The High Holidays are almost here. While you think about your sins, we'll help you out with a comprehensive list of events surrounding the High Holidays and a list of services to ring in the new year with your peers in New York City. Note that some events are not only for young professionals but were included because they seem interesting or are affordable.
Remember, Rosh Hashanah starts on Friday, Sept. 14 in the evening and ends on Sunday, Sept. 17. Yom Kippur starts on Sunday, Sept. 24 in the evening and ends Monday, Sept. 25. (And if you didn't know this, maybe you need our calendar magnet!)
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High Holiday Events and Vibes
Cool shows, social gatherings, and more to get you in the High Holiday Spirit before Rosh Hashanah and after. Scroll down for all services.
Wednesday, Sept. 20
Rock Hashanah! An Electrifying Evening of Jewish Connections (Ages 21-45)
Manhattan, midtown, $28.52+, 6-10 pm
🎸🍎 Get Ready to Rock Hashanah! 🍎🎸 🎉 We’re celebrating the New Year with an evening of music and connections at a swanky NYC hotspot (to be announced soon). Rock Hashanah isn’t just a party – it’s a chance to mingle, connect, and spark new relationships. Whether you’re seeking meaningful connections, friendships, or business opportunities, this is the ideal setting to make them happen.
Wednesday, Sept. 20
The Story of Kol Nidre — An Orchestral Experience
JCC, Upper West Side, $25, 7-8:30 pm
The Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan and MusicTalks invite you to join an orchestral concert celebrating the beauty and depth of Kol Nidre as we celebrate the high holidays. In this concert, Israeli Cellist Elad Kabilio will share the story behind "Kol Nidre for Cello Solo and Orchestra" by Max Bruch (a German Protestant composer), which gave a new life to one of the most sacred and beautiful prayers. The program will also include liturgical and secular music which will give a new look into the process of atonement, self-reflection and rejuvenation in celebration of the new year.
High Holiday Services in NYC for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur for young professionals and more
A list of diverse organizations across New York City offering High Holiday services that are affordable and/or catered toward young professionals. Be sure to check out their sites for more information about which services they offer.
Services in Manhattan
B'nai Jeshurun
Upper West Side, non-affiliated, $36-$180 with some free events
We invite you to embark on a social and spiritual journey with folks in their 20s & 30s at BJ’s Aviv High Holy Days services. Come for services, meals, and music. Membership is not required.
This is a time to engage in self-discovery and spiritual transformation as we reflect upon this past year and imagine the ways we will create together in 5784. These offerings have the elevated musical services and progressive values BJ is known for, with an eye towards the unique journey we’re on at this phase of our lives.
Central Synagogue
Midtown East, reform, $125+
Central Synagogue holds Community Services for those in the New York Jewish community who are currently unaffiliated with a synagogue and wish to attend High Holy Days services.
Chabad FiDi
Rooftop Rosh Hashanah Dinner Friday, September 15, 2023 at 7 PM
FiDi, Hasidic, $36-$120
Join us together with your family to welcome the Jewish New Year at our Annual Rosh Hashanah Dinner. Enjoy a three-course festive meal complete with all the customary holiday foods. Evening Services will be held at 6:30 prior to dinner
Chabad Young Professionals
Chelsea/Flatiron, Hasidic, $50+
Celebrate the High Holidays with an inviting and warm YP community at the "Pop-Up Synagogue" in the heart of Manhattan! Join for dinner and/or services. Our services are tailored for young professionals in the modern world synthesizing an authentic and uplifting High Holiday experience. We are a congregation for young professionals but love when parents and family members join as well!
Sunday, Sept. 17
Shofar at 2 pm and 5 pm
Tashlich at 6 pm
Congregation Beit Simchat Torah
Manhattan (various locations), progressive, donation-based
BST is an LGBTQ+ synagogue for people of all sexual orientations and gender identities.
Our services are open to all, always free of charge.
