I magine

(-)

rifts, congregations turn to the
expertise of outside organiza-
tional consulting groups. In the
case of Temple Beth El, Speed
Leas of the Alban Institute was
brought in to aid the troubled re-
lationship between the board and
the rabbi.
But 18 months into the con-
sultation, some board members
felt the financial situation of the
temple and the loss of member-
ship had to be remedied. A meet-
ing was called, at which the board
voted to place Rabbi Polish on
sabbatical June 30.
The three largest branches of
Judaism also offer counseling ser-
vices to the boards and the rab-
bis of member congregations.
Rabbi Sam Joseph, a professor
of Jewish religious education
at Hebrew Union College, is
one of those who deals with
the congregational rifts in the Re-
form movement. He has worked
with hundreds of congregations
and has seen the corporate men-
tality become ever more perva-
sive.
One piece of corporate life that
has crept into the synagogues and
temples is an evaluation process
that targets a rabbi's perfor-
mance.
"If you move into formal eval-
uation systems, it will remind
people on the board of trustees
how they are evaluated in their
own jobs. Then the rabbi is put
on more of a corporate track,"
Rabbi Joseph said. That is a dou-
ble-edged sword. If you start to
use the symbols of business, you
will be treated as a business and
CEOs are fired."
To keep the board away from
cutthroat tactics seen in the sec-
ular corporate world, he helps the
board interject Jewish ideals into
their decision-making process
while keeping the fiscal man-
agerial areas in mind.
"We find out what makes a
board Jewish and how they ap-
ply Jewish values in the way they
operate," Rabbi Joseph said. "But
that doesn't mean that there
shouldn't be fiscal responsiblity.
I don't think that that is a dirty
word, but that is only part of
what is involved."
Locally, the Jewish Federation
of Metropolitan Detroit is work-
ing with synagogues and temples
on fund-raising and board-rabbi
relations issues.
Two workshops — one on
starting and maintaining en-
dowment funds and the other on
grooming future congregational
leaders — have attracted 13 con-
gregations from the Detroit area
representing all of the move-
ments.
"There is a recognition that
there are mutual benefits that are
derived in keeping the Jewish
community strong," said James
Jonas, a co-chair of the Federa-
tion/Synagogue Task Force. "We
are attempting to help syna-
gogues in any way we can." El

Your Child's
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1.1

Detroit Country Day School

OPEN HOUSE

Come explore the wonders of our
school community and discover the
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through a dynamic program of
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athletics.

We invite you and your child to
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LOWER SCHOOL (Grades Pre-K-2)
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For more information,
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