SAVE
;"-Hc; $450

'95
3000 GT

ON SELEC'
MODELS

Class Reaches Out
To Jewish Adults

31/2 YR. LEASE

$349+

The New
'95 Eclipse

M t

'239 + Per Mo.

LE:.

JILL DAVIDSON SKLAR STAFF WRITER

R

NEW '95
MONTERO

4x4 LS, LOADED

THE NEW 1995

GALANT

NEW '95

$349 +

DIAMANTE LS

per

2 1/2 Yr. Lease

PROGRAM CAR SPECIALS

'94
DIAMANTE

ABS, sunroof, loaded

$21,950

1994 EXPO
MINI VANS

'94 GALANTS

Starting At

$13,950

$14,995

LOADED! From

'93 MIRAGE
2-DOOR

$9995

+AII prices are plus tax, title and dest Rebate included 24, 42. or 48 mo closed end lease to qualified buyers Sec. dep. of $300. plus $1250 down on Eclipse
and Galant. all other vehicles require $2650 down. 52.500 rn:le limitation on 42 mo. lease. 15c per mi. lor excess mileage. Option to purchase at lease end for
price determined at lease inception. To get total payments. multiply by 24. 42 or 48.

#11 Dealer

0

_ MITSUBISHI ALSOUTHFIELD

29310 TELEGRAPH ROAD, JUST NORTH OF 12 MILE • SOUTHFIELD

810-353-0910

Mon. & Thurs. 8-9:30, Tues. & Wed. 7-7, Fri. 8-7

• ■• • •

Charming ways to
% display your pride.

Tapper's
has a unique
collection of childrens charms
in 14kt. gold.
Add diamonds and
gemstones
to create a beautiful and
00 , lasting way to remember
a mother's love
and devotion.

A

rf

Diamonds
and Fine Jewelry

26400 W. 12 Mile Road
Southfield, MI 48034

Service & Repairs (810) 357-5578, Order Toll-Free 1-800-337-GIFT

abbi Elliot Pachter doesn't
have firsthand knowledge
about what it is like to
grow up bored with Ju-
daism but that doesn't mean he
doesn't know what to do about it.
As a child, he lived in Grand
Rapids and attended a small syn-
agogue where he led services at
times.
"I think I am one of the only
rabbis I know who was not kicked
out of Hebrew school," he said. "I
genuinely loved it."
Now he is trying to convey that
same enthusiasm he felt as a
child to other Conservative
Jewish adults.
With education director Rita
Abramson, he is offering a class
at Congregation B'nai Moshe to
teach adult Conservative Jews
the basics of Judaism — how to
do an aliyah, how to read He-
brew, how to keep a Jewish
home.
"There are adults who
stopped learning, had a bad
learning experience or never
learned," Rabbi Pachter said.
"We want . people to feel com-
fortable in the synagogue.
There are a number of Jews
who are not."
The class grew out of a need
found in some adult
Jews, most of whom
belong to the baby
boomer generation.
The theory is that
many adult Conserva-
tive Jews stopped their
formal education at
age 13 and now face
their Jewish illitera-
cy as they raise their
own children or at-
tempt to become more
traditional.
This relates to criti-
cism that the Hebrew
education system in
place when the
boomers prepared for
b'nai mitzvah focused
on learning by rote. Af-
ter a long day of public school,
students tuned out the lessons
and turned off to Judaism, Ms.
Abramson said.
"Sure they were turned off.
They didn't know what they were
doing in shul much less what it
meant," Ms. Abramson said.
But instead of criticizing or
dwelling on the past, Ms. Abram-
son and Rabbi Pachter are doing
something about it. Every Sun-
day from now until June 1996,
they plan to teach a class which
will address all topics of an adult
bar or bat mitzvah class as well
as other lifestyle issues.

Students in the class have
committed to spending each Sun-
day morning for the next 18
months in class. At the end, they
have the option to celebrate a bar
or bat mitzvah, but that is not the
goal of the class.
"This is for anyone who wants
to continue over time to relearn
basic Jewish knowledge," he said.
`The bar or bat mitzvah is not the
goal. The structure is similar (to
other adult bar or bat mitzvah
classes) but our course is more
meaty."

Above:
Rita
Abramson

Left:
Rabbi Elliot
Pachter

N

The commitment to attend a
weekly program has caused some
potential students to rethink the
program but it has not been a
large deterrent. So far, two dozen
individuals have signed up for the
class. Some are from B'nai
Moshe, others are from the gen-
eral Conservative community.
Some attend shul regularly, oth-
ers are non-Jews investigating
conversion.
"There is a section of the com-
munity that has somehow missed
the boat and now wants to get
back on," Rabbi Pachter said.

❑