tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post7079732243264852165..comments2017-11-06T22:29:34.632-08:00Comments on USCJ4Tomorrow: Please post your comments in the box at the bottomUSCJ Adminhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08223827386016499468noreply@blogger.comBlogger131125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-82313422239987186822011-03-13T06:44:47.109-07:002011-03-13T06:44:47.109-07:00I support the Strategic Plan overall. I think it ...I support the Strategic Plan overall. I think it is a big step forward. <br />However, I remain concerned about the capacity of the movement overall to attract Jews with its message and to inspire service and philanthropy to help us move forward. One of the aspects I found to be missing in the plan is the need to develop an international service model that gives opportunity for young people, young Jewish professionals opportunities to serve the broader Jewish community as ambassadors of the movement. The lack of ambassadors, people who do tikun olam or serve underserved communities is a real deficiency of our movement. But such efforts also are potentially attractive to funders. I am suggesting there is a strong link between innovative service ideas and funding. <br /> Under the current plan I think it will still be hard to attract funders and philanthropic leaders. While Kehilot are our bread and butter, they are essentially local and idiosyncratic and will not inspire larger national scale funding. <br /> I think the issue is not only how to hold the vital center, but how to attract Jews and potential converts to the vital center. It is my belief that outreach/keruv must receive greater emphasis for the UCSJ and the movement to rebound. <br /><br />Rabbi Dov Gartenberg<br />Long Beach, CaliforniaAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-71901338673795056482011-03-12T20:18:26.623-08:002011-03-12T20:18:26.623-08:00I have two comments.
1. Vibrant kehilot attract a...I have two comments.<br />1. Vibrant kehilot attract and retain membership. UJA and Funds for Jewish Justice have supported community organizing in synagogues with the goal in mind. This approach has been shown to build new leadership as well as institutional commitment. It is an approach that USCJ may want to incorporate in its strategic planning<br />2. You may want to consider substituting prayer as a pillar of the plan with a commitment to the development of spiritual and covental communities. <br /><br />Susan Abramowitz<br />Town and Village SynagogueAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-82601654314732919252011-03-11T10:24:00.904-08:002011-03-11T10:24:00.904-08:00It may help to hear from a defector, one raised as...It may help to hear from a defector, one raised as observant Conservative, Ramah alumnus, USY clique outsider and who in 1997 moved across town to the Traditional unaffiliated shul to escape a fair amount of mistreatment and the relentless quest for mediocrity that evolved in my 17 years with the USCJ affiliate. On arrival at my new congregation I found myself sharing the bimah with a dozen other contemporaries who had made the switch 10-15 years before. <br /><br />Having spent about a half hour reading the 24 pages of document and browsing the other comments which come primarily from people with a particular interest in some aspect of the Conservative infrastructure, I am neither ready to return or to ask anything of the USCJ for myself. That is not what the document is about. In some ways it tries to salvage a trend that really began with the Havurah movement about forty years ago when the people most interested in Judaism found themselves staring blankly ahead in non-Orthodox sanctuary pews where tfillah took the form of reading drill. Many of us found Ramah, USY, Hillel and the like stimulating but on entering adulthood we were demoted back to local synagogues which functioned at the level of our despised Hebrew schools. The United Synagogue Review came every quarter in the mail, had some attractive stuff in it but did not apply to my congregation that had macher swoops, Rabbis who thought smart well educated Jews were a threat to authority more than a resource for the other congregants, Hebrew school kids like my own spending 50% of one year doing a geneology project and learning one prayer to perform for the parents one Friday night, all the while being told by the President and the school principal how wonderful the experience was. Guess I was short on Hakaras HaTov. Eventually the machers pounced upon a real talent, though a tempermental one, and I scheduled a formal exit interview with the Rabbi the next day.<br /><br />As I read the document as a plan, it neglects to correct, or even disallow, some of the activity inflicted by the processes in place, from a very restrictive Rabbinical Placement procedure to total lack of measurement or accountability within the Hebrew schools or even the requirement that members of the kehillot function as equal shareholders. For the most part membership in these synagogues or other communities continues as the default position until displaced by either a negative experience from within or a particularly attractive experience elsewhere that comes along. Most of us just do not write our resumes to move to the next destination until we encounter dissatisfaction with our current circumstances.