Turn, Turn, Turn: Koach Closes its Doors

Turn, Turn, Turn: Koach Closes its Doors
BY RABBI ELYSE WINICK - DIRECTOR, KOACH/COLLEGE OUTREACH POSTED ON JUNE 9, 2013

http://www.koach.org/ezine/tamuz-5773/turn-turn-turn/

To everything there is a season. The Byrds did a remarkable job of popularizing this text from the book of Kohelet (Ecclesiastes), which we read each year as part of the rituals of Sukkot.

Students are keenly aware of the shift of seasons, perhaps second only to landscapers and meteorologists. Summer camp staff as well, and for those of them (of you!) who are students, the effect is doubled.

KOACH now finds itself in a moment to which only The Byrds could do justice, as we close our doors after twenty three extraordinary years.

Those of you who have followed the goings on of the past three years know that beginning 2013-14,KOACH's future was to be entirely dependent on philanthropic support. To our great dismay, while there has been sufficient response to continue on a very small scale (more about that below), KOACHas we have known and loved it must now come to an end.

Tens of thousands of students and dozens of professionals have been part of this sacred endeavor. All of our lives have been transformed and elevated by the experiences we have shared. We are better people for it. We are better Jews. We have much to be grateful for.

In the long term, USCJ is committed to the pursuit of proper funding to serve college students with the richness and vibrance you deserve. In the short term, a small cohort of interns will serve six campuses, in partnership with Hillel: The Foundation for Jewish Campus Life, and our life-changing Taglit-Birthright Israel program for participants with Asperger's Syndrome will continue as well.

Don't think for a moment, though, that this roadblock is insurmountable. Your commitment to an exciting and diverse Jewish community on campus and beyond cannot be stopped by the changes in an international organization. The more you seek, the more you call upon your communities to provide you with Jewish learning that meets your standards for content and quality, to provide you with safe harbors for Shabbatot which fill you with contentment and envelope you in God's presence, the more you own your Jewish future, the more these things will happen for you. Students carry extraordinary power; you just don't always know it.

Et hamanginah hazot, ee efshar l'hafsik – mukhrakhim l'hamshikh l'nagein, mipnei she-et hamanginah hazot, ee efshar l'hafsik. We cannot stop playing this melody – we are compelled to continue to play, because this melody can never cease. (Yair Rosenblum)

It's been an extraordinary privilege to be part of this sacred work for so long. I'm grateful to all of you and I'm certain that our paths will cross again.

May we go from strength to strength.

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Rabbi Menachem Creditor

Congregation Netivot Shalom

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Kol HaKavod Rabbi Mark B Greenspan!

Dear Shefa Chevreh,

Wow!!! Todah to Rabbi Mark B Greenspan's incisive "Marching Orders: A Tale of Order and Anarchy!" (click the title to read the post on the shefanetwork blog). 

Some of us have been part of ShefaNetwork since its inception in December of 2004, we've watched the evolution of our own conversation, how it sometimes has (and sometimes hasn't) influenced the conversation happening in the Global Masorti Movement. Today, 430 Conservative/Masorti early childhood educators, hillel professionals, USY'ers, Ramahniks, KOACH'niks, USCJ staff, JTS/AJU professionals, clergy (etc!) participate in this urgent conversation. The newest ShefaJournal, including Rabbi Greenspan's Drasha and many of the comments will be released next week, joining its predecessors, all available on the ShefaNetwork blog. These topics have all been resonant in our Movement, and the responses are true snapshots of our community, sometimes seeing more clearly as a grassroots network than the Movement establishment. 

This leads to tension, but if the Conservative Movement has a future, and I am dedicated to this happening, it will be because of voices like Rabbi Greenspan's, and like those who in previous journals discussed general definitions of Conservative/Masorti Judaism, arguments surrounding the use of instruments on Shabbat, questions of kashrut, FOUR volumes on USCJ (one - two - three - four), the need for a seriously funded Masorti/Conservative college movement, and a strategies for a cohesive technology for Masorti/Conservative "messaging" in a digital age. 

