B’nai Tikvah is a Conservative, egalitarian congregation located in Deerfield, Illinois, in the northern suburbs of Chicago. With approximately 700 member families, we are an active, vibrant community committed to exploring Jewish life and observance to its fullest. We think of our congregation as an extended family, welcoming all—everyone from infants to seniors, longtime residents and new arrivals, singles, families, and empty nesters.
Our range of programming reflects the diverse interests and needs of our congregants. Education is a lifelong endeavor at B’nai Tikvah. The B'nai Tikvah/Board of Jewish Education Early Childhood Center program has earned universal acclaim, and our innovative Bar/Bat Mitzvah program has earned a nationwide reputation for its excellence.
With a full slate of adult education offerings, every member has the opportunity to learn and grow as Jews. Crash course in Hebrew? Brush up on your Torah reading skills? Converse in Yiddish? Learn from eminent biblical scholars? Whatever your current level of knowledge, we’ll have a class that appeals to you.
Warm, spirited services led by our inspiring clergy are a draw for many. Our traditional Shabbat morning service is followed by lunch for the entire congregation, a great opportunity to socialize with old friends and make new ones. Age-appropriate Junior Congregation services take place for our youngsters, while the youngest set takes advantage of our popular weekly parent-led Tot Shabbat services. And we complement our traditional Kabbalat Shabbat service with a rousing, musical Friday evening service once a month.
The joyful spirit of B’nai Tikvah is palpable from the moment one enters our administrative offices and our beautiful Synagogue lobby. Whether it’s the Purim Carnival, Mitzvah Day, Shabbat Under the Stars, or virtually any day of the week, something exciting is happening. If you haven’t already, we invite you to visit a service, talk to our clergy, and join us as we grow.
In the summer of 1976 twenty young Deerfield families, seeking to form a close-knit Jewish community, to find spiritual expression for themselves and a Jewish education for their children, founded Congregation B'nai Tikvah, Children of Hope. This tri-part aspiration reflected our people's ancient understanding of such an institution: namely, a bet tefillah, a house of prayer; a bet midrash, a house of study; and a bet knesset, a house of assembly. After meeting first in
South Park Elementary School and later in the gymnasium of Wilmot Elementary School, we moved into our current, beautiful building in 1993. From those humble beginnings, B’nai Tikvah has grown into a force for Conservative Judaism on the North Shore. Members hail from Deerfield, Northbrook, Highland Park, Buffalo Grove, and beyond. We are fortunate that our founding rabbi, Rabbi Reuven Frankel, remains an active presence in the community.