<br /><br />Is this document a form of Obama's "Pig with Lipstick"? I think it is at least an olive branch or a troll net to recapture some of those who have voted with their feet. That's important since the core Conservative ideology maintains its attractiveness to many of who have departed based on the experience of its faulty implementation. I do not think really goes far enough to remedy what created the problem they are trying to reverse.rich the furrydocnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-89059320976747867302011-03-11T08:30:05.642-08:002011-03-11T08:30:05.642-08:00I read the article in the Metrowest Jewish News ...I read the article in the Metrowest Jewish News describing your visit to New Jersey to explain the focus of the Strategic Plan for USCJ. I have to say that I took umbrage at your comments concerning Koach's allocation as "a waste of money". I know that you were talking about the future. I was thinking of what Koach has been able to accomplish with each year's smaller and smaller allocations. To have given groups of college students identity as Conservative Jews to daven, to study and to socialize together was not a waste of money. To have given a Jewish student who was at a college where there were few Jews a way to meet other Jewish students at a Conservative regional or national Kallah was not a waste of money. Chabad would not think so. To have read the Koach newsletter written by college students concerned and enthusiastic about every aspect of living the Jewish way and to think , as it seems to be the plan, " OK but we, USCJ, will show our concern for them<br /> when they are in their twenties or thirties or later " is the true waste.<br /><br />Judith H LaxDr. Judith H. Laxnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-34009126888397245692011-03-10T09:49:39.651-08:002011-03-10T09:49:39.651-08:00Kudos to this comment above -- "The report sa...Kudos to this comment above -- "The report says that other organizations are adequately serving our Conservative kids. Really? Have any members of the committee been on a college campus lately?<br /><br />I understand the need to strengthen USCJ services to congregations. As someone who spends a good amount of time on a college campus (as a professor), I can tell you that Conservative Jews are UNDERserved. No one is asserting that KOACH needs to provide Hillel-type services; but if the Conservative Movement wishes to have any future, it needs to focus on at-risk populations. I can tell you that students have told me they are not welcome in Orthodox-dominated Hillels and they do not feel a connection to Conservative synagogues, despite their USY and Ramah backgrounds. Revamp if you need to, but the pittance you want to spend on college students is sad and counterproductive.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-90331350642123414732011-03-10T07:22:56.340-08:002011-03-10T07:22:56.340-08:00informative....informative....Rihannahttp://www.nuttytimes.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-48238867466143358972011-03-10T06:24:41.337-08:002011-03-10T06:24:41.337-08:00Hi, and yasher koach first of all for taking on th...Hi, and yasher koach first of all for taking on this daunting task. Second, let me say I'm mystified that the CY, as part of the Fuchsberg Center, gets only passing and negative mention. You can see from the messages here what a positive impact it has on Conservative Jews and Judaism. If you want to imagine an ideal Conservative institution, then the CY is as close as it gets in real life. It has actually succeeded in doing what Conservative Judaism set out to do, which is rare. It gives Jews of various levels of education and observance an intense, immersive experience of authentic Jewish living, exposes them to the power and depth of Torah through world class teachers, and sends them on reinvigorated and empowered to effect change in their home congregations. Why in the world would you ever consider cutting it? We need more CY's, not one less.Jeff Amshalemhttp://www.hasidismfortherestofus.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-20620328329481049062011-03-08T08:23:30.464-08:002011-03-08T08:23:30.464-08:00I'll keep it simple since most of the posts ar...I'll keep it simple since most of the posts are pretty long:<br /><br />-Rabbi Wernick is quoted in the New Jersey Jewish News saying that spending $400k on KOACH is a "waste of money." I'm not getting that from the comments on this blog and elsewhere.<br /><br />-From what I've read about the Mahar Coalition, Steven Cohen admitted that no college students were consulted and there was no study done to come to the conclusions reached in the report about service to college students. If one of his students turned in a paper like that, I wonder what kind of grade they'd get.<br /><br />-The report says that other organizations are adequately serving our Conservative kids. Really? Have any members of the committee been on a college campus lately?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-92149005153204460202011-03-04T11:20:29.142-08:002011-03-04T11:20:29.142-08:00I will not dwell on the many reasons why cutting b...I will not dwell on the many reasons why cutting back support for Koach and the CY may well prove devastating to the future of the movement. Rather I will just go on record stating that now is EXACTLY the crucial time for enhancing the engagement of college age students and those who desire the opportunity of studying Torah L'Shma! Cutting back the necessary funding for these 2 "programs" is nothing less than foolishness and misplaced priorities. There will be no future for our movement without the programs that provide serious Torah study in committed communities. This strategic plan is strategically flawed.Hazzan Henry Rosenblumnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-28723375315173719802011-03-04T09:22:58.476-08:002011-03-04T09:22:58.476-08:00Strategic Planning Committee-
