Center, and the Oregon Jewish Museum. He became the congregation's first Rabbi Emeritus in 1993 and continued teaching and participating in congregational life until his death on December 26, 2019. Rabbi Stampfer's wife Goldie Stampfer, also of blessed memory, was a beloved teacher and pillar of the community, and the chapel used today for Kabbalat Shabbat services is named for the Stampfers.
In the late 1960s and 1970s, the merged congregation led the way nationally on inclusion. Linda Potter became Ahavai Sholom's first bat mitzvah in 1953 with Rabbi Stampfer's strong encouragement. In 1967 Min Zidell was the first woman elected to the board, in 1976 Carolyn Weinstein became the first female executive director, and the same year the congregation officially affirmed the equality of females. In 1978 Elaine Cogan became one of the first women in the country to lead a Conservative synagogue as president, and Cantor Linda Shivers arrived as one of the nation's first female cantors in a Conservative pulpit. That same openness continues today, and Neveh Shalom remains an early signatory to the Community of Welcoming Congregations, an Oregon and SW Washington ministry working for full LGBTQ inclusion.
Shabbat: The Heartbeat of the Week
Two services bookend each Shabbat at Neveh Shalom, both led by the clergy team with musical accompaniment from Cantor Eyal Bitton.
Friday evenings, Kabbalat Shabbat Services begin at 6:15 pm in the Stampfer Chapel. The service "weaves together ancient and modern melodies" and is livestreamed for those who cannot attend in person. On the third Friday of each month from November through May, the clergy team offers an alternative Kol Shabbat Voices Only service at 7:00 pm in the Stampfer Chapel, a later, a cappella-style gathering designed to slow down and ease into Shabbat.
Saturday mornings, the traditional Shabbat Morning Service begins at 9:30 am in the Main Sanctuary. Friends and family are welcome, and those attending for the first time are encouraged to ask a greeter to seat them near a congregational ambassador who can help them follow the service. On the first and third Saturdays of each month, the lay-led Downstairs Minyan joins the main service in the sanctuary. The service concludes with a kiddush, and the congregation welcomes guests to stay for lunch. Saturday services are also livestreamed.
Families with very young children have their own entry point into Shabbat. Tot Shabbat, for children ages 0 to 5, meets on the first and third Saturdays at 10:30 am in the Zidell Chapel, led by Foundation School early childhood educators and featuring the Shabbes Mouse. Kiddush Club continues the warm Tot Shabbat atmosphere for children in kindergarten through third grade, meeting at the same time in Room 102. Mini Minyan, a service for third through fifth graders, runs at the same hour in the Olds Family Youth Lounge and is led by Tefilah and Youth Specialist Meg Bernstein. For families who want to carry Shabbat into the week, PJ Havdallah gathers on select winter Saturday evenings for a casual dinner, songs, and crafts.
On the fourth Friday of each month at 5:15 pm, Rabbi Eve Posen leads an offsite, home-based Shabbat service for families with children ages 0 to 10, welcoming Shabbat through song and stories.
Morning Minyan and the Month of Elul
Neveh Shalom maintains a daily Morning Minyan, the traditional gathering that keeps the synagogue in continuous prayer. During the month of Elul, the preparatory season before the High Holy Days, the Morning Minyan gathers at 7:15 am Monday through Friday and 9:00 am on Sundays, when the shofar is sounded each morning as a call to reflection. The shofar can only be heard in person for the mitzvah to count, and congregants interested in blowing it are invited to contact the coordinator.
A weekday Dial-In Service, the Eleanor Fischer Dial-In minyan, allows homebound members and others to participate by phone, an early and ongoing example of the congregation's commitment to accessibility.
The High Holy Days
The Days of Awe are the busiest and most inclusive days of the year at CNS. Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Shemini Atzeret, and Simchat Torah each bring their own rhythms, and the congregation invites every member of the household to attend under a single High Holy Days Pass. New this year, every member household receives one pass rather than individual tickets; "One Pass. Endless Opportunities for Connection."
