Lev Eisha services are held on the first Saturday of the month, at 9:30 a.m., from September through June. Our Shabbat service is designed to address the spiritual needs of women. We start with uplifting songs, many based on the psalms, to help bring us into the state of mind to be ready for the traditional prayers. They are lively and enticing--you won't want to miss our opening songs!
At Lev Eisha we have a complete service! Opening with songs of praise, we continue with Birchot HaShachar, the morning personal prayers; Psukei D'zimrah, songs of reverence; Shachrit, our central creed (the Shema and Amidah); the Torah service (including the Aleinu and the Mourner's Kaddish); and finally our closing circle and kiddush. Lev Eisha incorporates a lot of singing and dancing... we are lifting our voices, making a joyful noise, and truly celebrating Shabbat.
During the Torah service we'll call whole groups to come up to the Torah. We do the required three readings, but don't specifically follow the triennial cycle. If you'd like to be a Torah reader please contact our Ritual Chair.
We use our own siddur, created specifically for Lev Eisha, which contains the songs and prayers, the Hebrew, English translation, and transliteration.
While Lev Eisha originated at a Conservative synagogue, Lev Eisha members and participants come from all affiliations, Reform, Renewal, Reconstructionist, and Orthodox, as well as Conservative. Our members represent the full spectrum of thought and practice. For more information please see the FAQs.
Donations go towards paying for the costs of presenting the services. For your convenience, you can now complete the membership process online using your credit card or PayPal account.
Cantorial Singer Cindy Paley is one of the founders of the Lev Eisha service. She serves as Music Educator at Valley Beth Shalom.
Mollie Wine is a professional musician and Jewish educator, as well as a beloved member of Lev Eisha, who is often called upon to substitute for Rabbi August or Cindy Paley when either is unavailable. Mollie and Chris Gasci are also staff musicians. Please tell them if you enjoy their music, but remember that they are there to enhance our experience, and to enjoy a spiritual and joyful Shabbat. If you have any issues that need attention, please bring them to a board member, recognizable by her purple name badge.
We have several volunteer musicians who assist in creating the joyful sounds of our service: Singer Robin Winston, violinist Ruth Belonsky, and percussionist Joy Krauthammer. They are all members of our community who step forward to share their gifts with the congregation while participating in the service.
Please feel free to contact the Lev Eisha Board about any of your questions or concerns. You can reach any of the officers by e-mail, either using their first names or titles at leveisha.org, or send your question to Information and it will be routed to the correct person.
If you leave a message at 310.575.0985 a member of our Advisory Board will get in touch with you. Please allow a little time for our volunteers to retrieve your message.
Postal mail should be sent to:
Lev Eisha
10736 Jefferson Blvd #706
Culver City, CA 90230