Please maintain ful...Strategic Planning Committee-<br /><br />Please maintain full support for the Koach programs. For some of our young Jewish adults, this may be their last best chance to be involved and learn Torah with peers in a way that is deeply relevant to them. Conservative synagogues across the country are trying to find ways to maintain current membership, and attract new members, but they cannot sell a product, if you will not be offended by the analogy, if the consumer doesn't consider the product important or even minimally worthy of their attention.<br /><br />For a strategic planning committee, I believe it is strategically imperative to continue to reach out with all the strength we can muster to our young adults in college. It must be our plan to capture their hearts and minds at this time, or run the risk of losing them altogether in the future.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00967329763425635277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-25728332599045413592011-03-04T08:40:58.637-08:002011-03-04T08:40:58.637-08:00I received an e-newsletter yesterday from USCJ. Am...I received an e-newsletter yesterday from USCJ. Among the items being touted was KOACH and it's glories! But I'm confused - If USCJ includes KOACH under "bragging rights" it seems not to<br />make sense to want to de-fund/cancel it. That's short-sighted and UNstategic planning in my book.<br /><br />Two young people, one of whom is my daughter Batya (currently the Regional Executive VP for Religion and Education in NERUSY), sent me a<br />petition which is circulating, urging you to re-consider eliminating funding for KOACH.<br />These young people - who are very devoted and highly identified with our Movement - are paying close attention to what the USCJ is doing. And they are not happy with the direction being taken with regard to their future. There seems to be more involvement in KOACH and more need for it on campuses than I realized, and the students' arguments seem sound. It makes more sense to strengthen and encourage our young people who want to identify with the Conservative Movement than to chase windmills among the minyanim/kehilot who have made clear their disinterest and disdain for denominationalism.<br /><br />I think we need to clarify better who our target audience is and determine how best to serve them, even with a shortage of funds. And I think that if one of USCJ's clear missions is to serve our young people, we can raise money for that. Of course, we have to be serious and do things with the money, which will be different from how the USCJ has not served its primary constituents - the congregations - for too long. Which is why we are at this juncture.<br /><br />As to the plan I heard discussed at Mishkan Tefilla in Newton a couple of weeks ago,<br />I think too much energy is devoted to issues of governance and not enough on substance. I know that the draft calls for an Operational Plan to flesh out the details, but without those details, like "Who is going to do What?", this plan is not meaningful or substantial. I am also concerned that the USCJ is acting on proposals before the plan is finalized and accepted, as in the case of KOACH. That feels impulsive and unwise.<br /><br />As I said at the Boston/New England area meeting, this plan is lacking in vision for the Movement. And it lacks a sense of who will lead the Movement. These are critical issues that need to be discussed before any kind of strategy makes sense. Perhaps that's not for USCJ to decide, but it's an issue we all need to address.<br /><br />Rabbi Wayne Franklin<br />Temple Emanu-El, ProvidenceUnknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13019955119109873246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-66978960250908244792011-03-04T08:15:22.749-08:002011-03-04T08:15:22.749-08:00I have written a response to the strategic plan ti...I have written a response to the strategic plan titled, "Visioning Future Success: The Next Iteration of a Central Organization for Conservative Judaism and Kehillot. It can be found at www.hamirpesetsheli.blogspot.com . It sets out a vision and attempts to open a discussion. I look forward to your feedback.Rabbi Loren Sykeshttp://www.hamirpesetsheli.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-68576880810945323202011-03-03T23:07:52.353-08:002011-03-03T23:07:52.353-08:00Although I concede that in a time of limited resou...Although I concede that in a time of limited resources, USCJ cannot necessarily continue to offer all the services it offered in the past, I am concerned about some of the recomendations in the draft Strategic Plan:<br />1. While it may be appropriate to decide that USCJ's primary focus should be on serving Kehillot rather than individual Conservative Jews, limiting this focus to the "business side" of Kehillot as suggested in Dr. Eisen's letter is not at all appropriate. USCJ needs to play a role in programming, education, social action initiatives, etc. A role that is limited to the "business side" of Kehillot could be filled equally well by UJC, United Way, or even a for-profit service bureau. <br />2. If USCJ does decide to focus on serving Kehillot rather than individuals, it puts some of its most successful programs at risk: USY, Koach, and even Hazak (which can certainly prosper as more Baby-Boomers reach retrement age) are directed at, and primarily benefit, individuals. <br />3. Focusing on education only through high school is short-sighted. USCJ needs strong education programs for all age groups, including college students, grad students and recent college grads, young working adults, etc. Part of the success of Independent Minyanim is due to the high quality prayer experiences and educational programs offered and the opportunity to work and grow alongside like-minded peers. USCJ, working through Kehillot, must offer a similar opportunity to young people, and it can be done. <br />USCJ should invest resources in educational opportunities for young adults through Koach and should set up a similar forum for the post-Koach cohort: 25 to 35 year olds who are starting careers and setting up their first housholds. They have limited free-time, so we have to offer exciting opportunities that can be implemented "out of the box". This is a place to invest, not divest! <br />4. Full disclosure: Both my son and daughter are "poster children" for the Conservative Movement: Schechter School grads, Ramahniks, active USYers and involved with Koach. Were it not for those programs, they would not be where they are today. I want to make sure my grandchildren have those some possibilities.Dianne Nnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-65203279503243284522011-03-03T21:15:40.750-08:002011-03-03T21:15:40.750-08:00Part 2.
