The synagogue that was bypassed by Detroit's Jewish
migration has reached a crossroads in its 21•year history.
Livonia Jewish
Congregation is
changing its name
and its focus. Its
members come
from as far as
Dearborn and
Northville, and its
new rabbi is eyeing
Ann Arbor.
munity orchestra including
some of the Russian Jewish
immigrants, for example."
"Art is a divine pursuit," he
says. As a chaplain at Ft. Ben-
fling, Ga., he established an
annual Holocaust memorial
service, composing music to go
with poems of children vic-
timized by the Holocaust.
"Music can be used to sen-
sitize the non-Jewish world to
the pain of the Holocaust.
Music is the response to awe
at what you see around you."
Rabbi Allen sees the Livonia
Jewish Congregation's future
tied to its proximity to Ann
Arbor, a short freeway drive
away. "Being half-way bet-
ween Detroit and Ann Arbor,
we are in a position to draw
members and talent from both
communities." Hooking up
with the classical music or
Hillel connections at the
University of Michigan is
something the rabbi plans to
investigate.
But so far, Rabbi Allen has
been spending a great deal of
time developing community
relations as a liaison between
Livonia's Jewish and non-
Jewish world. He has been at-
tending many interdenomi-
national and ecumenical
functions.
He hopes to institute change
slowly, so as not to alienate
the current membership. "The
members of the congregation
are close-knit, displaying a
tremendous amount of care for
each other. But change is dif-
ficult and will require some
very creative approaches."
The rabbi is alternating
every Friday evening service
between a more spontaneous
and a more traditional man-
ner. His goal, he says, is to
develop a thriving, multi-
generational congregation,
that is culturally, socially and
Jewishly aware and involved.
"I am looking for members
of the Jewish community who
have a musical talent or an in-
terest in art, dance, theater,
and instrumental music of all
varieties and wish to pursue
this interest in Jewish forms.
I offer these people an outlet,
a creative arena to give rise to
ideas surrounding the concept
of Judaism and the arts," the
rabbi says.
He also wants to encourage
greater youth involvement in
the congregation and the
services.
On Jan. 13, a general
membership meeting voted to
change the congregation's
name to Beit Kodesh (Holy
House). The name change will
go into effect in April or May
after legal filings.
"We've outlived the name of
Livonia Jewish Congrega-
tion," said Milton Goldman,
president of the synagogue.
"That name implies we are
only for the people of Livonia,
when in reality we represent
members from Farmington
Hills, Southfield, Oak Park,
Canton, Novi, West Bloom-
field, Dearborn, Detroit, and
Northville as well." ❑
Rabbi Allen:
Music to lift a
congregation.
Photos by Glenn Triest
Allen, "to identify and exploit
the strengths that have sus-
tained this synagogue for so
long."
The rabbi plans to establish
adult education classes and to
encourage more involvement
of women in the services. But
he sees music as a way to
generate ties between the
community and the
synagogue.
Holder of a master's degree
in music from George
Washington University,
trumpeter, piano player and
- former U.S. Army band
member, Rabbi Allen would
like "to locate talent that's in
the community and utilize it
. . . perhaps in a coffee house
at the synagogue . . . or a corn-
First Chair
T
he Livonia Jewish Con-
gregation welcomed
their new religious
leader, Rabbi Craig L. Allen,
at an open house Nov. 25.
Born in Port Huron, Rabbi
Allen served in the Signal
Corp (1968-69) during the Viet
Nam War, after a brief stint as
a student at Oakland Univer-
sity. In 1974, he returned to
the military as a bandsman,
writing music for the Army,
Navy, and Marines as well as
teaching and writing
textbooks.
While participating as a
Jewish lay leader, he glibly
commented to a chaplain that
he had always wanted to be a
rabbi. He was encouraged, ap-
plied to rabbinical school, and
within 90 days flew out on a
military flight with his fami-
ly for his first year of study in
Israel.
Ordained in 1985, he was
stationed at Ft. Benning, Ga.,
as chaplain for three years. He
established a Holocaust
memorial service in 1986, at-
tended by 800 military person-
nel and civilians.
Rabbi Allen holds a
in
bachelor's
degree
psychology from Michigan
State and a master's degree in
music from George
Washington University. He
became the executive director
of Hillel at the University of
Houston in 1968 and also an
instructor of Hebrew at Rice
University. The position in
Livonia is his first pulpit.
He has two sons still living
in Houston: Ian, 17, and
Aaron, 13. His wife, Diane, is
commuting between Detroit
and Houston. The family ex-
pects to be reunited and settl-
ed into the Detroit area by the
end of the school year. ❑
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
41