direction was made some years
ago by Dr. Louis -Finkelstein of
the Jewish Theological Seminary
when he said the search will not
succeed if we work at cross-put-
poses. What he obviously meant,
if memory serves me rightly, was
need of a formula under which
there would be joint and coopera-
tive tackling of the problem by
all branches of Judaism, with the
ultimate choice of religious direc-
tion resting of course in the hands
of each student.
Shortage of Rabbis A Critical Issue Today
By NATHAN ZIPRIN
(A Seven Arts Feature)
A COMMUNAL CRISIS . .. How
long will it take before the Jewish
community awakens to the reali-
zation that the constantly rising
shortage of rabbis poses a prob-
lem to which a solution must be
found if our religious and cultural
pattern is not to be torn into
shreds?
It is common knowledge that
the problem is one of grave con-
cern to Jewish religious and lay
leaders. But what in fact is being
done to give the issue the primacy
it deserves?
It has been said that the current
dearth of rabbis — and the prob-
lem incidentally seems to plague
other faiths as well—reflects as
much a crisis in religion as an
understandable, though painful,
tendency on the part of seminari-
ans to trek to greener and more
profitable pastures.
Basically, however, the shortage
of rabbis stems from the fact that
the various rabbinical schools of
all branches of Judaism are not
keeping pace with the continuing
needs of new congregations. Simply
speaking, there are more congre-
gations than rabbis.
But to this layman it seems
that the situation should have been
Northland
anticipated by our rabbinic insti-
tutions and educators long before
the crisis was upon them.
In the first place, it has long
been obvious that the growing Jew-
ish trend toward synagogue affili-
ation throughout the country would
create special problems with re-
spect to providing spiritual leaders
for the seekers. Secondly, as a
result of the economic expansion
in the land, it should have been
equally obvious that synagogue
construction would keep proportion-
ate pace with the rise of new
buildings and areas, thus creating
a need for more rabbis. The fact
that the new situation has not
been anticipated is not however
wholly the fault of the rabbinical
schools and their administrators.
Quite possibly, the wholly unwar-
ranted replacement of the humani-
ties by the sciences in this our
space age may have more to do
with the shortage of rabbis, priests
and ministers than lack of imagi-
nation, of ability to anticipate a
situation.
We may never know how
many potential rabbis have been
lost to the new god of our age.
The problem of training rabbis
is at best a most delicate one.
First, there is the difficulty of
engaging the interest of the young
at the precise Moment when they
contemplate a choice of careers.
In the past, homes with rabbinic
background and tradition would
supply the rabbinic schools with
potential spiritual leaders. Today
that source is withering tragically.
Secondly, not enough young people
care to choose the rabbinate these
days either because of the wave
of doubt that is engulfing the
Friday, June 21, 1968-3
young of our generation or be- THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
cause they find fulfillment and
greater compensation in o t her
fields of human endeavor. Yet,
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The problem is a grave one, in
fact so grave that if the Jewish
community in America fails to
give it the priority and attention
it deserves our spiritual pattern
way well become seared even be-
fore its envisioned decline by the
prophets of doom. Jewish history
tells us the falsest prophets have
always been the recounters of
doom. Therefore we must live in
the faith that an awakened Ameri-
can Jewish community will rise to
the occasion.
.%socuttl-
4
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