The main services are held in both the Sanctuary and Stampfer Chapel simultaneously, with Rabbi Eve Posen and Rabbi Cantor Eyal Bitton leading in one and Rabbi April Villarreal and guest leader and Cantorial Soloist Rhiannon Lewis leading in the other. Young Family services for children ages 0 to 5 are held in Birnbach Hall, the Grade K to 6 Family Service is offered for school children, and a Teen Rosh Hashanah Experience and Yom Kippur Discussion Circle for grades 6 to 12 are held in the Zidell Chapel. Children are welcome in every service; parents are asked to stay with them in family services and to be mindful of the building's safety rules.
Childcare is provided for ages 12 months through 2nd grade on Rosh Hashanah Day 1 and Yom Kippur Day from 9:30 am to 1:00 pm and on Kol Nidre evening from 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm, staffed by Foundation School teachers and teen assistants for $36 per child per day. Between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, the Kever Avot service takes the community to the two congregational cemeteries, where families gather at Neveh Zedek at 10:00 am and at Ahavai Shalom at 11:30 am for graveside readings and memorial prayers. Tashlich, the symbolic casting away of missteps, is observed individually or with family and friends, often at a local creek or river.
Livestreaming is offered for both the Sanctuary and Stampfer Chapel services, and recordings remain available afterward. A Yom Kippur book cart stocked with holiday-appropriate reading, run by Librarian Leora Troper, gives worshippers a chance to step away from the sanctuary and read throughout the day.
The Clergy Team
Congregation Neveh Shalom is served by a three-person full-time clergy team, joined by a beloved Rabbi Emeritus and a Director of Congregational Learning.
Rabbi Eve Posen is the Senior Rabbi, bringing warmth, compassion, and joy to pastoral care, family programming, pulpit work, and teaching. She is the rabbinic lead for the Shoreshim and Anafim family programs and leads the community's signature class on the weekly Haftarah portion.
Rabbi April Villarreal is the Associate Rabbi, with more than fifteen years of experience in Jewish education. A recipient of the Covenant Foundation's Pomegranate Prize for emerging Jewish educators, Rabbi Villarreal most recently worked as a senior coach and program associate for Pedagogy of Partnership at the Hadar Institute and offers a series on the poetry of Emma Lazarus for CNS adults.
Rabbi Cantor Eyal Bitton is the congregation's Cantor. A composer, lyricist, and playwright, he has penned several musicals and oratorios and has directed adult and children's choirs, including Toronto's Zimriyah, a Jewish children's choral festival, since 2008. He leads the congregation's Kabbalat Shabbat music, directs the Koleinu choir, and offers a Sephardic nusach series for adults. He is also a singer-songwriter whose AMEN songs are available on his personal music site.
Rabbi Daniel Isaak is Rabbi Emeritus, having led the congregation for twenty-two years before Rabbi Posen. His steady teaching and his famously generous distribution of Dum-Dums have shaped the warm, "haimish" character of CNS. He continues to teach adult classes, including a fall series on religion and the American Revolution.
The legacy of Rabbi Joshua Stampfer, of blessed memory, who served the congregation from 1953 to 1993 and continued as Rabbi Emeritus until 2019, is honored in the name of the Stampfer Chapel and in the congregation's ongoing life.
Jewish Learning Across a Lifetime
Neveh Shalom is home to the largest Jewish library in the Northwest and to one of the most extensive Jewish education programs in the region.
Foundation School Preschool
The Foundation School, founded in the mid-1950s by Rabbi Stampfer as Ahavai Sholom's preschool, is the congregation's early childhood program for the youngest learners. The school is led by Director of Early Childhood Education Ronit Scheyer and Administrative Director Candace Rothstein, and it welcomes children of all backgrounds. Its reputation as a warm, well-rounded program that prepares children for any advanced school setting is a frequent refrain among member families.
ALIYAH K-6 and 7-12
ALIYAH is the congregation's K-12 Jewish learning program. It is designed as an inclusive community that welcomes students across the spectrum of learning styles and needs, working with families to create individualized learning plans as necessary. The 7-12 program, sometimes called Tichon, prepares teens for b'nai mitzvah and beyond, with Hebrew language learning, social justice projects, and a strong grounding in Conservative Jewish practice. Director of Congregational Learning Mel Berwin oversees ALIYAH and adult education.
