When Cantor Kevin McIntyre steps onto the bimah at Congregation Etz Chayim in Winnipeg, few of the synagogue\u2019s congregants would guess that, just over a decade ago, he wasn\u2019t Jewish.<\/p>\n
McIntyre now serves on the clergy team at one of Winnipeg\u2019s largest Conservative congregations, where his musical gifts and collaborative spirit have helped reshape the synagogue\u2019s worship experience.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can\u2019t say enough about Kevin\u2014he\u2019s just a fabulous human being,\u201d Etz Chayim Senior Rabbi Kliel Rose said. \u201cThat\u2019s not an exaggeration of any kind.\u201d<\/p>\n
McIntyre\u2019s path\u2014from a Scottish-Anglican upbringing and a career in musical theatre to conversion, cantorial ordination and Jewish communal leadership\u2014began not in a synagogue, but on a stage.<\/p>\n
In 2015, he accepted a role in Winnipeg Jewish Theatre\u2019s production of\u00a0Stars of David, a musical based on the lives and faith journeys of prominent Jews. Preparing for the production sparked an unexpected curiosity in McIntyre.<\/p>\n
\u201cI started doing a lot of research,\u201d he recalled. \u201cI was very interested in learning more about Judaism\u2014not for the cultural things. I really wanted to understand the theology.\u201d<\/p>\n
Although he wasn\u2019t Jewish, Judaism wasn\u2019t entirely unfamiliar. Many of his friends in the theatre community were Jewish, and his wife had relatives living in Israel.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were very Jewish-adjacent,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
What began as intellectual curiosity soon became something much deeper.<\/p>\n
While living in Los Angeles, McIntyre enrolled in American Jewish University\u2019s Intro to Judaism program. The 18-week course combined classroom study with synagogue attendance, holiday celebrations and one-on-one conversations with faculty.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was trying to learn as much as I could,\u201d McIntyre said. \u201cWhen I started learning the theology, for me, this was a truly religious experience\u2026It forever changed my life.\u201d<\/p>\n
He discovered that Judaism\u2019s understanding of God aligned with beliefs he had held for years but had never been able to articulate.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Jewish view of God is exactly what felt natural to me and honest to me,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
One conversation proved especially pivotal.<\/p>\n
When McIntyre wondered aloud how he could find a meaningful place in Jewish communal life as someone without children, Rabbi Adam Greenwald, a former instructor at the Intro to Judaism course, encouraged him to lean into his musical background.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said, \u2018You worked in the theatre. You\u2019re a singer. You should learn how to lead services and learn how to read Torah,’\u201d McIntyre recalled. \u201cAnd he was 100 per cent correct.\u201d<\/p>\n
He began studying liturgy and Torah chanting at a synagogue in Southern California, experiences that eventually inspired him to pursue cantorial studies through ALEPH, the Renewal movement\u2019s ordination program.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt started with just taking a class,\u201d he said. \u201cThen, \u2018Oh, I can lead some services,\u2019 to really changing my life and career.\u201d<\/p>\n
McIntyre eventually converted to Judaism. Later, inspired by the joy and meaning Judaism had brought into his life, his wife chose to convert as well. Today, the couple have built a Jewish home together in Winnipeg.<\/p>\n
Eight years ago, when Rabbi Rose arrived at Congregation Etz Chayim, the synagogue was searching for ways to create a more participatory and spiritually engaging worship experience. Inspired by innovative models he encountered through the Conservative movement\u2014including a worship conference led by leaders from Temple Beth Am, a Conservative community in Los Angeles\u2014the congregation eventually adopted a collaborative tefillah team model after moving into a new building.<\/p>\n
McIntyre, who had spent significant time in Los Angeles during his Jewish journey, proved instrumental in helping bring that vision to life.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur davening is similar to IKAR\u2019s style,\u201d Rabbi Rose said, referring to the nationally known progressive egalitarian congregation. \u201cWe have a tefillah team. We lead services together. Kevin is a lot more than just the Torah reader.\u201d<\/p>\n
For the past six months, Rabbi Rose said, McIntyre has been a critical part of implementing the congregation\u2019s new style of worship.<\/p>\n
\u201cFortunately, with Kevin\u2019s help and his knowledge of Los Angeles Conservative Judaism, he was important to bringing this worship style here to Winnipeg,\u201d Rabbi Rose said.<\/p>\n
He will continue to become a more active part of the team. This fall, Rabbi Rose is leaving the Winnipeg congregation, where he has served as rabbi for eight years, to become senior rabbi at Kehillat Beth Israel in Ottawa. During the transition, McIntyre\u2019s role will be elevated as he will continue serving as part of the congregation\u2019s clergy team while the synagogue searches for a new rabbi.<\/p>\n
Congregants may even hear an instrument seldom found in synagogue sanctuaries: the bagpipes.<\/p>\n
A bagpiper since the age of seven, McIntyre has found surprising ways to blend the two identities. About three years ago, he played the bagpipes while Torah scrolls were carried into Etz Chayim\u2019s then-new sanctuary, and he once joined a professional klezmer band for a spirited rendition of \u201cHava Nagila.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe screechy clarinet sound and the bagpipes actually go really well together,\u201d he said with a laugh.<\/p>\n
For McIntyre, those moments reflect the diversity of Jewish life.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think there\u2019s all kinds of Jews,\u201d he said. \u201cPeople have this standard idea of what a Jew is, but there are all kinds.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rabbi Rose believes McIntyre\u2019s greatest strengths extend well beyond his musical talents.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe has such a deep neshama (soul),\u201d Rabbi Rose said. \u201cHe\u2019s empathetic, compassionate and, for someone who is so talented, he\u2019s also so eager to learn and receive guidance and advice from people. It\u2019s so inspiring to be around him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Looking back, McIntyre sees a journey that began with curiosity but ultimately became a calling.<\/p>\n
What started as research for a theatrical role led to a new faith, a new profession and a new community. Today, he helps guide Winnipeg Jews on their own spiritual journeys\u2014proof that sometimes the most unexpected paths lead exactly where they\u2019re meant to.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When Cantor Kevin McIntyre steps onto the bimah at Congregation Etz Chayim in Winnipeg, few of the synagogue\u2019s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":162916,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[52410,10177,84],"class_list":["post-162915","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-winnipeg","tag-cantor","tag-synagogue","tag-winnipeg"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/162915","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=162915"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/162915\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/162916"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=162915"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=162915"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=162915"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}