One thing that I find odd is how peoples’ attitude towards me changed as soon as I had been accepted on the rabbinic course at LBC. Not only do I find it strange that some people started asking me for relationship advice; bearing in mind that I am a single grad-student who isn't going to start on the program in 2010, and they wouldn’t have asked beforehand. I sort of expected this from members of Movement but not really from people at synagogue, as I thought it would be hard for people who remember me as a naughty little boy to think of me as a potential rabbi.
But what I really did not expect was that this would apply to Orthodox friends as well because at least in theory don’t think of Reform Rabbis as rabbis at all.
I have also noticed that some people have started to defer to my opinions because ‘you’re going to be a rabbi’.
This speaks to a view of the rabbinate that I do not like. (While it is true that this is a near universal problem within Judaism) I think that it is especially true of progressive-Judaism and it is something that I think that we have to work against, as it is invidious to the health of our movement.
Also I don’t think that when I am a rabbi it will be my job to do peoples’ Judaism for them, the term I have been using and I know it has unpleasant connotations, is I want to ‘infect’ people with Judaism (well Jews really, I want to infect Jews with Judaism).
I am glad that I have this pause before going to LBC so I can think deeply about what I what the nature of what I want my Jewish leadership to be. I know that I could do that while actually on the course but this way when I start I can focus in on it and I can be, at least to some extent, rooted in my particular approach.
I think that I will just need to make two or three more post and then I will be up to date and then my postings will become less, I was going to say frequent, but I think that manic would be a better adjective. That is until I move to Israel for the start of my course then I will actually have something to write about.
Sunday, 20 December 2009
Saturday, 19 December 2009
Before the beginning
If you have read any of my blog post then you will probably have noticed that spelling is not my strongest skill. But this is nothing you should have seen what my spelling/grammar/writing were like when I was very little, I was very dyslexic and am written work was difficult to understand at the best of times. When I was about Ten we had to write something about what we wanted to do when we grow up for the careers adviser. So i wrote that I wanted to be a rabbi. Unfortunately for some reason best known to my younger self I though that there was a silent "T" at the end of the word Rabbi; so what I had actually written was 'I want to be a rabbit!' as you can guess this didn't go down all that well and I was called in to see the head-teacher who told me that I was being silly and that I couldn't do that when I grew up.
I was a stubborn little boy and I held fast so my parents were called in and there was some talk of my needing to see an education psychologist.
It was only after sometime that i said rather angrily "I don't know why you're saying that I cant be a Rabbi' cue much merriment and a not inconsiderable amount of relief.
I was a stubborn little boy and I held fast so my parents were called in and there was some talk of my needing to see an education psychologist.
It was only after sometime that i said rather angrily "I don't know why you're saying that I cant be a Rabbi' cue much merriment and a not inconsiderable amount of relief.
Thursday, 17 December 2009
What I said
This is more or less what I said as my presentation in the interview process for admission to the college. I say more or less because my pedagogic style is whenever it is possible to have a transcript of what I will say if I suffer an attack of nerves, but then I ad-lib. So I cannot swear that this is exactly what I said:
The Role of the Rabbi
I have chosen to speak about the first of the suggested options, ‘the role of the rabbi’. But I also want to extent the topic to include the role of the leader in Judaism because whatever else a rabbi might be, she or he is a leader.
In our tradition, both in the Biblical and in Classical Rabbinic texts we have lots of models for leadership the example I want to use as my jumping off point is a somewhat surprising one the dispute between Moses and Korach (Numbers 16):
‘And Korach took…’ The Biblical text fails to mention what Korach took, however the Midrash (Barmidbar Rabbah 18:1) explains that Korach and his group brought an entirely blue tallit before Moses and asked him if it still required an additional blue tassel to be attached to it.
In effect Korach and his company were asking why do the people of Israel need leaders anyway? And despite God’s reaction to their actions it remains a good question. And one I will return to.
We in this room face an additional problem, we are not just interested in the role of the rabbi in general but we are, or at least we should be interested in ‘the role of rabbi in Non-Orthodox Judaism’ in particular.
Whereas the role of the orthodox rabbi is clear, at least when viewed from the outside. The situation for Reform and Liberal Rabbis is more opaque. But I believe that the rabbi has three main roles. He or she should be an educator, a facilitator, and spiritual role model.
The role of educator is relatively straight forward our rabbis (we) need to present as wide range of subjects (although within Jewish studies) to as many different types of people as possible utilising as many methodologies as he or she can muster.
As a facilitator a rabbi must help people to want to, and to be able to do their own Judaism. I cannot get someone to do my Judaism for me and nor can anyone else.
I feel that there is a real danger in progressive Judaism of regarding Jewish life and especially synagogue as some kind of advent-grade theatre.
As spiritual role model (or if you prefer as a moral role model) the rabbi should strive to live a life as full of Judaism (guided by insights form our own Reform traditions) as possible and to increase the seriousness with which Judaism is taken by everyone and to do so by example.
He or she should also foster an environment where people’s relationship with God can develop.
There is also the pastoral role of the rabbinate, which although more often than not is conducted out of sight is nevertheless of mayor importance for members of the community.
At the risk of upsetting people even more than I have already. I think that what we really need is little short of rebbes but a new bread of Progressive Rebbes for the twenty first century.
Returning to the Story of Korach and his claim that the People of Israel did not need leaders. In an ideal world I think this would be true and that the role of the rabbi as I have outlined above is to work towards the time and place when they would not be needed. But to do so in the recognition that such a situation is never going to occur.
What is the role of the rabbi?
It is to increase people’s commitment to and connection with their Judaism, G-D, and Beni-Yisrael.