Congregation Rodeph Sholom
Upper West Side, reform, $36 for non-members
Friday, Sept. 15, 7-9 pm
We are excited to be offering a new community service this year for those in their 20s and 30s! Join us on Erev Rosh Hashanah for a musical, inspiring service led by Rabbi Deborah Goldberg and Cantor Stefano Iacono. Services will be followed by a wine & dessert reception.
Kanisse: A Modern Sephardic and Mizrahi Community
East Village, egalitarian, $36+
Yom Kippur only, Sept. 24-25
Our annual Multicultural Yom Kippur Services are back, this year being led in a variety of traditions including Syrian, Persian, and Yerushalmi. Please join us as we return to our sanctuary location on Lower Fifth Avenue, or over livestream for those joining at a distance. We will be using our Zemirot HaMizraḥ maḥzor, which will be provided for those attending in-person (the digital version can also be accessed on our website). At the conclusion of Yom Kippur, a break-fast of Middle Eastern delicacies will be served.
Lab Shul
Tribeca, non-denominational, $110+ for non-partners (financial assistance available)
We invite you to join us as we celebrate the sacred season and activate the new year with renewed focus and intention. Our theme this year is SHIVITI – the ancient art of focused contemplation, giving us grounding tools, as individuals and a community, towards better balance, leaning into love, rising up for justice. Join us in whatever way works for you, in person or online. All ages. All faiths. All welcome
Park Avenue Synagogue
Upper East Side, conservative, $200 for members, $500 for non-members
Registration for the new Third-Floor Service at 87th Street, which is for the NextDor community (20s & 30s), is now open. This inclusive service, with meaningful High Holiday reflections and worship including inspiring music, prayer, and the blowing of the shofar, will be held in one of the most beautiful spaces at Park Avenue Synagogue. Advance registration is required, and space is limited. Tickets will be sent after Labor Day to the email address you provide. Requests for tickets are due by Tuesday, September 5.
Ohel Ayalah at the JCC
Upper West Side, egalitarian, free
Ohel Ayalah offers free, walk-in services throughout the High Holidays to meet the needs of any Jew or guest, in particular, Jews in their 20s or 30s, who do not have a place to pray on the High Holidays.
Ohel Ayalah will create an instant community for those who celebrate the High Holidays with us. We have room for 300 people in Manhattan. Half of the seats may be reserved in advance. The other half is for walk-ins. The service will aim to be awe-inspiring (literally), and, at the same time, warm and engaging. Your participation will be a key component in creating a community and a worshipful atmosphere.
MJE
Upper East Side, Upper West Side, Downtown, modern Orthodox (open to all affiliations), $54.44+
Join us for inspiring services at one of our three locations across Manhattan. Services at MJE are user-friendly, explanatory, no-Hebrew necessary followed by Kiddush, refreshments, and socializing. Services include break-out classes and interactive discussions with the MJE educators. Each of our locations will feature a catered Yom Kippur Break fast.
Temple Israel of New York
Upper East Side, reform, $36+
NYConnect is Temple Israel’s group for young professionals in their 20s and 30s. NYConnect gathers for various events throughout the city including Shabbat dinners, holiday celebrations, and mixers. Come join NYConnect for ANY OR ALL of the High Holy Days including Appletinis, Aperol Spritzes & Appetizers on the Night of Rosh Hashanah.
Sim Shalom Jewish Universalist Synagogue at The Bitter End
West Village, universalist, $149
Rosh Hashanah: Saturday, Sept. 16 10:30 am to 1 pm
Yom Kippur: Sunday, Sept. 25 10:30am - 1 pm
Join Sim Shalom Jewish Universalist Online Synagogue for the High Holidays at the legendary Bitter End on Bleeker Street in NYC! Featuring Rabbi Blane and a Jazz Quartet (Piano, Bass, Drums & Sax) and the beautiful music of our High Holidays!
Sutton Place Synagogue
Sutton Place, conservative, $90+ with some free events
Join us for SPS Young Professional Services — open to members and non-members. Together, we will hit the highlights of the High Holiday Service while we, learn, pray, and create community. We are so excited to be in person at PS 59 with Rabbi Dave Levy and Shayna Plotnik.
