Approximately 30 minutes after Shabbat concludes, parents and children, both boys and girls, as well as grandparents and grandchildren, gather in the synagogue’s Beit Midrash to study Torah as a family unit.
During the fall and winter months, Young Israel of Southfield (YIOS) hosts a weekly Saturday night Torah learning program for the entire family. The program is called Veshinatam Levanecha, which is a phrase borrowed from the Shema, which means that you should thoroughly teach your children (words of Torah.)
Approximately 30 minutes after Shabbat concludes, parents and children, both boys and girls, as well as grandparents and grandchildren, gather in the synagogue’s Beit Midrash to study Torah as a family unit. Each week, the entire Beit Midrash is filled to capacity with participants who are Young Israel of Southfield members, as well as those who attend and participate from the larger Metropolitan Detroit Jewish community.
Each family decides what they would like to study. The rabbi of the synagogue, Rabbi Yechiel Morris, also assists families to select areas of study that would be most appropriate.
In addition, the synagogue recently dedicated a children’s Torah study library in the Beit Midrash that contains age-appropriate Torah study books that families have access to during the program. The library was donated by Young Israel of Southfield members in loving memory of Rabbi Morris’ nephew, Donny Morris, who passed away last year during the festivities in Meron, Israel on Lag b’Omer.
Following the weekly study, Rabbi Morris engages with all the children, asking them some thought-provoking questions and encouraging their answers and reflections. The synagogue’s youth director, Rabbi Ari Steinig, also makes youth-related announcements following the Torah study. The program concludes with pizza, snacks and drinks.
The refreshments and the Torah study are sponsored each week by a different family. Veshinantam Levanecha has been in existence for 20 years. It was created by Rabbi Morris when he became rabbi of Young Israel of Southfield in 2002.