And so, Chevreh, over the last nine years, we have watched the ebb and flow of conversation. The mission of the ShefaNetwork has never changed: To bring together dreamers from within the Conservative/Masorti Movement and to give their dreams an audible voice. May that mission ring true and loudly for us all!

Kol Tuv,

Menachem

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Rabbi Menachem Creditor

Congregation Netivot Shalom

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Rabbi Mark B Greenspan: "Marching Orders: A Tale of Order and Anarchy"

Marching Orders: A Tale of Order and Anarchy

Parshat Beha'alotecha 5773

By Rabbi Mark B Greenspan

An airliner was in-flight when its navigation equipment failed. Wanting to reassure his anxious passengers, the pilot made the following announcement: "Ladies and gentlemen: I have good news and bad news for you. The good news is that we have plenty of gas, a great tail wind and we're making terrific time. The bad news is, we have no idea where we are heading!"
This story, it seems to me, captures this week's Torah portion in a nutshell. The Book of Numbers as a whole, today’s parashah in particular, contain a story of order and anarchy. Like the ill-fated flight in my story, it describes a nation that was well organized and ready to travel but not sure where they were going or if they even wanted to reach their destination.

The first several chapters of Numbers contain a description of military-like order and discipline. Every tribe, every clan and every family knew its place and designation in the camp of Israel. It had been a year since the Exodus and the people had faced their share of trials and tribulations. They also stood at Sinai, received the Torah, built the Tabernacle and ordered their military units to defend the nation and conquer the Promised Land. God now commands Moses to fashion two silver trumpets with which to call the people to assembly. At long last they are ready to travel to the land of Canaan.

But like a family leaving on vacation, five minutes into the trip the people of Israel begin whining: "Are we there yet? I'm thirsty!" All 'heck' breaks loose. The people begin complaining: about their food, water, about one another and even about their leaders. Moses throws his hands up in desperation. Even Aaron and Miriam complain about their brother, Moses, Israel's revered leader.
And then, if we look ahead to the following Torah portion, we discover that the people are not even sure they want to go to the Promised Land. "It’s a land that devours its inhabitants," their leaders tell them, "We cannot attack those people for they are stronger than us!" I believe all the discord in this week's Torah portion must be read in light of next week's story of the spies.

So what went wrong? How could a people move, in a single breath, from order to anarchy? How was it possible for a nation that heard the voice of God, witnessed God's presence in the Tabernacle, and received the Torah to fall apart so quickly?

I believe that the Israelites faced two serious problems on their journey through the wilderness. First, the people weren’t sure where they were going. After all, the Promised Land was a pipe dream. The people had lived for generations as slaves in Egypt. No one could remember what the land was like. The Israelites were used to depending on others for all their basic needs. The Promised Land was just that - a promise but not reality.

And second, while they sort-of knew their destination, the people of Israel weren't really sure they wanted to get there. A successful journey must have a goal, but if the goal is not shared by the travelers, then order is going to break down and fail.

Sadly, contemporary synagogues tend to be a lot like my ill-fated flight and the people of Israel. They are not sure where we're going and they  are not even sure that they want to get there. But they’re 're making great time!

This is especially true of Conservative congregations today. For generations American Jews successfully built synagogues and communities on Long Island. Every town had its own congregation, each with a Rabbi and Cantor, a vibrant religious school, and a beautiful sanctuary. In many cases the synagogue had a caterer who brought opulence and elegance to the building.

As long as there was a regular stream of people moving from the New York City to the Island there was no problem - new members would replace the ones that dropped out as soon as the youngest child finished his or her Bar/Bat Mitzvah studies. If you don’t believe me, consider a statistic our president made me aware of: the average membership of a family that drops out of our synagogue is about 15 years - the amount of time from shortly after the birth of their first child through their last child's rite of passage.

