Congregation Etz Chayim

Specialties

Located in Palo Alto California, Congregation Etz Chayim melds Reform and Conservative traditions with elements from across the spectrum of Judaism. We focus on spirituality, lifelong learning, and service, and offer a warm, inclusive egalitarian community. Together with our spiritual leader, Rabbi Chaim Koritzinsky, our congregants are exploring what it means for each of us to identify as a Jew.

Our services are conducted in Hebrew and English, with prayerbooks that include both transliterations and English translations. We are a congregation that loves music and likes to sing as we pray together.

Whether you are steeped in Jewish tradition or new to it, you will feel comfortable and challenged to learn more. We are large enough, with almost 300 households, to offer the religious, educational, and social amenities you expect while remaining small enough to provide you with personal attention. Join us for a Shabbat service or drop by during the week to learn more about us.

History

Established in 1995.

Congregation Etz Chayim was started in early 1995 by six families who wanted to create a small community within which to engage in Jewish prayer, learning, celebration and support. We started as an entirely volunteer effort. We now have nearly 300 household members, our rabbi, and a small congregational staff.

Our members are as diverse as the Jewish community. We were raised in Reform, Conservative, Orthodox and secular households, or with no Jewish upbringing at all. We are Jews-​by-​choice having been raised in another faith. We are interfaith families. We are single, married, in relationships, divorced, and widowed. We have young children, grown children, no children. We are LGBT, we are straight, we are searching.

What unites us is our desire for community with other Jews and our active engagement in congregational life. We are participants in services rather than audience members, builders of community rather than wallflowers, Jewish learners rather than passive observers.

Meet the Manager

Chaim K.

Manager

Rabbi Chaim Koritzinsky joined Etz Chayim in July 2015. He came to us from Santiago, Chile, where he was the founding rabbi of Ruaj Ami, an independent congregation. Rabbi Chaim was ordained at Hebrew College in Massachusetts where he was part of the first class of the school’s non-​denominational rabbinic training program. A native of Madison, Wisconsin, he is a graduate of Vassar College where he majored in Russian Studies. He is fluent in Russian, Spanish and Hebrew. Married to Keren Henigman, he is the father of three young children.