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Leadership Change For Russia

tralized government as an antidote to Russia's
current political and economic woes. Indeed,
in Russia, the line between strong government
and despotism can be blurry
While we urge the Clinton administration
to support Putin as he puts his stamp on the
Russian government, we also urge President
Clinton to keep pressing the new leader to
hold firm in his commitment to a genuinely
democratic and pluralistic state. U.S. efforts to
stop Russian technology transfers to renegade
nations, such-as Iran, must intensify as Putin
seeks to revive Russia's role as a world power.
And American Jewish groups should increase
their efforts to help Russian Jews build the
institutions that, over time, can shove anti-
semitism to the margins of Russian life.
We recall in Boris Yeltsin a -flawed leader —
blustery, erratic and _far too willing to turn a
blind eye to corruption. Russia is paying a
steep price for those failings today. Still, the
free world owes him its gratitude. Who can
forget the dramatic image of Yeltsin, astride a
tank, leading the democratic opposition
against a 1991 military coup? Despite enor-
mous pressures, he kept steering in the direc-
tion of freedom and democracy.
In a land that went directly from the
despotism of the czars to the suffocating
tyranny of communism, that is no small
achievement. ❑

A

n era has passed in Russia, where the
fate of the nation — including more
than 1 million Jewish citizens — still
hangs on the country's fitful experi-
ment with democracy that started almost a
decade ago with the demise of the Soviet
Union.
On the eve of the new year, Russian Presi-
dent Boris Yeltsin, who personified both the
quantum shift from communism and the
wrenching difficulties of creating real democra-
cy from autocratic fabric, stepped aside, giving
power to his latest prime minister, Vladimir
Putin. That makes Putin, a former intelligence
officer and a relative unknown before his eleva-
tion to the prime minister's post in August, the
odds-on favorite to win a full term in the
March presidential election.
Putin has made promising noises about the
importance of tolerance in this land where big-
otry and antisemitism are never far from the
surface. But for Russian Jews, what matters is
what he does. Will Putin directly challenge the
communists and ultra-nationalists, reviving the
peculiarly Russian brand of political anti-
semitism that has marred the country's past?
We are hopefid,_but the answers are far from
clear.
Will Putin continue Russia's uneven march
toward democracy? He already has spoken
alarmingly about the need for a stronger cen-

Reinvigorating Reform Worship

A

ctivists in the Reform movement,
including some from Detroit, are
returned from Florida evidently
energized by their four-day biennial
conference.
They are part of a movement undergoing a
profound and historic transition, one. driven by
the vision of its leadership as well as a hunger
for change from the grassroots.
The trend is clearly toward incorporating
more tradition. That was signaled most recent-
ly by the new statement of principles adopted
by the movement's rabbis last May.
"What has changed? Reform Jews are redis-
covering the power and the purpose of prayer,"
said Rabbi Eric Yoffie, president of the Union
of American Hebrew Congregations, at his
December keynote Shabbat address in Orlan-
do, where he proclaimed a new Reform revolu-
tion. "We sense that our Judaism has been a
bit too cold and domesticated," he continued.
"We yearn to sing to God and let our souls fly
free ... To live without prayer is to live without
God."
Rabbi Yoffie is calling on Reform syna-
gogues to answer this yearning with more
inspired prayer and revitalized worship. In his

vision, the congregation's voice, its music and
singing, should be the centerpiece of a service,
creating the kind of vibrancy that will be a
particular draw for the young.
"Young children and young families must
be part of our revolution," he says. "The chil-
dren ... help us breathe new life into our
prayer."
Ritual committees, for Rabbi Yoffie, are the
"key venues" for re-examining a congregation's
worship agenda and, as such, should be
steeped in study.
Not all are sanguine about the trends. As
Rabbi Yoffie states, Jews are "never more recal-
citrant than when dealing with issues of
prayer." Many older Reform Jews, those who
have subscribed to so-called classical Reform
worship — the least traditional — will doubt-
less be alienated by Rabbi Yoffie's call. Others,
who crave more tradition and spirituality, will
walk away from Reform if change is not imple-
mented.
For our part, we salute Rabbi Yoffie for his
vision and for his courage to call on people to
change, to reinvigorate their Judaism. We
believe his passion, dedication and faith can
inspire all of us to examine our own worship
and inject it with more meaning. ❑

IN FOCUS

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Winter Wand

Brush in hand, Emily Lisner, 7, of Farmington Hills paints a
diorama during last week's winter camp at the Jewish Commu-
nity Center in West Bloomfield.

LETTERS

Near-Tragedy
Teaches Lesson

We are writing in regard to
the article ("Quick Think-
ing," Dec. 31) on the Friend-
ship Circle volunteers who
survived the carbon monoxide
poisoning.
As both of our daughters
were involved in this incident,
we are very thankful to Hashem
that all of the girls survived
what could have been a deadly
tragedy. We are also very thank-
ful for the quick thinking of
the counselors in getting all the
girls up and out of the house.
The EMS workers and Beau-
mont Hospital staff handled
this crisis beautifully.
It is our sincere hope that
something good comes out of
what, for us, has been a trau-
matic experience. We hope
that everyone will buy carbon
monoxide detectors for their
homes and prevent any sense-
less deaths.
Tom and Sheyna Wexelberg-
Clouser

Oak Park

Rabbi's Papers
Going Home

Sidney Bolkosky's recogni-
tion of Rabbi Leo M.
Franklin's contribution to
the Jewish community
throughout the first half of
the 20th century is notewor-
thy ("A Century of Jewish
Detroit," Dec. 31).
I was reminded of impor-
tant papers and correspon-
dence between world digni-
taries and my grandfather
during the 1920s through
1940s. The family has
retained these until now.
They include extensive doc-
umentation of the Father
Charles Coughlin years. Mr.
Bolkosky's recap of the era
persuades me that there are
historians and researchers
who may want to learn
more. They. will be able to
do soon, after the materials
go "home" to the Rabbi Leo
M. Franklin Archives at
Temple Beth El.
Mary Shapero

Detroit

1/7
2000

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