Dear users, in this page we have gathered for you some answers to frequently asked questions. Before you contact us with any inquiry, we suggest that you read through these answer first.
Congregation members
What about my privacy?
Your privacy is important to us. Information you provide will therefore never be transferred to third parties. Sensitive information is encrypted, and the entire system is secured and properly backed up. In addition, Holy Shekel will never contact you without adequate reason.
How can I make a donation?
Donations can be made with all popular credit cards, such as Visa, IsraCard and MasterCard, as well as with international cards (tourist cards).
How can I tell if my synagogue is working with Holy Shekel?
You can check the list of synagogues by city and look up your synagogue among the participants in the project. If you can’t find your synagogue, you’re welcome to recommend joining New Shekel for free to your synagogue’s warden.
My credit card statement has a debit for Holy Shekel. How do I know which synagogue I’ve paid to and for what?
You can get information regarding any donation made through Holy Shekel, whether by phone or on the website, in the transaction information page, after identification.
By how many installments can I make a donation? And do installments carry interest?
Payments can be made by up to 12 installments free of interest.
How can I get a receipt for my donation?
After making any payment on the website, you’ll receive a link by mail to download a receipt from Holy Shekel (also by phone). In any case, past Holy Shekel receipts can be obtained at any time through the transaction information page. The Synagogue Warden will also send you a receipt in accordance with the personal information provided by you at the time of the purchase. Any questions regarding receipts should be referred directly to the Synagogue Warden according to the information in the synagogue’s donations page.
Can I receive receipts by regular mail instead of by electronic mail?
Unfortunately, we are unable to send receipts by regular mail. Holy Shekels receipts are approved by the Tax Authority by electronic signature, and may be printed from the donation confirmation mail or the transaction information page.
Is the website secured?
The website and the administration system are secured by SSL encryption. In addition, donations made through the website are processed using the strict PCI-DSS standard in which credit card details are stored. Learn more about security at Holy Shekel.
Can I repay the debt of someone else?
You can pay any debt, provided that you use your own credit card.
Synagogue Warden (Gabbai)
Who is the Hoy Shekel application intended for?
For Synagogue Wardens interested in a more convenient way to work, for a congregation Rabbi who wants to connect the congregation to the synagogue, for Synagogue Wardens who want to manage the synagogue more effectively with and advanced program that can save them and their synagogue a lot of time, and for institutions looking to improve their service to worshipers and guests and save valuable time in the administration of synagogue donations.
Who are the people behind the application?
For information about Holy Shekel visit the “About” page.
Is the application suited for persons with no background in computers?
Yes. The application is suited for the general population of Synagogue Wardens and managers of institutes. It uses a simple and easy to understand language.
What advantages does your solution have over others that are available on the market?
The main advantage of Holy Shekel is its availability in the cloud, allowing:
- Access to data from any computer, tablet or mobile device;
- Access to the application from anywhere in the world;
- Data availability for a number of user concurrently (for example, for several wardens);
- Data storage and cloud backup;
- No need to update application versions!
The application employs an updated user interface adapted to all existing devices, with various options suited to the technological age. We invite you to join for free and enjoy all the features of the application.
Why should I use your application as a Synagogue Warden?
As a Synagogue Warden, your time is valuable! And you’re probably doing it on a voluntary basis… in order to manage things quickly and efficiently you have to use software to help you organize you time and manage your duties as a warden.
Do any Rabbis or Synagogue Wardens recommend your application?
Yes. Rabbis who saw the application were very impressed by the amount of effort put into the software and its many features, and Synagogue Wardens who used it were very enthusiastic about its simplicity and ease and its many features.
For recommendations by Rabbis and Synagogue Wardens click here.
Why is there a monthly fee for the premium subscription instead of a one-time payment?
- The software and data are stored and regularly backed up on Holy Shekel’s servers;
- As a user with a premium subscription you will enjoy continuous technical support;
- The synagogue will have a call center and an application for payments and donations available at any hour from anywhere;
- As a premium subscriber you will receive all the updates and new features of the application.
When will I receive donations that were collected for me?
Donations are transferred once per month on a Net 30 basis to the bank account of the synagogue.
Do I need to pay for my synagogue to join Holy Shekel?
Holy Shekel operates on a free subscription basis, a premium subscription basis and an annual platinum subscription basis. For explanation regarding the different subscription options click here.
What is the Holy Shekel application, and who gets it for free?
Everyone! As a Holy Shekel subscriber you will receive the Holy Shekel application for managing expenses and revenues, issuing statements and various other services intended to help Synagogue Wardens run their synagogue for up to 15 worshipers. If you want to enjoy the full benefits of the application you will need to change to the premium subscription for a monthly fee of 80 NIS.
How can my synagogue join?
To join our service select the type of service required from the top menu under “Open an Account”, fill in the details and click on “Register”. Once your registration is processed you’ll receive a mail message with you user name and password for logging in to the administration system and completing your registration.
Why do you charge such high credit card processing fees?
- 24 hours human call center for donations – market value around 80$ per month;
- Direct payment to the bank account of the synagogue rather than to the synagogue’s warden, saving time and hassle – unknown value, but at least that of the monthly work required to receive funds and deposit them in the synagogue’s bank account.
- Worshipers can check their accounts on their own, without bothering the Synagogue Warden – unknown value, but at least 1 – 2 work hours of the warden.
- Free SMS payment notifications – value depends on the number of messages sent, but even by a conservative estimate, at least 2$ per month.
- Assistance in preventing lost donations by visiting worshipers (only with Holy Shekel can payments be made from anywhere in the world) – value up to thousands of NIS!
- Credit card processing requires a terminal number and an online / physical credit terminal – value around 10$ per month.
Thus a conservative estimate puts our value to any synagogue that uses Holy Shekel at 50 – 100$ per month, and sometimes much more!
Overall, the added value of our services is worth more than what we charge.