B'nai Mitzvah Training
The b'nai mitzvah year at CNS is supported by a year-long tutoring program in which each child works one-on-one with a professional tutor, alongside ongoing preparation with the clergy. The clergy team walks families through the year and helps craft a ceremony that is personally and communally meaningful. On Saturday mornings, the b'nai mitzvah leads parts of the service, chants from the Torah and Haftarah, and delivers a d'var Torah explaining the passages and their relevance. A video guide for guests walks visitors through the customs of the day, from kippah and tallit to the structure of the service and the family luncheon that traditionally follows.
Adult Education
Lifelong learning is a core value at CNS. The adult education catalog changes each season but consistently includes classes on the weekly Torah portion, Talmudic sources of liturgy, the siddur, the Jewish calendar, Jewish monsters and folklore, the history of Conservative Judaism, and contemporary poetry from Jewish writers. Elul offerings include a poetry workshop, an introduction to Conservative Judaism, and a session on approaching grief during the High Holy Days.
Machon Ivrit Hebrew Institute
Machon Ivrit is the congregation's year-long Hebrew language program, offering Beginning Hebrew and four levels of Modern Hebrew on Tuesday evenings. An orientation night each fall helps new students find the right level.
The Feldstein Library
The Feldstein Library is described by the congregation as the largest Jewish library in the Northwest, with a circulating collection, an online catalog, and an active schedule of programming. Librarian Leora Troper curates book clubs, runs a Yom Kippur book cart during the holiday, and supplies a wide range of books for High Holy Days preparation. Library shelves and tribute funds have been dedicated by many families over the decades, and the library is a hub of adult and intergenerational learning on campus.
Youth Groups from Kindergarten through Twelfth Grade
Children at Neveh Shalom have a clearly defined progression of social and religious programming that mirrors the school grades.
Chaverim (K-2nd) meets monthly after ALIYAH sessions, an activities group for the youngest school-age children where parents get to know one another while kids play games or create works of art and innovation.
Noar (3rd-5th) brings kids together through creative activities, adventures, movie nights, and field trips, including an annual Wild Foraging and Tracking Workshop at Sauvie Island and a Tashlich Hike at Lower MacLeay Park. Noar also participates in Mini Minyan on first and third Saturday mornings.
Gesher (6th-8th) is the bridge years for middle schoolers, offering Saturday afternoon hangouts in the Youth Lounge, potluck Kabbalat dinners, sleepovers, mall scavenger hunts, and a winter Shul-In. The group co-sponsors programs with Bogrim, including Scary Movie Night, Friendsgiving Kabbalat and Kibbitz, and a SuperPlay Field Trip co-sponsored with the Men's Club.
Bogrim (9th-12th) is the high school youth group. The emphasis is on relaxed, fun hangouts that acknowledge the pressures of growing up, including Mocktails and Movie nights, a Tikkun Olam Neighbor Care Kits packing event for Blanchet House, and Friendsgiving Kabbalat dinners.
CNS youth programs partner with local Jewish camps and with regional and national USY (United Synagogue Youth) opportunities so that teens can connect with Jewish peers throughout Portland, the Pacific Northwest, and beyond. The four groups are coordinated by Tefilah and Youth Specialist Meg Bernstein.
Community Groups and Social Action
Members of Neveh Shalom are encouraged to find a place among more than two dozen ongoing community groups, organized under three broad pillars: Mind, Heart, and Spirit.
Hesed Caring Committee
The Hesed Committee is the congregation's caring community, supporting members during times of need with phone calls, visits, meals, and comfort. It works closely with the Chevra Nichum bereavement group, which helps families navigate Jewish mourning practices.
Tikkun Olam - Social Action
Tikkun Olam, literally "repair of the world," is the congregation's social action arm. Members cook for Outside In, a Portland organization serving homeless youth, in regular volunteer sessions in Marla's Kitchen on the CNS campus. Tichon teens pack Neighbor Care Kits for Blanchet House. The annual Operation Isaiah High Holy Days Food Drive benefits the CNS Food Pantry, Neighborhood House, and the Cooking for Outside In program. The congregation also runs a small in-house food pantry that assists members and neighbors experiencing hardship.
