Congregation Darchei Noam

Yom Kippur
2025-10-02 09:30 - 17:00 (America/Toronto) | Ontario

Ark Adventures
2025-10-04 10:00 - 12:00 | Ontario
Ark Adventures is designed for young children (ages birth to 5) and their families to experience Shabbat in community together. The program is offered on select Saturdays throughout the year.
Ark Adventures will “set sail” on October 4/ 2025 from 10 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
Join us on the ark for a Shabbat adventure!

Office closes at 1 pm
2025-10-06 | Ontario

Office Closed
2025-10-07, 2025-10-08, 2025-10-14, 2025-10-15 | Ontario

Sukkot
2025-10-07 10:00 | Ontario

Chatan Torah and Kallat Bereshit - Les Klein and Toby Rose
2025-10-11 10:00 - 12:00 | Ontario
Please join us for Shabbat services on October 11, 2025, in celebration as we honour two longstanding and steadfast members of the Darchei Noam community.
Les and Toby first attended High Holy Day services together at Darchei Noam in 1980, before they were married. They were young, and so was the Rabbi, Richard Hirsh. As “fervently” liberal Jews, Reconstructionist Judaism, DN and Rabbi Hirsh all appealed to them, and this began a (so-far) lifelong association.
Over the years, they attended services and programs and also brought their parents whenever they visited Toronto. Their three sons, Jonathan, Solomon and Benjamin, became Bnei Mitzvah at DN, and Rabbi Tina Grimberg officiated at Benjamin & Eden’s and Solomon & Laura’s weddings, as well as the brit milah of their first grandson, Asher.
Toby served two terms on the Board, and she was chair of the Ritual Committee. Les has, for many years, chanted Haftarah at the High Holy Days, always preceded by a brief d’var, and most notably was the architect who designed the renovations to Darchei Noam’s permanent home at 864 Sheppard Avenue West.

Thanksgiving Office Closure
2025-10-13 | Ontario

Commemorating October 7 on Shemini Atzeret
2025-10-13 19:00 | Ontario
🗓️ Monday, October 13th⏰ 7 pm📍 Darchei Noam
Join us for a commemorative program on Shemini Atzeret in remembrance of the tragic events of October 7, 2023.
This program marks the Hebrew date on which the tragedy occurred and offers a sacred time of communal reflection. The program will be led by Amit Rozenblum, our Executive Director, through songs and poems.
Reserve Tickets Here

Shemini Atzeret with Yizkor
2025-10-14 10:00 | Ontario

Simchat Torah
2025-10-14 17:30 | Ontario
🗓️ Tuesday, October 14th⏰ 5:30 pm📍 Darchei Noam
Please join us at Darchei Noam for a Simchat Torah service to mark the completion and beginning of the Torah reading cycle. All are welcome to attend and participate in this meaningful celebration.
RSVP Here

Religious Zionism: The Blurred Boundary Between Religion & Politics *3 Part Lecture*
2025-10-19 19:00 | Congregation Darchei Noam, 864 Sheppard Ave W., North York, Ontario, M3H 2T, Canada
📅 Sundays, October 19th, October 26th, November 2nd ⏰ 7:00 pm 📍Social Hall
In this 3-part course, Rabbi Englander will discuss the development of Religious Zionism from all sides of the political spectrum: through the lens of Israel’s Declaration of Independence, the influence of Jewish mystical teachings on the settler movement and an historical overview showing how the events since 1916 influenced the various Zionist ideologies & ultimately led to October 7th.
Rabbi Englander is the founding Rabbi of Solel Congregation in Mississauga and served there for 40 years until his retirement. He is now Adjunct Rabbi at Temple Sinai in Toronto.

Please click here to reserve your spot

Pins & Needles
2025-10-21 13:30 - 15:30 | Congregation Darchei Noam, 864 Sheppard Ave W., North York, Ontario, M3H 2T, Canada
Pins and Needles is reaching out to let you know that we are always very happy to welcome new members to our group. This month, we will meet on October 21, 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. on Zoom. We knit, crochet, and socialize. We would love to have other crafters join us to showcase their work and share tips and stories.
We would also like to inform you that we are currently in need of yarn donations. Especially helpful are donations of blanket-weight yarn and multiple balls of the same weight or colour. If you’re doing some spring cleaning and have yarn you’re no longer using, we’d be grateful if you’d consider donating it to us.
Please contact nancy@kosiner.com if you have any questions.

The Mitzvah of Visiting
2025-10-22 14:00 - 15:00 | Ontario
🗓️ Wednesday, October 22⏰ 2:00 – 3:00 PM📍 Darchei Noam
Tradition teaches us that visiting those who are ill relieves one-sixtieth of their suffering, but perhaps this mitzvah feels uncomfortable. At this presentation, we will discuss how you can feel comfortable.
If you would like to attend, please email Elizabeth at mincohen@bell.net to reserve your spot, indicating whether you will be attending in person or by Zoom. The Zoom link will be forwarded to you.
You are welcome to come any time after 1:30 pm. The presentation will take place on Wednesday, October 22, from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m.

