Description: Shaarei Shomayim is a Modern Orthodox synagogue in North York, Ont., that was established in 1928. The synagogue states that it has nearly 700 families as members.
The synagogue’s mission page states that it “seeks to inspire the community to greater commitments to Torah, the Jewish people and the State of Israel.”
The synagogue sent members to the “March for Israel” in Washington in November 2023 and a rally for Israel in Ottawa in December 2023.
Also in November 2023, it hosted Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre and Conservative MP Melissa Lantsman, who explained how the party would address alleged hate crimes. The synagogue gifted a book to Poilievre with a message inside thanking him for his “ongoing support for Canadian Jewry and the people of Israel.”
IDF mentions since Oct. 7, 2023: In October 2023, the synagogue hosted an event where attendees would be praying for Israeli military members.
In December 2023, the synagogue’s Instagram page advertised an event called the “Shaarei Shomayim Mission to Israel,” which is described as, “A mission of understanding, solidarity, and unwavering support.” The mission’s itinerary included barbequing for soldiers and “packing essential items for the front lines and victims.”
In January 2024, the synagogue hosted an event where the grandparents of an Israeli military member serving in Gaza spoke about his experience.
The synagogue’s annual memorial books published since Oct. 7, 2023, contain a communal prayer for “For Fallen Members of the Israel Defense Force and Victims of Terror” to be recited on “Shavuot, Yom Kippur, Shemini Atzeret, and the last day of Pesach.”
The prayer states: “G-d, full of mercy, Who dwells on high, grant perfect rest on the wings of the Divine Presence, in the lofty levels of the holy and pure ones,who shine like the brightness of the firmament, unto the souls of those who fell in all wars fighting for freedom and peace, and to the souls of the holy martyrs who were embattled on all the battlefields of Israel, in the underground and in the Israel Defence Forces, and who fell in their wars, and the victims of terror, who gave their lives for the sanctification of G-d’s Name, the People and the Land. May their resting place be in Paradise. May the Master of mercy shelter them in the shelter of His wings for eternity; and may He bind their souls in the Bond of Eternal Life. The Lord is their heritage. May their rest be peace. And may they arise for their portion at the End of Days. And let us say, Amen.”
Associated Israeli military members: Zecharya Alexandroff; Maya Bordan; Michael Domb; Daniel Gofine; Dov Niedzviecki; Jonah Osher; Nava Ratzon; Naomi Stochinsky.
Connections to other organizations included in GTA to IDF:
- Bnei Akiva Schools: Listed as a “partner” in an Instagram post about the November 2023 “March for Israel” in Washington, D.C.
Associated charity: Shaarei Shomayim Congregation is the charity associated with Shaarei Shomayim. It has had charitable status since 1967, and has brought in at least $11,789,985 in charitable revenue since 2020. This has included at least $9,572,164 in receipted donations, for which donors enjoy tax breaks.