Now, there are a handful of members of my...Part 2.<br /><br />Now, there are a handful of members of my community (I try to be one) who do, in general, meet the plan's description. The strategic document's main problem is that, following in the proud tradition of the movement, it pretends that that handful, who are the Jews the movement would like to have, are typical of the ones it actually has. They're not. As long as the movement remains in denial about that, it will continue to program for the small number of Jews who fit the movement's ideal, and the rest will continue to drift away. Most of them will go to Reform synagogues; some of the ones who are well educated will either find Conservadox minyanim or stomach the gender disparities and join Modern Orthodoxy, since in both of those communities the majority -are- well described by the five characterists. A pity those groups are nowhere near the center, no matter how much we wish they were. So our well-educated members drift into those groups, not because they're rejecting our principles, but because they want peers who share their values - and they don't find them in our synagogues.<br /><br />The Conservative movement has three choices. One, accept the fact that there aren't a fifth as many Jews of the type it wants to serve as it has long pretended there are, stay true to its principles, and accept being a much smaller movement than it presently is. Second, accept the fact that the majority of its current members aren't buying what it's selling and the majority of young adult Jews aren't either, switch to selling a completely different product, and try to hang onto its current size by changing into something that greatly resembles Reform Judaism. (In fact, this alternative probably leads to a merger with the Reform movement in 30-50 years.) Third, stay in denial and keep drifting.<br /><br />This strategic plan is firmly in the camp of the third alternative, because the third alternative is the only one it can promote as long as it refuses to deal with the gap between what the movement wants its members to be, and what they really are. In truth, the plan is a nice piece of paperwork drawn up by the kind of entrenched bureaucracy that the independent minyanim are completely committed to avoiding. Who was surprised that the first step in the movement's solution to its existential problems was to draw up a vision statement? Who is surprised that the middle of the plan (section 11) is to form a half-dozen more committees? It's time to stop rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic and actually confront the very real, very difficult problems we're facing.<br /><br />Stephen Schmidt<br />schmidsj@union.eduStephen Schmidthttp://minerva.union.edu/schmidsjnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-80589438876030181112011-03-03T21:14:47.371-08:002011-03-03T21:14:47.371-08:00A two-parter.
The failure of the strategic plan ...A two-parter. <br /><br />The failure of the strategic plan is that it simply doesn't confront the very real but very difficult problems that the movement faces right now. Instead, it focuses on marginal changes like a few dollars more or less for KOACH or for Fuchsburg; changes that may keep the movement afloat for a few more years, but keep us firmly embedded in our downward spiral.<br /><br />The real problem that the Conservative movement needs to address is the enormous gap between what the movement says it is, and what its members really are.<br /><br />The plan states five characteristics of "Jews in the center generally." I belong to, and am a board member and ritual lay leader of, a medium-sized Conservative synagogue in the Northeast. None of those five statements accurately describes the large majority of the members of my synagogue - whom I believe to be pretty typical of the movement as a whole. They do not attach great importance to being Jewish or to religious practice - it at best of marginal importance. They do marry other Jews more often than not, but do not have mostly Jewish friends nor close to it. They do prefer egalitarian prayer over gender-segregated prayer, but they prefer no prayer at all (ie, not going to shul) when that's an option, which it almost always is. They generally minimize or conceal their Jewishness in their broader social engagement; they remain far more committed to assimilation (in the social sense, not the identity sense) than to Jewish distinctiveness. They have no interest whatsoever in Jewish text learning. How many people study Talmud in your Conservative shul? In mine, four do, three if you don't count the rabbi, and I think that's more than in most Conservative synagogues.<br /><br />The history of the Conservative movement (which is very clearly described in _American Judaism_ by Jonathan Sarna, which everyone should read) is simple. The Conservative movement is the people who want the look-and-feel of Orthodoxy (eg, Hebrew prayer) but want to loosen the restrictions. We got started in the early 1900s by people who wanted the rabbi to have a secular education as well as a rabbinic one. We grew before the Second World War by abandoning segregated seating, and we became the largest movement after the war by allowing people to drive on Shabbat. (Biggest mistake we ever made.) Unfortunately, in the 1950s and 1960s, Orthodoxy nearly vanished. As a result, we no longer have a pool of people who want that look and feel. Also, during our heyday, if your parents were Orthodox but you affiliated Conservative, the Orthodox were more willing to say, "well, you're meeting us halfway." Today the gap between us and the Orthodox is nearly unbridgable. Hence we don't get people who were raised Orthodox affiliating Conservative in anything like the numbers we once did. Instead, the people whose parents drifted from Orthodox to Conservative are now drifting from Conservative to Reform, and in the next generation they'll drift to non-affiliation, and in the generation after that they won't be Jews at all. That's the experience of the majority of the movement's membership. They're not in the center because they hold centrist principles; they're in the center because you can't get from the right to the left to out the door without passing through the center for a generation or two.