GOING OUT
OF BUSINESS
Amy Rose's kitchen table. The once-a-
week school now boasts three teachers
and runs a bar mitzvah class. The con-
gregation, which has 25 paying mem-
bers and a mailing list of 100, also
owns a miniature sefer Torah and
employs a part-time rabbi, Ann
Arborite Peter Gluck, and a cantorial
soloist, Robin Liberatore, to lead
monthly kabbalat shabbat services.
Ann Arbor's Reconstructionist
Havurah, founded as an alternative to
the city's Orthodox, Conservative and
Reform congregations, has no paid
staff and, until January, had no board.
With all services lay-led and volun-
teer-coordinated, the havurah —in
keeping with Reconstructionist philos-
ophy — places a high premium on
member participation.
Unfortunately, the dependence on
an active membership can sometimes
lead to burnout problems, said the
2
other co-chair, Deb Kraus.
"A lot of people would rather have
something ready-made," she said. "But
I've found that the most exciting
moments for me spiritually have been
when I'm doing something for myself,
like leading services." Kraus, who grew
up Orthodox, said she feels most corn-
fortable now with Reconstructionism.
"I like the fact that you can ques-
tion, that you don't just do things
because they've been done in the
past," she said.
Aaron Ahuvia, who founded the
havurah with his wife, Aura, when they
moved to Ann Arbor, thinks the prob-
lem of burnout can be solved by culti-
vating new membership and grooming
new people for leadership roles.
"We had an anti-growth ideology
fOr awhile," said Ahuvia. "It was like,
we're here and if you want to find us,
cool, but we had no desire to get big.
However, we learned a lesson from
that. If you don't grow and you want
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to be active, then the same people will
do all the work. You need to decide
that's OK or find new people."
The havurah holds monthly Friday
night services and vegetarian potluck
dinners in a church basement, occa-
sional Friday night dinner discussions
in members' homes and High Holiday
services. Several months ago, it initiat-
ed monthly Saturday morning services
and acquired a full-sized sefer Torah
on loan from a suburban Chicago
Reconstructionist congregation. It
does not, however, operate a religious
school and a number of its members
also affiliate with the Conservative
Beth Israel Congregation or the
Reform Temple Beth Emeth. A few
belong to Detroit's Congregation
T'Chiyah, which co-sponsored the
March bat mitzvah.
Bet Chaverim's members, on the
other hand, do not have other nearby
A recent board
meeting of the
Ann Arbor
Reconstructionist
Havurah.
Clockwise from
center: Harry
Fried, Rebecca
Kanner, Bev
WIrshai, Deb
Kraus and
Danny
Steinmetz.
synagogues to choose from.
"This is an answer to a prayer," said
Rose, who lives in Canton Township.
"Before we started, I didn't know how
I was going to educate my children
and keep them connected to Judaism."
Both congregations hope to keep
growing. Bev Warshai would like to
see the Ann Arbor Reconstructionist
Havurah offer more frequent services
and programs, maybe eventually have
a "small school and small building."
Bet Chaverim's Miller would like to
see increased membership and eventu-
ally a building large enough for ser-
vices and religious school.
Growth or no growth, both congre-
gations have more simchas to look for-
ward to: six of David Rose's classmates
from Bet Chaverim are preparing for
their bar mitzvah ceremonies in the
coming year, and several havurah
members — including the Warshais
— have elementary school children
studying. ❑
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