Solel celebrates the many joys of your life and provides comfort in times of sorrow.
Baby Naming
Naming and blessing is a baby or child’s first welcome into Jewish life. The naming can take place at the congregation, or arrangements can be made for the ceremony to be performed in your home.
Bar Mitzvah and Bat Mitzvah
Becoming a Bar or Bat Mitzvah is a meaningful and joyous part of a student's religious growth. Our Bar or Bat Mitzvah services are filled with music and the bar or bat mitsvah student leads most of the service. A highlight is the young person's address to the congregation, based upon his or her own understanding of the Torah text. Family members are also invited to participate. We are committed to the full inclusion of non-jewish parents and other family members in the service.
At Solel, we regard Bar/Bat Mitzvah as an important milestone in a young person's religious education, not as its conclusion. Our expectation is that all our young people continue in our Religious School program through the capstone of Confirmation (10th grade). Completing the Confirmation year allows our students to consider Judaism from a more mature perspective and to share the exploration of its crucial issues with their peers.
Find out more about the Bar and Bat Mitzvah process from Rabbi Evan Moffic or from the Religious School Director Ashley Plotnick.
Adult Bnei Mitzvah
The Adult Bnei Mitzvah program offers an opportunity for adults who never had the experience of Bar or Bat Mitzvah to finally do so. It includes two components: Hebrew and Judaica.
The Judaica instruction, taught by Rabbi Moffic and others, includes an overview of Torah, Talmud and Midrash; the prayer book; Shabbat and Jewish holidays; the different movements of Judaism; and discussions such as being Jewish in a non-Jewish world.
The Hebrew component, taught by Simcha Ackerman, begins with the class learning the rudiments of Hebrew (reading and writing), and progresses to Shabbat liturgy, blessings over the Torah and Haftarah, and learning to read Torah and Haftarah for the given date of the ceremony. Members of the class lead the service that Shabbat morning, and it is particularly moving as they recite the liturgy, read from the Torah scroll, present Divrei Torah, and share their feelings of pride and accomplishment.
Weddings
We welcome both Jewish and interfaith couples to the synagogue. For information on weddings at Congregation Solel, please call the temple office at 847/433-3555.
Funerals
Our goal is to make the process of planning a funeral as simple as possible during this difficult time. For the convenience of our members, we have a funeral arrangement plan with Chicago Jewish Funerals, which includes:
- Professional services of the funeral director
- Removal of the deceased
- Traditional all-wood casket
- Preparation of death certificate and obituary
- Hearse
- Funeral ceremony in the sanctuary or chapel or at graveside
- Ushers at the funeral ceremony
- Shiv'a service prayer books
- Shiv'a service leaders, when possible.
Funerals arranged through Solel's funeral plan are offered at a reduced rate for congregants. There is an additional fee charged for funeral ceremonies for congregants' non-member parents or children.
When a death occurs, please call the congregation office at 847-433-3555. After hours, call Executive Director Allan Litwack at 847-571-4349. The Rabbi and the congregation's funeral director will be contacted promptly.