The Shabbat Feeling Fills the CJL to Capacity
Shabbat is the special day of each week, when we stop our daily routines to come together as a community to relax and celebrate a day of rest. If you walked into the CJL on any Friday night this semester, you would literally find us “bursting at the seams” with an incredible Shabbat spirit of community!
The CJL has tracked attendance at Shabbat dinner throughout the fall and reports that a record-breaking 440 students have participated in at least one Shabbat dinner at the CJL. In fact, as Rabbi Roth states in her message, we regularly exceeded the capacity of our dining hall and had to set up overflow seating in the Wilf Auditorium to accommodate our larger-than-ever crowds.
Two special Shabbat dinner programs highlighted our fall semester. On November 16, over 400 students gathered in the New Frick Laboratory for Shabbat 360—a program planned and implemented entirely through the cooperative efforts of the CJL and Chabad student boards. This event drew participants from across the campus and was highlighted in the Princeton Alumni Weekly
On November 30, 222 people attended Soul Food Shabbat at the CJL. The brainchild of Hannah Rosenthal ’15, an engagement intern with the CJL and a student intern a the Carl A. Fields Center for Equality and Cultural Understanding, this event included Shabbat dinner featuring traditional soul food items such as fried chicken, collard greens and corn bread which were served following the completion of traditional Shabbat rituals such as the prayers of wine (Kiddush) and bread (Hamotzi). Following dinner, 36 students took part in a dialogue that explored historical and cultural similarities with and differences between the Black and Jewish communities at Princeton.
The CJL is planning a special Faculty Shabbat on February 22 to celebrate the CJL’s 20th Anniversary, along with an expanded Reunions Weekend Shabbat Dinner and Reception. We invite you to visit us to experience the CJL Shabbat Spirit for yourself. Contact Susan Johanesen at sjohanes@princeton.edu or call
(609) 258-2288 for details and reservations.