<br /><br />[continued]Stephen Schmidthttp://minerva.union.edu/schmidsjnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-90382933635265661082011-03-03T12:26:03.540-08:002011-03-03T12:26:03.540-08:00How can United Synagogue stand idly by and let ult...How can United Synagogue stand idly by and let ultra-orthodox programs take away Conservative Jews??<br /><br />I am a product of both USY and Nativ and because there is no Conservative lay leadership or professional on my campus I am forced to study with an orthodox rabbi that has told me to my face that my beliefs of Judaism - Conservative Judaism- are invalid.<br /><br />But I have no other option if I want to continue my Jewish growth.<br /><br />United Synagogue would be foolish to ignore the conservative Jewish youth on the college campus simply because there are other "alternatives" already in existence.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-10333198563146546302011-03-03T06:18:42.562-08:002011-03-03T06:18:42.562-08:00I understand the value of KOACH. I am sure that co...I understand the value of KOACH. I am sure that college campuses with KOACH benefit a great deal from what it has to offer. But as a student from a school without KOACH, I think that the money may be better spent somewhere else. KOACH is mostly present on campuses that have a somewhat large and active Jewish population. I think what is most needed is to cater to schools having trouble creating a strong Jewish community. KOACH does not do this. At these schools the Hillels are struggling to have Shabbat dinner every week. At these schools it seems as if there are no Conservative Jews. I think these are the problems that need to be addressed, so that we can continue to have a strong, knowledgeable, engaged movement.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00598429991040803429noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-34781467923937250882011-03-03T06:18:02.853-08:002011-03-03T06:18:02.853-08:00Temple Israel in Vestal NY has a wonderful relatio...Temple Israel in Vestal NY has a wonderful relationship with our Binghamton University Hillel. We have engaged their Jewish Acapela group in our Shabbat Across America programming, enjoyed having students read Torah, Haftarah and lead services on occasion, and participate in student led Yom HaShoah Memorial and Israel Day celebrations. They are a wonderful breath of fresh air to an aging community. The Binghamton Vestal area holds less than a thousand Jewish families, we are aging and struggling hard with economic strain. There are over 4000 Jewihs students at Binghamton university, many of them involved with Koach, growing to be the next generation of leaders for our movement. These students approached with me with great concern over the new budget strategy and how it will affect Koach. Especially in a small city region like Binghamton, where the number of Jewish students at the university far exceeds a small financially constrained Jewish community, "kehllah" financing may leave these wonderful young leaders out in the cold. Binghamton has an incredibly well supported Chabad Center, with deep pockets and centralized support, but it does not provide for every student. What of our gay and lesbian Jewish students, what of our women students who need to say kaddish, our women Torah readers and service leaders. All our people deserve to be cared for by our movement, to feel a place that is home in Judaism. Koach provides a unique and indispensable experience and training ground for our young people and is our greatest hope for the future of the Conservative movement.Rabbi Tziona Szajman, Vestal, NYhttp://www.templeisraelvestal.orgnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-11900004847632652572011-03-03T02:20:14.363-08:002011-03-03T02:20:14.363-08:00Part 5:
Before I close, I also want to briefly me...Part 5:<br /><br />Before I close, I also want to briefly mention that I fully support the Fuchsberg Center, and I believe that participants of the Conservative Yeshiva fall under the category of “the next generation of kehilla leadership” (Draft Strategic Plan 9). As such, I believe that in addition to programs like KOACH, the Conservative Yeshiva should be one of the USCJ’s top priorities, not the last. Without an institution that takes learning seriously and participates in studying Torah from an authentically Conservative approach, we have almost no legitimacy as a movement that prides itself on our commitment to halacha.