For the last three weeks, a small uproar has occurred in my congregation. One night on a Thursday, my dad came home shocked with a email. The president of the temple had just announced that our rabbi would not have his contract renewed. Tension has risen between the board and upset congregants. This is no editorial about how I feel on either side. However, the board held an open session for members of the temple to express how they feel Wednesday night. Attendance was high, even though we had five days notice of the meeting. There were many attendees who handled and expressed their situation with great poise.
In the utter beginning, the rabbi had come in. He told us a little of what had gone on between him and the board. It was nothing unethical or monetary that kept the rabbi from going. He asked for seven years and the board was willing to give him three. Seven years was his proposed amount merely because his age may get in the way of finding a new job in three years. My rabbi openly removed himself from the meeting to allow a more honest opinion flow.
Following the rabbi's exit from the meeting, the president spoke on behalf of the board. Of all the speakers on Wednesday, I believe the president was the most brilliant, yet the calmest. He apologized for all the disturbance. He made it clear that tonight was not a night to find out the why's. The details were not secret, just confidential between the board and the rabbi's family.
Our president brought a mediator from the union to guide the discussion. He stayed calm in a very heated discussion. Before allowing others to speak, he went over rules of conduct. He made it apparent that there was no wrong answer. Everyone was entitled to their opinion. Then, the board opened the floor.
Both sides spoke their opinions. Some audience members demanded answers, yet some just told their stories with our rabbi. As a result of the heated discussion, the board did not make any commitments. One member took notes. If nothing else, the people have spoken. The board listened. Listening is an important skill to have with leadership.
As for the only aspiring rabbi I know of in the room, it gave me a hands-on lesson of how to deal with the board and congregants. I learned that a successful congregation is not a three way divide between the rabbi, board, and congregation. Also, the board can do many things well that progress the temple. I feel that too many modern Jews get tense about the board. They feel the board is the puppeteer to their Jewish experience. Just as in "Inception", people do not like they are being controlled and their sub-conscious will fight back.
In my rabbinic career, I aspire to listen to the board. I will be neither my way or the highway, but not do as the board orders. Moses never had a board of directors. Then again, he did not live in a democracy. By the looks after the meeting, there are three tasks that the Jews have to handle in their synagogues.
First, congregants can not be made second best. All people are created equal. In student council, I have to remember to represent my class, not my opinions. Any elected official must put personal bias aside. Congregants felt like the board had just gone over their head. Voltaire once said, "All the citizens of a state cannot be equally powerful, but they may be equally free."
Second, communication must be stronger in the synagogue. An email the night it has been decided is definitely not how the shul should communicate such a decision. Overall, our congregation must improve making non-active members attracted to the active "tempees". More religious does not mean border line insane. The only way the less attending group will receive information is through better communication. A group of furiously shocked individuals spoke their mind. That is how the meeting on Wednesday came about in the first place.
Third and finally, congregations must come together. Men, women, liberals, and more conservatives must all pray and worship together. Reform Judaism has this burden of being of the "I am Jewish for my parents" to "I will go on Yom Kippur" to "I go every Friday night" spectrum. There is no easy answer to this last one, but I assume the crack will begin to get filled when there is a relationship between the board, rabbi, and congregation. One last question left to filling the crack. Are we ready?
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