Egalitarian Minyan

History of the Minyan

The Egalitarian Minyan began meeting in the early winter of l979. It was started by little more than a minyan of young couples and singles living in Rogers Park at the time who were dissatisfied with the other davening options available in the neighborhood. From the beginning we met at Ner Tamid Synagogue, just south of the corner of California and Devon. Our mission was to be an egalitarian minyan, where men and women could participate equally in all facets of the service. There would be no official clergy, but members would take turns leading and coordinating the davening.

For the first ten years we provided our own child care, with members taking the responsibility on a rotating basis, but when we became too fruitful, we finally hired our only professional: a child care worker. The minyan began meeting every other week, but within two years we were meeting weekly and even provided full services for the High Holidays. In addition to Shabbat morning and Holiday services, we hold Kabbalat Shabbat services during the winter months, have Tu B’Shevat seders, Purim shpiels , Hanukkah parties, b’nei mitzvot , weddings, weekly study sessions, a tzedakah committee which makes semiannual allocations and yearly Shabbatonim. For a while we even had a baseball team. Our children participate in USY, we walk together in the Walk with Israel and regularly help with Maot Chitim.

And of course, food plays a central part in all that we do, whether it is just chatting over kiddush at shul, pot luck dinners, USY hamentashen bake sales or hevrei get-togethers.