This summer, the rabbi of congregation B’nai David-Judea, Yosef Kanefsky, took a two month Sabbatical.
He stayed in town but davened everywhere but his own shul.
His time at the Happy Minyan was particularly moving and he gave a sermon about it at B’nai David last Shabbos.
B’nai David has a cavernous sanctuary with horrible acoustics. Though the shul can bring formidable firepower to the bima — from Shirat Chana to Reb Mimi to Alex Fax to Josh Sharfman — it’s hard to arouse any ruach (spirit) in the parishioners.
Most Jews when they leave shul after davening feel as alive as Natalie Wood after Thanksgiving at Catalina Island.
Yehuda Solomon is the Happy Minyan’s davening star. He’s the lead singer for the Moshav Band. He gets paid the big bucks to lead services elsewhere but this year the shul came in with a substantial offer to keep him home for the high holidays.
I remember the first time he led the davening at Young Israel of Century City, a proper Yechie-type shul.
Yehuda came in with his ponytail and untucked shirt and sandals and he got the evil eye from the old folks in the shul.
It was a Shabbos mincha. There was a lot of discontent as he was asked to take over at the bima.
As he began to daven, people were talking over him and complaining.
Then Yehuda kicked things into another gear and suddenly the shul came alive as it had never done and everyone started singing and swaying and actually enjoying their davening.
Now YICC has regular Shlomo Carlebach-style davening.
