I know that many of us are very excited as we begin to plan our future building in Carmel. This vision represents the realization of the vision of the founding fathers and mothers of Congregation Shaarey Tefilla in 1992. The future of our young families will be best served by our new location at 116th Street and Towne Road. Of course, it will take tremendous effort on the part of our entire membership to realize our dream. Building a new facility is a huge undertaking for a smaller congregation. Each and every one of us will have to make a genuine financial commitment to demonstrate our support for this goal. We cannot abdicate our responsibility to anyone else. Shaarey Tefilla is the people's synagogue. It has no "sugar daddies" to rely upon. Its greatest resource is its hard-working members who were capable of creating a new, vibrant synagogue from scratch. All of us will have to dig deep into our resources to enable this dream to come to fruition.

As a rabbi, I would like to comment on the spiritual building of a congregation that must accompany the physical process. Of course, without the financial commitment of our membership, our new building will not get off the ground. However, we must also make a serious spiritual commitment to our congregation as well. The central focus of a synagogue is its religious services. We are not a country club. We are not merely a watering hole for Jews. Without a serious commitment to attending services on a regular basis, a synagogue has no reason for existence. In addition to our Friday evening and Shabbat morning services, we now have a minyan on Sunday morning, Monday evening, and Wednesday evening (at Hooverwood). I know that we are very grateful for individuals who have made a serious commitment to attending one of these services on a weekly basis. First and foremost, we are a religious community. The support that regular attendees give one another is vital for our religious health as a congregation. Perhaps one of the most depressing experiences in a synagogue is to attend when there is no minyan. A synagogue service without a minyan is like a person without a beating heart. Our spiritual building for the future must be based on strengthening our religious commitment.

Secondly, we must continue to improve our educational programming at Shaarey Tefilla. I know that all of us are excited that we now have both a dynamic programming of school-aged religious education and adult education. I thank Cynthia Weiner, Rae Kridel, Tracy Mishkin, and Marci Landis for their incredible efforts in galvanizing our strong educational programming. We need to create informal educational experiences that will share positive Jewish learning for our students. We want to foster the feeling that Shaarey Tefilla is truly a second home for them. Our children must be comfortable and relaxed in the sanctuary. Families should not regard a sanctuary as some strange and alien "holy space", but rather as the space where all Jews gather to express their religious yearnings to G-d. One of our goals will be to expand upon our educational offerings in our new facility. Our children are our future. In a famous rabbinic play on Hebrew words, our children are not "banayich" (your sons) but rather "bonayich" (your builders). Of course, we are building for the Jewish commitment for generations to come.

Of course, the synagogue does serve social functions for our members as well. We are very proud of the many bnai mitzvah luncheons and wedding ceremonies that have taken place in our current building. Our congregation has an extremely strong Sisterhood that has formed a core of friendship and support. It has enabled to undertake many projects that have donated to many worthwhile causes in our community. We are particularly grateful for the work that Sisterhood has done for the survivors of Hurricane Katrina. We know that many people come to synagogue to meet new acquaintances as well as finding Jewish children for their children to play with. The informal atmosphere of our congregation, where everyone is always made to feel at home, helps foster positive relations among our members. Many of our members are new to the Indianapolis area and rely upon their synagogue friends for friendship and support. We always want to build these links as well.

Our goal, of course, in building for the future, is also to grow our membership. The best referrals for our new members are our current members. Please invite someone you know to our services or one of our programs. If your friend has a pre-schooler, welcome them to a Tot Shabbat. If an acquaintance has a school aged child, share with them about our wonderful education program. If you meet someone new, bring them to a Friday evening or Saturday morning service. Most congregations ultimately grow through word-of-mouth. Our members are our best ambassadors to share what Shaarey Tefilla is all about.

We are about to embark on the fulfillment of a dream. However, building a synagogue is not only about completing a physical structure. It is also about the spiritual creation of a true religious community. These are the critical issues that our synagogue must face to continue its growth. Shaarey Tefilla began with its mission to create an informal, family centered religious community committed to Conservative Judaism. We must continue with our spiritual building as we embark upon our physical building as well.