In recent years, however, we have faced a serious crisis like many synagogues. The stream of new members turned to a trickle, but the flow of people out of our synagogues has continued. In the sixteen years I have been the rabbi of OJC, our membership has dropped from over 600 to 360 families. When I came our religious school had 250 children; today we have about 70.
Congregational leaders and professionals wring their hands and ask, "What went wrong?" "Why don’t people support their local synagogues anymore?" The truth is, they never did.
The answer to these questions is actually quite simple. While we've been great at creating Conservative synagogues, we've been less than successful at inspiring people to become Conservative Jews - real Conservative Jews. Our destination, "our goal," should never have been to build large institutions; it should have been - to inspire people to make Jewish tradition, learning and community part of their lives. I am sad to say that rabbis and leaders of synagogues have failed. Those few congregants who become more committed to Jewish tradition tend to go elsewhere in search of a shared community, committed to Shabbat and Kashrut. The graduates of Camp Ramah and Conservative Days schools find more meaning in attending independent minyanim rather than affiliating with Conservative synagogues.

It's not that we don’t care about these values - we do. The problem is that we haven’t been willing or able to make these values our first priority - our goal and destination as a congregation. We continue to talk about affiliation rather than Jewish commitment. Part of the problem, of course, is cultural and social. American Jews consider words like commitment and obligation, dirty words. But there is an argument to be made for how making a commitment to Jewish tradition can enrich one's life.

I am sad to say but the recent discussion in United Synagogue has only furthered this failure. Today United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism is saying that its primary goal as a religious movement is to create kehillot, communities. It seems to me that our primary goal should be to create Yehudim, religiously observant and committed Jews. But we either don’t know how to reach that goal, or we simply don’t believe that it is doable.

I believe that OJC will solve its financial problems. We are still a vibrant congregation with a healthy nursery and religious school, many young families, a continuing daily minyan, and meaningful Shabbat and holiday services. The real question is whether we will address the spiritual problems we are facing as American Jews. Our challenge is whether we will put all our energies into saving a building or saving Judaism. What is our ultimate destination?

In recent weeks, we have been given marching orders.  We have begun a discussion about the future of our congregation.  Now it is up to us to ask: where does Judaism fit into our lives? How can we deepen our commitment to God, to Torah and to Israel? Are we Conservative Jews because we are affiliated with a Conservative synagogue or are we Conservative Jews because Conservative Judaism represents our aspirations as individuals?

Ladies and Gentlemen, I have good news for you. First, OJC is not going away. Second: Do you know where you wish your synagogue to take you?

Shabbat Shalom

An Open Letter to Conservative Rabbis Regarding The Recent Transition at the Conservative Yeshiva

An Open Letter to Conservative Rabbis Regarding The Recent Transition at the Conservative Yeshiva

by Adam Shain on Wednesday, May 22, 2013 at 6:07am
 

https://www.facebook.com/notes/adam-shain/an-open-letter-to-conservative-rabbis-regarding-the-recent-transition-at-the-con/10151689777428816

Dear Rabbis of the Conservative Movement,

I am sure that you have all heard of the transition taking place at the Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem. If you have not, then it is my sad duty to inform you that the Fuchsberg Center has decided to eliminate the position of Rosh Yeshiva, and Dr. Rabbi Richard (Shmuel) Lewis will no longer be employed. As the letter from the USCJ administration on the subject notes, “With no doubt, his scholarship and many gifts will be missed.”

While the USCJ and Fuchsberg Center have been juggling budgetary constraints for some time, this decision has come as a shock to many of the staff (who were not involved in the decision) and 1800 alumni who have had the good fortune to study at the Yeshiva. I am sure that this decision was painstaking, but it is disappointing that the process behind it was so secretive, especially when the result will fundamentally change the experience of learning at the Yeshiva. If the discussion had been more open, perhaps an alternative solution could have been found.

I am writing to you because I know that this is an important issue to the RA. Only last year, at the Rabbinical Assembly Plenum, you declared “that the Rabbinical Assembly and its members recognize the leading role that the Conservative Yeshiva plays in the area of intensive text study by lay people as a central goal and value of Conservative Judaism.” I ask you now, is the Conservative Yeshiva a stronger, more capable institution without a Rosh Yeshiva?

