Kent Schiner and the fight to resuscitate B'nai B'rith International. Cj ON THE ROPES JAMES D. BESSER Washington Correspondent 'nai B'rith International may be likened to an elderly relative: somewhat creaky, but with an honorable past and a future that — in the interest of good taste — is rarely dis- cussed. That's because 148 years after its birth, B'nai B'rith is an organization in serious cri- f* MiZ IMM :n1,7 M-a . sis. The problems are manifold and could result, within the next decade, in the demise of the nation's oldest Jewish com- munal group. The problems begin with B'nai B'rith's antiquated lodge system and broad, ill-defined focus, both of which hold lit- tle appeal for younger Jews. Moreover, years of sloppy man- agement and a plodding, conservative lay leadership have left the group poorly equipped to cope with today's chal- lenging financial environment. Whatever hopes remain for B'nai B'rith's survival appear to rest with the organization's current leaders, who seem determined to confront the forces eroding the organization's very foundation. B'nai B'rith President Kent E. Schiner is optimistic that, despite recent layoffs and hints of still more to come, he can transform B'nai B'rith into a lean, forward-looking organi- zation. "B'nai B'rith, if we could put it in medical terms, had a grave illness," Mr. Schiner, a Baltimore insurance execu- tive, said during a recent interview at the organization's northwest Washington headquarters. "There had to be cer- tain moves made in order to get the patient on the road to recovery "That has been my challenge, to move the organization in a direction where it will not only survive, but be even more viable within a different framework." B'nai B'rith was created in 1843, according to historian Arthur Hertzberg, by a group of young Jews who had been rejected for membership in the Odd Fellows Lodge. They dealt with it by forming their own fraternal organization -- complete with secret passwords and mysterious rituals. In 1992, however, that fraternal model, despite having been greatly modified over the years, accounts in large mea- oil coney II IIV 4 1000 iF YOU WANT TO MAKE ENEMIES, TRY TO CHANGE SOMETHING President Woodrow Wilson ( 185 6-1924) B'nai B'rith's survival rests on the shoulders of its president, Kent Schiner.