‘Praying without paying’ becoming a more popular option among shuls

[Ian David]

‘Praying without paying’ becoming a more popular option among shuls
By Sue Fishkoff

SAN FRANCISCO (JTA) — When 63-year-old Steven Fruh was growing up in Manhattan, his parents did not belong to a synagogue. “They couldn’t afford it,” he says.

At the High Holy Days, they would buy one ticket between them, for the congregation’s overflow service in the basement.

“As a kid, I was very affected by this second-rate, third-rate thing,” he says. “That’s what I grew up with — this one ticket my parents shared, and not even in the main sanctuary.”

The only thing that’s changed since then is the price. Fifty bucks if you’re lucky. Hundreds of dollars if you’re not. As summer draws to a close, tens of thousands of unaffiliated American Jews begin the yearly hunt for affordable Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur services, which fall this year on Sept. 12–14 and Sept. 21–22.

Tickets for these services are usually free for dues-paying members of a congregation, but can be quite expensive for non-members, if they are even available. Price is driven by demand — these are the only two times of the year that many Jews, synagogue members or not, step inside a shul. And while the extra crowd puts pressure on a synagogue’s resources, it can also be a major source of revenue.


"Jews? In Texas? Yippie-ki-yay-shalom!"

More:
http://www.texasjewishpost.com/default.asp?sourceid=&smenu=1&twindow=&mad=&sdetail=2635&wpage=1&skeyword=&sidate=&ccat=&ccatm=&restate=&restatus=&reoption=&retype=&repmin=&repmax=&rebed=&rebath=&subname=&pform=&sc=1128&hn=texasjewishpost&he=.com


See also:

TORAHnyc Hosts New York City's Only Free Reform High Holiday Kol Nidre Service
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=316x1330

[Ellen Forradalom]

1. Yeah, it's rough.

I know shuls need funds but $200/head is pretty steep. We're skipping it this year.