Shomrei Teva
Shomrei Teva is the congregation's environmental group, sometimes called the "green team." Members work to eliminate food waste at synagogue events, organize Jewish-flavored nature hikes, and bring Jewish teachings about nature into programming at home and at the shul.
Interfaith and Dual Heritage Families - Keruv
CNS is home to roughly ten percent interfaith and dual heritage families. The Keruv program welcomes non-Jewish partners, spouses, children, and extended family into Jewish community life. Mothers' Circle is a free educational program for women of other religious backgrounds raising Jewish children, exploring Jewish practices and ethics. Dad's Night Out is a free community-wide gathering for dads of all backgrounds raising Jewish kids, with drinks, conversation, and a chance to know the rabbi.
Keshet - LGBTQ
CNS Keshet is the congregation's LGBTQ community and ally group. CNS is a member organization of the Community of Welcoming Congregations, and the synagogue hosts Pride dinners, participates in the Portland Pride parade, and offers educational programming throughout the year.
Men's Club and Sisterhood
The CNS Men's Club, founded decades ago, offers volunteer opportunities, community activities, social events, and interesting speakers. Members construct the congregational Sukkah each fall, lead Torah on Tap evenings at a local pub, run a walking group, host an annual Poker Tournament, and gather for brunch speaker series. Membership is $36 a year, and new members receive a complimentary first-year membership.
The Sisterhood (also known as Women's League) provides meaningful opportunities for women to come together. Members operate The Gloria Bacharach Judaica Shop, decorate the sukkah, organize break-the-fast events, run book clubs, lead Tikkun Olam projects, and host the Interfaith Sisters in Unity group that meets most first Wednesdays on Zoom.
Wise Women and Wondering Jews
Wise Women is a welcoming group for women of all ages and stages who want to socialize and support one another. Wondering Jews is the congregation's active senior and empty-nester group, offering speakers, day trips, and social events for members age 65 and older.
Mishpacha Young Adults
Mishpacha is the congregation's young professionals group for those in their twenties and thirties, with happy hours, board games in the sukkah, and Torah on Tap evenings.
Cultural and Special Interest Groups
BookTalk is the congregation's book club, focused on contemporary and classic Jewish fiction and non-fiction. Israel360 is a regular series exploring modern and ancient Israel from diverse cultural, political, military, historical, and sociological perspectives. ORA is a collective of Jewish artists in the Portland area who exhibit and sell their work at the synagogue. Koleinu is the congregation's synagogue choir, currently being restructured under Cantor Bitton's direction. BookTalk, Israel360, Shomrei Teva, ORA, Koleinu, and the Film Club round out the cultural offerings.
Life Cycle Celebrations
Jewish tradition marks the major transitions of life with rituals that the CNS clergy are glad to help families shape. Each comes with in-depth guidance for guests who may be attending for the first time.
Bris and Baby Naming
The clergy officiate at brit milah ceremonies and at baby namings for girls and for families choosing a naming ceremony in place of a brit.
B'nai Mitzvah
CNS prepares students for a meaningful b'nai mitzvah year with one-on-one tutoring, family meetings with clergy, and a ceremony tailored to the child. Honors available to family and friends include aliyah (reciting the Torah blessings), reading Torah, sitting on the bimah, reciting the Prayer for Peace, and serving as greeter. Cantor Bitton rehearses any Torah readers not from the congregation to ensure they are ready for the day.
Weddings and Auf Rufs
CNS clergy officiate at weddings, including same-sex weddings, which incorporate all of the same traditional elements. A video and text guide for guests walks visitors through the kabbalat panim, the tish, the hachnasat kallah, the ketubah, the bedeken, the chuppah, the kittel, the hakafot, the erusin, the nissuin, the breaking of the glass, and the yichud. Weddings of same-sex couples may include all of the traditional elements in whatever form suits the couple.