<br /><br />In conclusion, I hope that the USCJ Strategic Planning Committee reads this post as an attempt to help you to help us. As a college student active in the KOACH community, I cannot support the plan as it currently stands. We, college students, are serious. We are not merely writing to you in order to just make a fuss or get publicity. We really, truly believe that our voices need to be heard before this plan can be passed. We are only doing this because we believe in Conservative Judaism, we have seen the impact that it has had on us and on our peers, and we know that it can continue to have a similar and even greater impact in the future…but only if we take the correct approach. <br /><br />Judaism has never been a religion about answers. It has always been about questions. Consequently, I am not writing this statement to propose an answer (or answers) to the many challenges that the Conservative Movement currently faces. I am writing it to pose questions, and to further open up this tremendous discussion that has ensued. <br /><br />If nothing else, I want to applaud the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism for raising many crucial points about the current state of Conservative Judaism. It is about time that we bring these conversations to the forefront of the public. Thank you for your time, your energy, and your commitment to hearing, and more importantly, to listening, to my voice.Judyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09821001965560625208noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-51152724708026248132011-03-03T02:19:37.973-08:002011-03-03T02:19:37.973-08:00Part 4:
Fourth, I would like to seriously questio...Part 4:<br /><br />Fourth, I would like to seriously question a section that seems to not have received comprehensive input when it was written. Section 5.1 claims that “the current campus environment is heavily serviced by Hillel and numerous other well-funded and professionally staffed efforts” (Draft Strategic Plan 14). Of course, I can only speak for the University of Maryland Hillel, but I can tell you personally that we certainly are not “heavily serviced by Hillel.” Additionally, where are these “numerous other well-funded and professionally staffed efforts”? If they exist, I do not know about them.<br /><br />I think it is frustrating, to say the least, that the authors of the USCJ Strategic Planning Committee did not use a representative sample when conducting research on college campuses. The “eleven months of research, consultations, and analysis…” were either not enough, or the research was not well designed (Draft Strategic Plan 4). I hope that in the future, the USCJ will use better samples, with higher validity and reliability, before making statements like the one quoted from section 5.1. <br /><br />Fifth, I want to thank the USCJ for making an open statement that they “cannot abandon Conservative Jewish college students” (Draft Strategic Plan 14). While you are not planning on “abandon[ing]“ us per say, you are effectively cutting enough of our funding that the impact you will make will most-likely not be statistically significant. <br /><br />Sixth, I agree 101% that the USCJ “needs a more effective vehicle than the current Koach program” (Draft Strategic Plan 14). I agree; KOACH is not the best program that it can be. It has the potential for so much more. So let’s talk. Let’s engage in a conversation about how to make KOACH better. Let’s discuss what we can do, with the limited funds that we have, to improve KOACH on ALL college campuses. I think this is a key point: just because the current KOACH program is not outstanding, just because it is not 100% successful, does not mean that we should basically eliminate the program. This means that we should engage in conversation and implementation of changes to the program. And that conversation should be between USCJ and college students. It should not be a one-sided conversation. It cannot be a one-sided conversation in order for the changes to be effective. <br /><br />Here are a few of my preliminary suggestions:<br /><br />1) Retain the KOACH Kallah, but find ways to reduce funds (ex: students can stay in dorms rather than hotels, students can participate in a low cost social event rather than a high cost one, etc.)<br />2) Retain the KOACH Shabbat program, but find ways to reduce funds (ex: rabbinical interns can stay in student apartments rather than hotels, food can be paid for by the individual Hillels rather than by KOACH)<br />3) Set up an alliance between every school that has KOACH and a Rabbi from the closest Conservative shul. Even if the Rabbi cannot be present at the school on a regular basis, the Rabbi would still act as that school’s KOACH “liaison” or “mentor” (this is a cheap way for KOACH students to still have guidance and a convenient, halachik source)<br />4) Set up events that engage multiple KOACH kehillot from the same areas (ex: GW, AU, Delaware, Hopkins, UMBC, Goucher, Towson, UMD, etc. can do KOACH-based programming together. KOACH can and should provide the funds for this type of programming)<br />5) If convenience allows (such as New York schools, BU, Brandeis, etc.), send a Conservative Rabbi to the school on a weekly basis to engage the students in serious, Jewish learning<br /><br />These are just a few suggestions, and I would love the opportunity to continue this conversation in greater depth.Judyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09821001965560625208noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-3603116734230932652011-03-03T02:18:50.093-08:002011-03-03T02:18:50.093-08:00Part 3:
At the University of Maryland, KOACH is ...Part 3: <br /><br />At the University of Maryland, KOACH is a kehilla. We are a kehilla that holds weekly services both Friday night and Shabbat morning, sponsors monthly Shabbat lunch-n’-learns, onegs, havdalah and desserts, schedules social programming such as hamantaschen baking, chocolate seders, and movie nights, and engages in serious intellectual conversations on a regular basis. Within our Hillel, a vibrant, large, and often overwhelming space, KOACH provides an intimate kehilla for all Jews that “embraces all of the values…most dear to us” (UMD’s Statement to the USCJ). Our kehilla is strong, and fortunately, “we are strong enough to stand our own” (UMD’s Statement to the USCJ). That being said, leaving the strategic plan as is, here is what we would primarily be missing:<br />1) The KOACH Kallah<br />2) KOACH Shabbat<br />3) National connection to Jews on other campuses<br />All three of these factors are critical to the University of Maryland, and we view them as essential to our programming and identity on campus. <br /><br />I am writing on behalf of a movement that is greater than myself. I am writing on behalf of a movement that is greater than University of Maryland’s KOACH. I am writing on behalf of college students around the country who do not attend the University of Maryland. I am writing on behalf of students who attend the KOACH Kallah because that is their only annual exposure to serious Torah learning. I am writing on behalf of the students who would have loved to attend the KOACH Kallah, but who couldn’t afford to do so because of this economic crisis. We have a wealth of opportunity here, and if you were present at this year’s KOACH Kallah hosted by Northwestern University, you would have witnessed that. You would have felt the kavanah that emanated our davening. You would have experienced the thirst in our eyes for community, kehilla. You would have experienced the richness of our questions and conversations. <br /><br />And perhaps even more significant, we feel that as college students, and as KOACH affiliates, we believe that we are not only “the next generation of kehilla leadership,” but we are also the current generation of kehilla leadership (Draft Strategic Plan 9). We are a kehilla, and we are the leaders of that kehilla. But even more so, we possess a shared relationship with other kehillot. We benefit from the “myriad Conservative congregations in the area,” and in turn, “we are actively involved in local Conservative synagogues as Hebrew School teachers and youth advisors” (UMD’s Statement to the USCJ). We, the members of KOACH, are certainly important for the future of the Conservative Movement. But we are also important now, in the present, as we all look to restructure the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism.Judyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09821001965560625208noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-3811341916129909392011-03-03T02:17:48.885-08:002011-03-03T02:17:48.885-08:00Part 2:
Third, I recognize that we are in the mid...Part 2:<br /><br />Third, I recognize that we are in the midst of an economic crisis. We are all low on money. Budgets must be reduced, funds must be cut, and money must be reallocated. It appears, however, that the order of importance, according to the draft strategic plan, is:<br />1) Existing kehillot<br />2) The educational system<br />3) The next generation of kehilla leadership<br />It is here, with the focus of the little money that USCJ has to be spent first on existing kehillot, and last on the next generation of kehilla leadership, that I find troubling. I agree that “a strong and vibrant religious center for North American Jewry requires strong and vibrant Conservative congregations,” but when our money is low, we must carefully consider our priorities (Draft Strategic Plan 5). Young college-age students, more than the population of the majority of existing kehillot, engage in deep intellectual, ideological, and philosophical thought. We are constantly questioning. We are passionate, committed, and interested- about beliefs that engage us, about movements that cater to us, about people that identify with us. <br /><br />“The next generation of kehilla leadership” refers to many people (Draft Strategic Plan 9). However, as a member of University of Maryland’s KOACH, I would like to focus on the impact of KOACH on myself, on this campus, and on kehillot in general. <br /><br />As I mentioned above, I grew up in a Conservative shul, I went to Schechter and Ramah, and I went to Beth Tfiloh, a community high school affiliated with a Modern Orthodox shul. I have friends and family that identify with many different movements of Judaism. I also have friends and family that purposefully choose not to identify. I, myself, often question the purpose of labeling. <br /><br />Regardless of whether I identify as a Conservative Jew, regardless of whether I affiliate with the Conservative Movement, regardless of whether I am a staunch supporter of all Conservative ideology, I still see KOACH as a necessary and vital kehilla on my college campus. For me, KOACH has been just that- a kehilla in which I have established meaningful friendships, shared meals over Jewish philosophy, literature, and ideology, and immersed myself in the programming that is meant to bring this kehilla together. With the support that the USCJ has continued to provide for KOACH, despite its dwindling funds over the past few years, our KOACH kehilla here at Maryland is thriving. In my time at Maryland so far, I see firsthand the impact that KOACH has had on my fellow peers. Coming to weekly services, reading Torah, leading parts of the service, engaging in programs, and creating my own community were unquestionable activities for me. I have always been active in similar activities at home and at camp. But for many of my peers, many of whom did not participate in USY, Nativ, or Schechter, KOACH has been their sole connection to Conservative Judaism with people their own age. Without KOACH, many of my friends would most-likely view the Conservative Movement as a movement of the past- a dying movement. Therefore, I believe it is essential for the USCJ Strategic Planning Committee to be able to recognize the importance of KOACH on college students. Maybe you have only heard negative feedback about KOACH (because “bad” speaks louder than “good”), but I know that for me and my peers, being a part of KOACH has been an incredible, life-changing experience. If the USCJ votes affirmatively for the plan as it currently stands, I do not believe KOACH will be able to make the same impact that it has on myself and my peers.Judyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09821001965560625208noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-21213739730393320472011-03-03T02:16:06.799-08:002011-03-03T02:16:06.799-08:00Part 1:
Shalom,
My name is Judy Gerstenblith and...Part 1:<br /><br />Shalom,<br /><br />My name is Judy Gerstenblith and I am from Baltimore, Maryland. I belong to Chizuk Amuno Congregation, I went to Krieger Schechter from preschool through eighth grade, I went to Beth Tfiloh High School, I was a camper at Ramah in New England for seven years, I went on Ramah Israel Seminar, and I have been a counselor at Ramah for two summers. I currently attend the University of Maryland, College Park, where I am a sophomore psychology major and Jewish Studies minor. <br /><br />As a strong supporter of the First Amendment, I am pleased to see that the USCJ has provided the public with a forum for expressing our beliefs. Since you “welcome [our] comments,” I would like to address some important aspects of the draft strategic plan. While I cannot comment on everything, I will do my best to pick the most crucial parts, as I see fit. <br /><br />First, I agree that there should be a “New United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism.” I think the claims made about the current challenges facing Conservative Judaism are completely accurate. These include:<br />1) “Conservative congregations face financial stress, declining and aging membership, a narrow leadership base, weak denominational commitment, and a loss of meaning for many younger people” (Draft Strategic Plan 6).<br />2) “The United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism has lost ground” (Draft Strategic Plan 7).<br />3) “The USCJ can, and must, play a pivotal role in realizing the potential of Conservative congregations and overcoming these challenges” (Draft Strategic Plan 7). <br />I think that recognizing these challenges, being open about them, and sharing them with the rest of the Conservative Movement are all critical steps in the process of finding ways to work through these challenges. Thank you for being open about them.<br /><br />Second, I support the change in language from “synagogue” or “congregation” to “kehillah”. (I always believe in using Hebrew as much as possible!) But even more importantly, I think you are right in that this change is “more than semantic” (Draft Strategic Plan 8). I look forward to seeing how this change in language translates into practicality, and I hope that it will accomplish what the strategic plan has in mind.Judyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09821001965560625208noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-47295691772893611382011-03-02T23:13:59.344-08:002011-03-02T23:13:59.344-08:00About a year ago I realized that it was time to fu...About a year ago I realized that it was time to further my interest in Judaism and take my first step toward conversion. I started by attending a local shul, but felt out of place and uncomfortable as I didn't know anyone. I went once and wasn't sure where to turn to next. I mentioned my problem to a close friend, who invited me to accompany her at Hillel this Shabbos. This was my first positive experience of many with KOACH. Everyone introduced themselves to me as we quickly became friends. I've found that I can go to them with any question regarding Judaism and will always get a lengthy, informational response. <br />At KOACH, I never feel embarrassed or ashamed for my lack of knowledge. They always make me feel welcome and are accepting to who I am.<br />The main aspect of KOACH that I enjoy most is it's small, laid-back atmosphere, which doesn't make me feel intimated like other places have.<br />I hope that KOACH will be able to further it's commitment in providing a home for conservative Jews and continue to welcome new students to this rare and comforting experience.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6925652051233284102.post-47580556526451271532011-03-02T22:04:05.883-08:002011-03-02T22:04:05.883-08:00KOACH is vital to college campuses! Coming from a ...KOACH is vital to college campuses! Coming from a campus with an extremely strong Reform minyan and an ever popular, ever growing chabad, KOACH lost numbers extremely quickly due to Chabad's social and spiritual appeal. I will admit to being one of those who is now unaffiliated because this very situation happened to me. However, I knew that if I ever grew frustrated with Chabad style davening or theology, that I had the Conservative minyan to fall back on. Unfortunately, I did not take advantage of this, but I think that knowing that it existed as a part of our Hillel was a very comforting presence for me. In addition, I know many of my peers who are positively impacted by KOACH Kallah and who are now in Israel and really growing "Conservatively" through the learning at CY. The importance of a middle-ground minyan that helps balance out where the Reform movement places themselves ritually and where Chabad stands theologically, cannot be expressed. And, what better way and time to do this during college when you witness excited post-Nativers and excited former USYers eager to engage their Conservative Jewish values on campus, at a time when many students fall off the Conservative Movement radar.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com