The Role of the Rabbi
I have chosen to speak about the first of the suggested options, ‘the role of the rabbi’. But I also want to extent the topic to include the role of the leader in Judaism because whatever else a rabbi might be, she or he is a leader.
In our tradition, both in the Biblical and in Classical Rabbinic texts we have lots of models for leadership the example I want to use as my jumping off point is a somewhat surprising one the dispute between Moses and Korach (Numbers 16):
‘And Korach took…’ The Biblical text fails to mention what Korach took, however the Midrash (Barmidbar Rabbah 18:1) explains that Korach and his group brought an entirely blue tallit before Moses and asked him if it still required an additional blue tassel to be attached to it.
In effect Korach and his company were asking why do the people of Israel need leaders anyway? And despite God’s reaction to their actions it remains a good question. And one I will return to.
We in this room face an additional problem, we are not just interested in the role of the rabbi in general but we are, or at least we should be interested in ‘the role of rabbi in Non-Orthodox Judaism’ in particular.
Whereas the role of the orthodox rabbi is clear, at least when viewed from the outside. The situation for Reform and Liberal Rabbis is more opaque. But I believe that the rabbi has three main roles. He or she should be an educator, a facilitator, and spiritual role model.
The role of educator is relatively straight forward our rabbis (we) need to present as wide range of subjects (although within Jewish studies) to as many different types of people as possible utilising as many methodologies as he or she can muster.
As a facilitator a rabbi must help people to want to, and to be able to do their own Judaism. I cannot get someone to do my Judaism for me and nor can anyone else.
I feel that there is a real danger in progressive Judaism of regarding Jewish life and especially synagogue as some kind of advent-grade theatre.
As spiritual role model (or if you prefer as a moral role model) the rabbi should strive to live a life as full of Judaism (guided by insights form our own Reform traditions) as possible and to increase the seriousness with which Judaism is taken by everyone and to do so by example.
He or she should also foster an environment where people’s relationship with God can develop.
There is also the pastoral role of the rabbinate, which although more often than not is conducted out of sight is nevertheless of mayor importance for members of the community.
At the risk of upsetting people even more than I have already. I think that what we really need is little short of rebbes but a new bread of Progressive Rebbes for the twenty first century.
Returning to the Story of Korach and his claim that the People of Israel did not need leaders. In an ideal world I think this would be true and that the role of the rabbi as I have outlined above is to work towards the time and place when they would not be needed. But to do so in the recognition that such a situation is never going to occur.
What is the role of the rabbi?
It is to increase people’s commitment to and connection with their Judaism, G-D, and Beni-Yisrael.
Wednesday, 16 December 2009
More Imfo.
I should have said that as part of the application process I had a chat with an anaylst/therapist who also took part in the more formal of the group sessions.
Another step along the journey (but still in the past)
I thought that I would speak about the application process and some of my experiences during it. I am not going to talk about my unsuccessful applications way back when, but rather the most recent one. Although in structure if not in content they were very similar. They whole thing starts by making contact with the rabbinical recruitment officer. I had an email exchange with him, which soon resulted in a chat on the phone as this had all gone well he organised meetings with the Principal and vice-principal of the college. These meetings were productive and so I decided that I would send in a formal application. The application form is quite long and complex and really rather detailed. But having completed it and contacted my two referees, I sent it in. Because I had got my application in well before the deadline I didn’t hear anything for sometime until early in the New year when I was told that I was going to have an interview at the college. The interview process lasted three days I had four solo interviews, in each case there were two interviewers. As well as these interviews, which were around 45-60mins long, there were sessions where I and the other candidates were together. One of these sessions was more formal during the course of which we all made a short (5minute) presentation, and the other was much less formal. It wasn’t all busy, busy, busy there was time for us (the candidates and the students in the college to get to know each one and other) I also had time to explore the vicinity of the college. All in all it was a positive experience.
I may post a written version of my five minute presentation a later point.
I may post a written version of my five minute presentation a later point.
Tuesday, 15 December 2009
In the beginning
One of the questions that I get asked when I tell people that I want to be a rabbi, or rather as i should now get used to saying that I am going to be a rabbi at least if everything is ‘why do you want to be a rabbi?’ I am sure that I will get around to talking about that in this blog at some stage but right now I want to talk about when. Put simple I have always wanted to be a rabbi, but then that is not quite true but i have certainly wanted to be one all my adult life from about the age of 12 or 13 it became a A real and concerte desire. And although I have taken a rather round about route via Chemistry and an MA in Jewish studies (more classical academic Biblical studies in terms of content but with a Jewish studies slant). And I applied to study towards ordination for the rabbinate. I should say right at the outset that I am going to be a progresive-Rabbi and my home synagogue is a Reform one. (As I am in the UK British Reform is closer to Conservative Judaism in America.)
That first application, the interview parts of it, did not go to well, and so I had to find something else to do, and as I always say 'if in doubt do another degree' I embarked on my PhD, which is still the major focuse of my life even as it draws to a close, I also got even more involved in community life. And then I re-appllied for the same programme at the college and this time although the process was still difficult I was offered a place with deferred entry. So next year I will start my studies next year in Jerusalem as the say.
So now all I have to do is finish my thesis, which is a lot of work. Improve my Modern Hebrew which is a bit odd at the moment, and get ready for my course to start.
That first application, the interview parts of it, did not go to well, and so I had to find something else to do, and as I always say 'if in doubt do another degree' I embarked on my PhD, which is still the major focuse of my life even as it draws to a close, I also got even more involved in community life. And then I re-appllied for the same programme at the college and this time although the process was still difficult I was offered a place with deferred entry. So next year I will start my studies next year in Jerusalem as the say.
So now all I have to do is finish my thesis, which is a lot of work. Improve my Modern Hebrew which is a bit odd at the moment, and get ready for my course to start.
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