Who We Are

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Temple Beth El strives to make Shabbat and holiday worship meaningful and fulfilling for everyone! We engage in worship in multiple ways, including tradition, innovation, music, participation and teaching. Temple Beth El also hosts a vibrant and inclusive religious school and one of the city's most respected early learning centers.

We are proud of how each of you brings your own story to our diverse community! Whether you have a multi-generational history at our congregation or are new to the city and Temple Beth El, everyone seeking a Jewish community will find in Temple Beth El a place to call home.

Temple Beth El—located in Tacoma, Washington—is the center of Jewish life in Pierce County (population 900,000). Temple Beth El offers the Jewish community a wide range of educational programs, worship services, social activities and opportunities for social action. We are a caring community devoted to the Jewish ideals of study, worship, and tikkun olam, repairing the world.

We value diversity in our congregation and warmly welcome interfaith families, Jews-by-choice, singles, LGBTQIA+, and all members of the community.

Tacoma's Jewish community dates back to 1892. Temple Beth El was created in 1960 with the merger of Temple Beth Israel (Reform) and Sinai Temple (Conservative). We are a member of the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ), and currently have about 250 member families.

Shabbat services are held on Friday evenings at 6:30 PM, and on Saturday mornings at 10:00 AM. Torah study is held every Saturday at 9:00 AM.

Meet the People Making Temple Beth El Thrive

Strategic Plan

Temple Beth El has finished the final stage of its strategic planning process, which used Appreciative Inquiry (AI) to guide our work. The Strategic Planning Committee guided the congregation through the first three steps of the four-step AI process:

1) Inquire

2) Imagine

3) Innovate

The work of the Strategic Planning Committee has been completed and TBE’s 2013-2018 strategic plan is now in the hands of TBE’s board, committees, and congregation for the final stage of the AI process: 4) Implement.

Here are the comprehensive 2013-2018 Strategic Plan documents: