The Community Free Synagogue

Fort Myers, Florida

11120 Ranchette road  (The Unity Campus)

synfree@comcast.net (239) 247-4556    mailing address: 7210 Falcon Crest, Fort Myers FL 33908

email:  synfree@comcast.net

 

           Meeting Room ID  527 117 7864  passcode 435419   (click on this icon)  

 

Summer Schedule

We start our summer schedule on Friday, May 1 with a 6:00 PM Sabbath Eve dinner at the Rabbi's home, 7210 Falcon Crest Court (The Forest Country Club). You are encouraged to bring a non-dairy dish, side, salad or some wine. A dessert is always welcome! This dinners will be on the 1st of month between May and August. We resume our weekly dinner at the synagogue in September.

Worship follows at 7:00 PM. On all other Fridays during the month worship will only be Zoomed at that same time.

Weekly Sabbath morning Torah Study with the Rabbi continues on Zoom 9:30-11:00 AM.

 

About our Synagogue

The Community Free Synagogue was founded in 2005 as an "intentional community."  The intention was to create a stable new form of synagogue free of the "money and politics" that often stress our congregations. This was accomplished in 2 ways: we do not sell memberships,do fundraising or charge for anything.

C.F.S. is a community not-for-profit "open resource" available to all that is comfortably supported by donations and volunteers (including the Rabbi) based on the axiom that, as a rule, people will act the way they are treated. Many respond to our generosity with theirs.

While we have the officers and by-laws required for not-for-profit incorporation and maintain the strictest financial accountability, we move forward with the Rabbi's leadership and consensus-building among the more engaged participants. Our informality works for us because of our shared values and mutual respect. This enables us to consistently achieve remarkable outcomes efficiently and with minimum "friction".

We are a deeply religious community committed to the traditional Jewish values of "prayer, study and benevolence" as found in Pirqe Avot While our worship and observance trend towards the traditional, our values are progressive and inclusive. All are welcome!

 

Our Rabbi

 

Rabbi Bruce Diamond was among the founders of the Community Free Synagogue in 2005 and has led it ever since. A graduate of the Yeshivah of Flatbush, he holds his 1978 ordination and subsequent Doctor of Divinities honoris causa from the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in Cincinnati. He has served our local Jewish community since 1997 and was a visiting scholar for 12 years at Florida Gulf Coast University, where he taught social ethics, critical thinking skills and methods of civic engagement. A retired U.S. Air Force Chaplain (Res.), he is married to the former Melinda Moore. The Rabbi and Melinda are fully engaged in the life of our congregation and community.