Congregation Rodeph Shalom, as a community, has been working together over the past several years to strike the right balance between increased protection and maintaining the openness and welcome that is our core value.

The world and times we live in present us with a challenging security environment which includes both old and new threats. While there are high levels of concern and increased vigilance, there are no specific credible threats directed towards Rodeph Shalom, other Jewish organizations, schools, or daycare centers in the Philadelphia metro area.

We maintain direct, close, and active ties with law enforcement and homeland security organizations. These include the Philadelphia Police Department; Philadelphia School Police; the FBI; the regional Homeland Security fusion center (Delaware Valley Intelligence Center or DVIC) which brings together local, state, regional, and federal law enforcement agencies; the Pennsylvania State Police; and others.

Rodeph Shalom regularly participates in security briefings by government security agencies on how conditions in the U.S., internationally, and in Israel might affect Jewish organizations in our region and which mitigation steps to consider, given those conditions. We are informed in real time of any potential threats identified by law enforcement or intelligence services through direct communications from Philadelphia Police, the DVIC, FBI, Philadelphia School Police, or Pennsylvania State Police. These notices include providing us with awareness of nearby police activity, or other situations that could affect the Rodeph Shalom community, allowing us to better prepare, as needed.

In addition to these law enforcement channels, we receive briefings, intelligence, and security advice from the Jewish Federation, and input from our security consultants.

Rodeph Shalom maintains a close relationship with the Philadelphia Police Department (PPD), at several levels. Armed police officers are at Rodeph Shalom during services and high-profile events, in addition to our security team, which includes off-duty members of law enforcement. The police response time, in case of a dangerous situation here, is between one to two minutes. We maintain direct personal communications with PPD leadership to increase the depth and breadth of our interactions and coordination. As a result, PPD officers frequently drive by or remain near our building on a daily basis.

Our building is equipped with a number of security features which, combined with our security procedures, provide multiple layers of protection that are not made public. There are both active and passive measures for security, much of it funded by significant Federal and State security grants. On the personnel side, in addition to the security guard at the front desk, a security role is performed by additional staff members, and our security team. We regularly conduct security training and drills, as well as fire drills, to help staff be better prepared to handle emergencies. We are grateful to Renee Carl, Director of Operations, for her essential work and dedication to safety.

One of the most important protections is for everyone to remain vigilant, aware of their surroundings, proactive in protecting our people and facility, and to fully cooperate with important security measures. This includes not allowing “tailgating” through external doors or holding the door for strangers to enter, never sharing access fobs, promptly reporting lost fobs, and reporting suspicious or unusual conditions immediately to our security staff. These actions play a key role in helping to keep our facility and our people secure.

As we continue to enhance our risk mitigation and security measures, we encourage everyone’s support for a more secure community, while living our long tradition of welcoming the stranger and provide assistance to those who need it. We have shown, as a community, that we can do both.