If you ascribe to the RA’s Resolution in Support of the Conservative Yeshiva, I ask that you take it upon yourself to make your voice heard on this issue. If you share in my grief regarding the decision and my outrage regarding the process, I ask that you take a stand. What’s more, I ask that you share your feelings with your students and congregants and empower them to engage with the USCJ on this matter.

We live in an age where the voice of the many has never been stronger and in a country where a community organizer is President. I call on you, our leaders in both spirit and practice, to follow the rich tradition of Conservative rabbis who were willing to take a public stand for what they felt was right. As the Conservative Movement yearns for greater communal engagement, use this as an opportunity to educate others about Jewish values like derech eretz and Torah Lishmah and to loudly declare that a Jewish institution is not stronger but weaker when we remove its religious and spiritual backbone.

I urge you to stand with me in asking the powers that be at USCJ (including those who authored the letter explaining the removal of the Rosh Yeshiva: Rabbi Loren Sykes, Rabbi Steven Wernick, Richard Skolnik and Marty Werber) to reconsider their decision and open this conversation to the greater community of Conservative Jews in the hopes of finding a solution more befitting the values of the Conservative Movement.

Sincerely,

Adam Shain
Nativ 19





















































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A Prayer for Oklahoma

A Prayer for Oklahoma

By Rabbi Abby Jacobson, Emanuel Synagogue, Oklahoma City, OK

Lord our God, we stood before You just a week ago to receive the Ten Statements of Your Torah. We stood, as though with our ancestors, and listened to the Torah reader chant descriptions of the smoking mountain, the thunderous rumbling, and the long-awaited voice of God.

This afternoon, the people of central Oklahoma did not stand to hear the voice of God. We sat, we paced, and we huddled. We listened to the voice of the meteorologists and watched as dark clouds swirled together over a cone of destruction. The rain fell upward, not down, and the thunderous roar of the swirling winds carried, and we saw the awesome power of God. This was not Shavuot—the Feast of Weeks that marked our days of freedom. This was minutes that seemed like years and trapped us into watching the same images of destruction.

Merciful God, a great and powerful windstorm has passed, and it has torn apart the buildings and shattered the rocks before You. You told Elijah, the prophet, that You were not in the windstorm. Please, then, be in the still, small voices of the children crying out to be found. Be in the voices of the rescuers calling out for survivors. Be in the cries of those who are lost and of those who have lost.

May it be Your will that those who are missing be found alive and be cared for well, and may the people of central Oklahoma find strength in You and in one another as we rebuild what we can.

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Rabbi Menachem Creditor

Congregation Netivot Shalom

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From the Rabbinical Assembly: Update on Gun Violence Prevention

Find the Rabbinical Assembly on: Update on Gun Violence Prevention  Background Checks on Guns   Rep. Peter King is sponsoring HR 1565 in the US House of Representatives on background checks for gun purchases. Check this list to see if your member of Congress has co-sponsored.   Faiths United Again Gun Violence, of which the RA is a founding member, is asking all of its member groups to contact their representatives and either urge them to cosponsor or thank them for cosponsoring. We expect to have an additional dozen cosponsors in the next few days. Take Action Gun violence and Mental Illness   The interfaith disabilities coalition (IDAC), of which the RA is a member, launched the Grounded in Faith: Resources on Mental Health and Gun Violence report, a resource with information concerning the on-going debate around gun violence and mental health issues.

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Rabbi Menachem Creditor

Congregation Netivot Shalom

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Masorti Reflections Bamidbar May 2013