The Wisdom Behind the Mask: Deception as a Creative Force in the Torah, Nature, and Life Around Us
2025-10-24 08:00 - 17:00 | Ontario
📅 Saturday, November 15 & 22⏰ 1:00 p.m.📍Sanctuary
From Jacob’s disguises to Joseph’s deceptions, the Torah is filled with stories that revolve around concealment and revelation. What can these narratives teach us about human nature—and why does deception appear not only in our sacred texts, but also throughout evolution and the fabric of society itself?
Join Rabbi Tina Grimberg for a fascinating two-part exploration of deception through the lens of Torah, evolution, and human psychology, revealing surprising insights into the complexity of life and the moral choices we face.
Drawing from an array of scriptural and scientific sources, Rabbi Grimberg will guide us in examining how truth and deception intertwine in the natural world and in human behavior.

Register Here

Synaplex Shabbat
2025-10-25 10:00 | Congregation Darchei Noam, 864 Sheppard Ave W., North York, Ontario, M3H 2T, Canada
Synaplex Shabbat
📅 Saturday, October 25 | 🕙 10:00 AM | 📍 Multiple locations at Darchei Noam
We will begin together at 10:00 AM with introductory prayers, setting the stage for a meaningful and transformative morning. Then, as we arrive at the Torah service, you get to choose from three meaningful opportunities to experience Torah—each offering a unique lens into Jewish tradition, spirituality, and learning.
Option 1: Traditional Torah Service
Engage in a full, exploratory Torah reading led by Rob Silver.
Option 2: Reflective & Meditative Musical Experience
David Lefkowich will lead an immersive exploration of the Book of Psalms, where ancient words meet modern melodies.
Option 3: Periphery with Sara Yacobi‑Harris
Join us for a special Synaplex Shabbat featuring Periphery, a short documentary exploring ethnic diversity and Jewish identity through the stories of Jews from Black/African, Korean, Iraqi, Indian, and South American backgrounds. Together we’ll reflect on representation, intersectionality, and belonging within the global Jewish community, guided by filmmaker and educator Sara Yacobi‑Harris, co‑founder of No Silence on Race
Periphery is an evocative short documentary that explores ethnic diversity in the Jewish community in Canada through dance, poetry and personal narratives. Following 10 Jews of Black/African, Korean, Iraqi, Indian and South American ancestry, the film challenges perceptions of who is a Jew, exploring ideas of representation, intersectionality, race, and sexuality. A window into the Jewish community, Periphery invites us to appreciate the richness of Jewish identity and cultural expression while also illustrating what it feels like to grapple with a sense of belonging and to seek recognition within one’s own ethnic community.
In these shabbat sessions we will explore Jewish identity, culture and ethnic diversity within the global Jewish diaspora, intersectionality and Jews and Whiteness.
Sara Yacobi-Harris is an award-winning documentary filmmaker, learning designer and social entrepreneur. She is the co-founder of No Silence on Race, a non-profit organization dedicated to showcasing and celebrating multi-ethnic Jewish experiences through content creation, community programming and cross-cultural dialogue. She currently works at EPIC leadership and is studying Psychotherapy at the Gestalt Institute of Toronto.
Please register here for Synaplex Shabbat.

Israeli Dancing
2025-10-25 13:00 | Congregation Darchei Noam, 864 Sheppard Ave W., North York, Ontario, M3H 2T, Canada
Israeli Dancing
📅 Saturday, October 25 | 🕙 1:00 PM |📍Social Hall
Please join us toward the end of kiddush in the Social Hall for an hour of Israeli dancing.
All are welcome to join us in this fun, community-building activity. Join us to enjoy Israeli music and movement.

Board Meeting
2025-10-29 19:00 - 21:30 | Congregation Darchei Noam, 864 Sheppard Ave W., North York, Ontario, M3H 2T, Canada

SJAC Scholar In Residence D’var: Brian Keshen
2025-11-01 10:00 | Congregation Darchei Noam, 864 Sheppard Ave W., North York, Ontario, M3H 2T, Canada
The Social Justice Advocacy Committee (SJAC) is delighted to announce that our 2025–26 Social Justice Scholar-in-Residence is Bryan Keshen. Since 2014 Bryan has been CEO of Reena, which provides services to over 1,000 individuals with diverse disabilities throughout the GTA. Before that he spent 24 years working for the Toronto and Vancouver Jewish Federations. Bryan will give the d’var Torah at Darchei Noam on Saturday, November 1, Shabbat Lech L’cha: “Hineni”—The Call and the Response of Being Present for the Other.
Details to follow.

Ark Adventures
2025-11-01 10:00 - 12:00 | Ontario
Ark Adventures is designed for young children (ages birth to 5) and their families to experience Shabbat in community together. The program is offered on select Saturdays throughout the year.
Ark Adventures will “set sail” on November 1/ 2025, at 10:00 A.M.
Join us on the ark for a Shabbat adventure!