Services in Harlem
Sim Shalom Jewish Universalist Synagogue
Silvana Restaurant, universalist, $149
Kol Nidre: Sunday, Sept. 24 3:30 pm
Join Rabbi Blane and his trio for a lovely Kol Nidre service preceded by a Middle Eastern Cuisine dinner at Silvana in Harlem. This meaningful event will be a unique experience for the concluding of the High Holidays. Prior to the beginning of your Yom Kippur fast dinner will be served.
JCC Harlem
Harlem, non-affiliated, $18+
Join us for warm, welcoming, come-as-you-are services led by JCC Harlem Rabbi-In-Residence Mira Rivera. Take a journey of the soul with us. Let the liturgy into the cracks. Uncover the wisdom held in the Torah where our matriarchs and patriarchs unravel and stumble through the mystery of life.
Services in Brooklyn
Bowl Hashanah - Rosh Hashanah Services at Brooklyn Bowl
Williamsburg, reform, $72+
Celebrate the Jewish New Year with Rabbi Daniel Brenner, Jeremiah Lockwood Antibalas’ Jordan McLean and many others! Bowl Hashanah includes: * Rosh Hashanah morning services led by Rabbi Daniel Brenner with musical director Jeremiah Lockwood, Antibalas’ Jordan McLean, Yula Be’eri, John Bollinger, Stuart Bogie, and Yusuke Yamamoto! * Featuring Armo and more
* Torah reading and procession lead by Rabbi Brenner * Plain-sense explanations of the religious aspects of the holiday. * Prayer * Shofar blowing + Meditation
Brooklyn Jews at Congregation Beth Elohim
Prospect Heights, reform, $40+
Brooklyn Jews, CBE's young professionals group, offers two ticket options for the High Holy Days. Individual tickets are available at $40 per service for all services on Rosh Hashanah, Kol Nidre and the morning of Yom Kippur. Brooklyn Jews is an ever-evolving experiment in communal Jewish life, focused on art, text, politics, food, and ritual.
Selah
Prospect Heights, $3.08+, 11 am to 2 pm
Selah is a participation-celebrated, perfection-averse Jewish community of people in recovery and those who love them. Join us on the second day of Rosh Hashana for experiential songful prayer and a brunch full of simanim (symbolic tasting of auspicious foods to open up the new year of possibilities). If you’re looking for all-comers, spiritually alive, perfection-averse, be-here-as-you-are, irreverently traditional community that celebrates all life journeys - recovery experiences included, you've found your New Year experience.
Sephardi/Mizrahi Community High Holiday Services
Prospect Heights, egalitarian, $36+ and donation-based
Join the Egalitarian Sephardi Mizrahi Community of New York for Egalitarian Sephardi High Holidays, delivered in Maghrebi and Yerushalmi nusahim, led by Laura Elkeslassy and friends. All are welcome! Learn more
Temple of the Stranger High Holidays
House of Yes, Bushwick, $45.28
Sept. 15 and Sept. 25
Join Temple of the Stranger for a night of immersive spiritual theater led by Jericho Vincent. Our deconstructed High Holiday experiences of music, meditation, dance, and chant will plunge you into deep heart space, cast you into ancestral time, and invite you into mystical encounters.
Services in Queens
Ashreynu
Astoria, pluralistic, donation based
From Slichot to Rosh HaShanah to Yom Kippur to Sukkot, we invite you to participate in some of the most action packed weeks of the Jewish calendar with us. We’re excited to return to Ashreynu and welcome the Jewish new year of 5784.
Malkhut
Astoria and LIC, progressive, free
Rabbi Goldenberg will lead us on Rosh Hashanah, Kol Nidre & Yom Kippur in prayer, song and study, along with Music Director Kris Wettstein, Rabbinic Intern Emily Herzlin and many collaborators and co-creators. Our services are warm, contemplative, rich in music, and all Hebrew is transliterated and translated for easy access to all levels of experience with Jewish ritual. All are welcome!
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