Reflections - Bamidbar By Melanie Kelly We are taught that each time God counts us it is an act of love. This week, in Bemidbar, we are being counted for the third time since our departure from Egypt. The first time we are counted as we depart is to show the Israelites that they have been blessed. The second time we are counted is after the incident with the Golden Calf to determine the number of survivors. Why then are we being counted at the beginning of this new book of Bemidbar? We are in the wilderness, and we know it, and yet nothing seems to have happened for us to be counted. In order to understand this census and its purpose, we need to understand the chronology of the story of the Israelites up to this point and the fact that the chronology is not always according to the linear reading of the Torah. The Parasha opens with the announcement that it is 1st day of the 2nd month of the 2nd year since the Exodus. If we recall Parasha Pikudei (Shemot 38:21 - 40) we are told that the Mishkan was set up a month previously on the 1st day of the 1st month of the 2nd year. Therefore the whole of Leviticus (apart from Behar and Bechukotai, which refer back to the time on Mount Sinai), with all its laws and procedures for the workings of the tabernacle occurred during this first month of Nisan. We also read that in the month of Nisan the offerings were made by each of the chieftains of the tribes as described in Naso - which we read next week. Consequently the start of this new book with its call for a census is chronologically in the wrong order. There is a Rabbinic concept known as "Eim mukdam u'muchar ba-Torah" – 'there is no before or after in the Torah',Pesakim 6b, Rashi and others. This idea suggests that the order in which we read Torah is not necessarily the order in which the events occurred. However that does not mean order without reason; there must be a reason that this census was placed at the beginning of this book with such a specific reference to the date at which it commenced. If we return to Pekudei, we learn that having established the Tabernacle, God's presence, in the form of a pillar of cloud by day and fire by night, descended into it and God dwelt amongst the Children of Israel. In fact when God originally gives the commands for a Mishkan (in Terumah) he asks for it to be built, not so that God can dwell in it, but so that it can be used as a conduit for God to dwell among the people as an ultimate act of love. Seen in this light the purpose of the census is therefore another act of love by God of the people; it marks each person as someone God will live with. Melanie Kelly is a member of Kol Nefesh Masorti Syangogue Pronouncing God's name by Rabbi Chaim Weiner Question:  Is it permissible to pronounce God's Name when recording prayers or Shabbat songs for educational purposes? Responsum:  At the outset, it should be remembered that even when we recite "Adonai" in the prayers, we are not pronouncing God's Name as it is written, but rather a substitute. But according to halakhah, even this substitute should be used with caution. That is why there is a custom among observant Jews to use Adonai only in religious contexts such as in prayer, blessings and Torah study. There is, however, one exception: one is allowed to pronounce Adonai if it is for educational purposes. Thus it is permitted to record Adonai in Shabbat prayers and songs for two reasons: prayers and Shabbat songs are a religious context, and the aim of the recording is education. It is also permissible to play these tapes, because the prohibition of pronouncing Adonai is related to people, not to machines. Furthermore, if it is permissible for people to pronounce Adonai for educational purposes, then it is certainly permissible to do so via a machine. There is also no prohibition of erasing the recording in question, for the following reasons: a recording cannot be considered as something written because it is invisible; what was recorded is not really God's Name, but a substitute, and many authorities allow the erasure of substitute names, at least in an indirect way (gerama); the prohibition of erasing God's Name pertains only to Hebrew letters; there is no act of contempt in the erasing, because one cannot see that the tape contains God's Name. Nevertheless, there is an old custom of recycling tashmishei mitzvah such as tzitzit or aravot and using them to fulfill other mitzvot. Though a cassette does not have the same halakhic status, if it is necessary to erase a cassette, it is still preferable to reuse it for other prayers or sacred songs. Finally, if the tape tears, one should discard it in a respectful fashion (e.g. in a bag) in order to avoid the appearance of impropiety (mar'it ayin). Rabbi Chaim Weiner Rabbi Chaim Weiner is a graduate of the Schechter Institute in Jerusalem where he received his rabbinical Ordination. He was National Director of Noam in Israel before coming to England to become the first permanent Rabbi at Edgware Masorti Synagogue. As a member of the Va'ad Halacha [Law Committee] of the Masorti Movement in Israel, he published several Teshuvot [Legal Responses]. He followed Dr. Louis Jacobs as the Rabbi of the New London Synagogue, in London, England. Rabbi Weiner has played a prominent role in the development of the Masorti Movement in UK. He was instrumental in the establishment of the Masorti Bet Din in the United Kingdom, and in its development into the European Masorti Bet Din. Since January 2005, Rabbi Weiner has served at the Av Bet Din of the European Masorti Bet Din with responsibility for advanced rabbinic services across Europe. Source www.responsafortoday.com