Big Tent Judaism

What Went Right in 2008

Going through our blog entries over these past twelve months, one thing stands clear: 2008 turned out to be a pretty good year for outreach. Institutions and organizations lowered or removed barriers to participation, and we saw more access points open up for all those seeking a welcoming and inclusive Jewish community.

In the face of the bigger issues that dominate the news cycles, like the overturned conversions in Israel or the recent Bernie Madoff disaster, it’s easy to forget the lesser known accomplishments, like Hillel adding a LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer) Resource guide for their professionals to use on campus or new option for intermarried couples to experience Israel.

That’s why JOI’s Rabbi Kerry Olitzky and I wrote an opinion piece for the New York Jewish Week highlighting not only everything that went right in outreach in 2008, but also areas where there is still need for improvement. Who knows what the next year will bring, but in 2009 “let’s take advantage of every opportunity to welcome people in and strengthen our community.”

Balancing Security and Inclusion

JOI Senior Program Officer Eva Stern received an interesting call a few months ago from KAM Isaiah Israel synagogue in Chicago, Illinois.

What for? Well, KAM Isaiah Israel is conveniently located within earshot of now President Elect-Barack Obama’s Hyde Park residence. KAM Isaiah was confronted with the challenge of maintaining a welcoming, inclusive disposition in the face of security barriers, check-points and Secret Service agents littering their ‘welcome mat.’

According to a recent article in Haaretz, congregants expressed feeling overjoyed by the fact that their neighbor, and a person of color, was elected President. The article quotes one congregant, who remarked on the historic congregation’s memory of the struggle for civil rights in this urban area:

“I’ve been channeling my parents lately, because 50 years ago, this was the dream,” said Roberta Siegel, an active KAM-II member whose father was the president of Isaiah Israel in the 1950s.

So, while the congregation didn’t view this extraordinary security issue as a gross inconvenience, they knew that they needed to go out of their way to maintain a welcoming presence for newcomers and members alike.

Rabbi Kerry Olitzky of JOI and Ed Feinstein of Valley Beth Shalom in Encino, CA recently co-wrote a compelling op-ed about balancing inclusion with increased security measures at the High Holidays. But many congregations face security challenges year-round. Not necessarily the unique situation KAM Isaiah Israel finds itself in, but nonetheless many congregations are aware of the need to increase their welcoming presence beyond security barriers and guards that are all necessary to ensure the safety of the congregation. An inviting welcoming sign and a walk through of any security measures in place at your location on your organization’s website can ensure that newcomers feel comfortable, too.

What does your organization do to promote welcoming and balance the presence of security?

Adam and Edgar Bronfman at the United Jewish Communities

Last month, Adam and Edgar Bronfman spoke at the general assembly of the United Jewish Communities (UJC), an umbrella organization that includes 155 federations and over 400 independent Jewish communities across North America. They used the opportunity to address the assembly on what we as a community can do to open our doors to welcome everyone in our midst. The JTA’s Jacob Berkman filed a report in an online video feature.

Berkman explained that the Bronfmans’ top concern is “getting the mainstream organized world to recognize that the future of the non-orthodox Jewish community may in fact lay in its ability to bring intermarried couples back into the Jewish fold.” Edgar made a speech advocating for “a wide open tent, a great big tent just like Abraham and Sarah had,” adding that it’s time to not only accept intermarriage as a fact, but move past the issue once and for all.

Much of the Bronfmans’ motivation for being more open to intermarried families, Berkman said, is because Adam is an example of a successful interfaith marriage. Estranged from Judaism for many years, Adam told the crowd that when he and his wife married, they decided to raise Jewish children – and they are grateful they were able to find a community that offered classes and support. “Now we are a family of six proud Jews,” he said, referring to his wife and children. He continued later in the video:

I am a passionate believer that Judaism itself is and should be based on ideas, and that ideas are accessible to anybody. And that does not mean that there is not something unique about Judaism, there is. But that value is open to anybody, so if somebody chooses to marry a Jewish man or Jewish woman, if you choose to be in a relationship and the two of you choose to lead a Jewish life, the institutions that represent the larger community of Jewish life should be completely open to more and more people coming into that community.

As we have said many times before, we appreciate the candor with which Adam and Edgar Bronfman speak about potentially controversial issues within the Jewish community, and for doing so on such a large stage.