Conversion
The clergy work with individuals and families considering conversion to Judaism, including those who are part of interfaith households.
Funerals, Kever Avot, Chevra Nichum
CNS clergy officiate at funerals and walk families through Jewish mourning practice. Chevra Nichum, the congregation's bereavement group, provides ongoing support. Memorial plaques in the Sanctuary Memorial Niche and on the cemetery chapel Trees of Life, along with Kever Avot graveside readings, help keep the memory of loved ones present in congregational life.
Visiting Neveh Shalom
The synagogue's Visitor Guide describes CNS as "a home for people of all backgrounds, orientations, genders, and viewpoints." Visitors are always welcome at services, programs, and events, and the clergy are happy to meet with newcomers to discuss membership and to introduce them to the school directors and program director. There is no dress code beyond comfortable and respectful clothing; men are asked to wear a kippah (provided at the door), and women may wear one if they choose. Jewish men and women are welcome but not required to wear a tallit. Phones and cameras are turned off for the duration of Shabbat, from Friday at sundown through Saturday at sundown.
Two of the sanctuaries have single-level floors, and the Main Sanctuary features a built-in ramp to the Torah service and clergy lectern. Accessible ramps connect the main courtyard to both sides of the building on the upper level, and elevators serve the lower level. Single-stall gender neutral restrooms are located near the main offices, baby-changing stations are available in single-stall and men's and women's restrooms, and all restrooms include wheelchair-accessible stalls. The ALIYAH K-12 program is explicitly inclusive of children across the spectrum of learning styles and needs, working with families to create individualized learning plans.
Russian-speaking assistance is available for High Holy Days registration. New members are paired with member ambassadors and are invited to a tour of the building. The Gloria Bacharach Judaica Shop is the congregation's small gift shop, offering tallitot, kippot, holiday items, books, and ritual objects.
The Cemeteries
Neveh Shalom maintains two historic cemeteries, the legacy of its predecessor congregations. Ahavai Shalom Cemetery is located at 9323 SW First Ave in Portland, and Neveh Zedek Cemetery (also called Rose City Lodge) is at 7925 SW Canyon Lane in Portland. Both cemeteries host Kever Avot graveside gatherings during the High Holy Days, with Neveh Zedek at 10:00 am and Ahavai Shalom at 11:30 am. The cemetery chapels are available for funeral services, and the cemeteries themselves are open to members of the congregation and their families. Memorial plaques can be added to the Sanctuary Memorial Niche, and leaves to the Tree of Life in the cemetery chapels.
Supporting Neveh Shalom
CNS is supported by the annual giving of its members, by a long list of tribute funds that honor loved ones, and by the Life and Legacy endowment society, which preserves the synagogue's future through planned gifts. Members can give online through the congregation's giving page, by direct transfer of appreciated securities, by vehicle donation through Charity Connections, by linking Fred Meyer, Market of Choice, or Zupan's rewards cards, and through employer matching gift programs. The Building Hope Tiny Home Initiative is a current congregational project.
Members can also volunteer their time. The Hesed Caring Committee, the Tikkun Olam cooking team, the Sisterhood and Men's Club, the ALIYAH and Foundation School parent committees, and the Chevra Nichum bereavement group all rely on volunteers to keep their work going. Annual events include the Sukkah Build on Holzman Plaza, the Operation Isaiah High Holy Days Food Drive, the annual Auction, and Mitzvah Moment, the congregation's annual giving appeal.
A Community in Motion
From its earliest days as two immigrant congregations in southwest Portland to its present campus on SW Peaceful Lane, Congregation Neveh Shalom has carried a single thread: the conviction that Jewish tradition is a living inheritance, strengthened by each new generation that joins it. The congregation's mission is to maintain a synagogue for the worship of God and the promulgation of the tenets, beliefs, and doctrines of Conservative Judaism, to maintain a religious school, to maintain cemeteries, and to engage in religious, educational, social, and recreational activities that will strengthen, maintain, and perpetuate Judaism. For Portland's Jewish community, CNS is a home that has stood for more than a century and a half, and continues to renew itself in the lives of those who walk through its doors each week.