Pins & Needles
2025-11-04 13:30 - 15:30, 2025-11-18 13:30 - 15:30 | Congregation Darchei Noam, 864 Sheppard Ave W., North York, Ontario, M3H 2T, Canada
Pins and Needles is reaching out to let you know that we are always very happy to welcome new members to our group. This month, we will meet on Tuesday, November 4th, in the shul library from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. and on Zoom on the third Tuesday of the month (November 18th). We knit, crochet, and socialize. We would love to have other crafters join us to showcase their work and share tips and stories.
We would also like to inform you that we are currently in need of yarn donations. Especially helpful are donations of blanket-weight yarn and multiple balls of the same weight or colour. If you’re doing some spring cleaning and have yarn you’re no longer using, we’d be grateful if you’d consider donating it to us.
Please contact nancy@kosiner.com if you have any questions.

Darchei Noam Blood Drive
2025-11-09 10:00 - 15:00 | Ontario
🗓️ Sunday, November 9 ⏰ 10:00 am – 3:00 PM📍Darchei Noam
Join us in saving lives by donating blood! Your donation can provide life-saving blood products to patients in need within our community. Donations take only a few minutes but make an immeasurable impact—each donation can save up to three lives. We hope you’ll consider participating and helping us support this vital cause. Every donation counts and your generosity gives hope and healing to those in need.

Register Here

Town Hall: In Person
2025-11-11 19:00 | Congregation Darchei Noam, 864 Sheppard Ave W., North York, Ontario, M3H 2T, Canada
On Tuesday, November 11 (at Darchei Noam) and Wednesday, November 12 (on Zoom) starting at 7:00pm we will be holding Town Hall meetings to provide an overview of the work and discussions we have had to date on the topic of Rabbinic succession planning, and ask you to share your thoughts and provide us with your feedback.
A synopsis will be provided in advance to allow you time to consider and reflect on the process and possibilities.
We encourage and welcome your participation. Please register online here: https://www.zeffy.com/en-CA/ticketing/town-hall-2

Town Hall: On Zoom
2025-11-12 19:00 | Congregation Darchei Noam, 864 Sheppard Ave W., North York, Ontario, M3H 2T, Canada

Tot Shabbat
2025-11-15 11:30 | Congregation Darchei Noam, 864 Sheppard Ave W., North York, Ontario, M3H 2T, Canada
Tot Shabbat!
On Saturday, November 15th, Join us as we learn together, sing, and enjoy a delicious Kiddush lunch!
🎵 11:30 AM: Tot Shabbat with fun activities and songs
🍽 12:00 PM: Blessings and Kiddush lunch for all
Let’s celebrate a beautiful year of singing, playing, and dancing together.
Please RSVP here

Health is a Human Right with Dr. Lisa Forman
2025-11-16 19:30 | Congregation Darchei Noam, 864 Sheppard Ave W., North York, Ontario, M3H 2T, Canada
What does it mean to say that health is a human right? Why should this right matter to Canadians or to Jewish communities anywhere? And how might communities like Darchei Noam think about human rights, international law, and the right to health in these deeply challenging times?

Dr. Lisa Forman is a professor of Public Health and Law at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health. She is an international human rights law scholar whose research explores how the right to health may contribute to reducing global health inequities. She will explain the connections between global human rights, international law and the right to health. She will explore how health came to be considered a fundamental human right, how the modern system of human rights emerged after the Holocaust, what it means to talk about a right to health, and the impact of this right, for better or worse, when it comes to the health of people everywhere. Moderated by Robin Levinson King, Senior editor, BBC.

No charge. Reception to follow.
The Merkur Lectures are a series of Darchei Noam programs on equity, civil liberty and social justice, presented with generous support from the Merkur Family.
Register Here

The Wisdom Behind The Mask: Two Part Lecture Series with Rabbi Grimberg
2025-11-22 13:00 | Congregation Darchei Noam, 864 Sheppard Ave W., North York, Ontario, M3H 2T, Canada
**New lecture dates are November 22nd and December 6th**
Saturday, November 22
From Jacob’s disguises to Joseph’s deceptions, the Torah is filled with stories that revolve around concealment and revelation. What can these narratives teach us about human nature—and why does deception appear not only in our sacred texts, but also throughout evolution and the fabric of society itself?
Join Rabbi Tina Grimberg for a fascinating two-part exploration of deception through the lens of Torah, evolution, and human psychology, revealing surprising insights into the complexity of life and the moral choices we face.
Drawing from an array of scriptural and scientific sources, Rabbi Grimberg will guide us in examining how truth and deception intertwine in the natural world and in human behavior.
Please register online here: https://www.zeffy.com/en-CA/ticketing/the-wisdom-behind-the-mask-deception-as-a-creative-force-in-the-torah-nature-and-life-around-us
