Top 10 Reasons to Love Solel by Rabbi Evan Moffic

Dear Friends,

Late Night TV host David Letterman may not be Jewish, but he does have a Jewish last name, and he did popularize top ten lists. Inspired by his lists, I offer my Top Ten Reasons to Love Solel. 

1. We mark the sacred moments of life: Babynamings, Bnai Mitzvah, weddings, anniversary celebrations, and funerals all happen in our building. No other Jewish institution encompasses the entire life cycle. 

2. We ensure Jewish survival: Will the Jewish people be here 100 years from now? If we sustain strong synagogues, we will. Nothing better ensures our survival than a strong healthy synagogue. 

3. We maintain an extraordinary school: Come any Sunday morning to Solel, and you will find the halls filled with students of every age. As Rabbi Arnold Wolf said, “Learning isn’t everything. It is, profoundly, the only thing.” 

4. We have an amazing staff: Everyone who works at Solel has dedicated their life to supporting Jewish life. They help us ensure our synagogue operates 365 days a year. 

5. We stand for social justice in America: From working in the Waukegan schools to pushing for fair housing, Solelites are intimately involved in our civic community. Our synagogue creates social capital and energizes it with Jewish values to make a difference in our community. 

6. We serve young and old, rich and poor, married and single and many more:  As Rabbi Harold Kushner put it, “We live in a world that works so hard to separate old from young, rich from poor, successful from less successful… The synagogue is the one place…where those distinctions are not permitted to enter…where everybody is welcome.

7. We help you grow Jewishly: Jewish tradition opens the door to living a life of meaning and purpose. Through worship, study of Torah and community-building, we grow into the people we are meant to be. 

8. We continue to be creative pathfinders: Solel is not a staid institution. We are vibrant, adapting to the realities of modern Jewish life, welcoming interfaith families and all those who seek a spiritual home within our walls. 

9. We are here for Israel and the Jewish people: The Talmud tells us that “all Jews are responsible for one another.” With anti-Semitism rising in Europe and Israel facing serious threats, we sustain a community that helps others through our human needs fund, our social action activities, our learning, and our lives. 

10. We are your spiritual home: In the Misheberach prayer—a traditional Jewish prayer for healing—we ask God to “make our lives a blessing.” Solel exists to help each of us make our lives a blessing. What better gift can we leave for the world, our families and one another. 

With Gratitude,

Rabbi Evan Moffic

Top 10 Reasons PDF (Printable Version)