Our Mission

Temple Am Shalom’s spiritual leadership and congregation are committed to learning, serving, and embodying the ideals and practices of Reform Judaism. The Temple provides Shabbat services, life-cycle and ritual observances, and holiday celebrations. We endeavor to know and understand the Torah in ways that empower us to recognize the presence of God in our lives and the excellence of Judaism as our conduit for serving God, each other, our communities, and our world.

Because we are the only Temple serving Lake County, we are dedicated to sustaining and growing the local observant Jewish population. Each congregant is aware of our potential roles in strengthening and building the Temple’s presence, both within our own lives and throughout the larger communities in which we live and work. We are also aware of recent losses of smaller congregations in our surrounding communities, and warmly invite those who have lost their beloved congregations to join us in sustaining the Jewish presence in Lake and surrounding counties.

We worship together as a community in order to understand our responsibilities to God, to our faith, and to each other in equal measure. Our spiritual leadership promotes a spoken liturgy and lived faith that addresses everyday challenges that we face not alone as Jews, but also as fellow humans in a diverse and complex world.

Temple Am Shalom strives to be a positive presence in the world, adhering to the practices of torah (lifelong study of the word of God), avodah (worship of God through prayer and observance), and gemilut chasadim (acts of peace and loving-kindness). We do what we can to actively support movements that promote local, national, and global social justice. We actively encourage tzedakah: to give to the poor, the disenfranchised, and the oppressed here in our midst and around the world, without regard for faith or nation or race. We embrace the ideal of tikkun olam, the healing of the world through our faith, our words, and our actions.

We worship and celebrate together in an informal atmosphere. Among our congregants are raised Jews, converted Jews, Christian partners, and spiritual seekers. We warmly welcome all who are interested in Judaism into our Temple, and encourage open discussion and exploration of our faith, our worship, and our practice.