DEPARTMENT OF MICHIGAN
JEWISH WAR VETERANS
AND LADIES AUXILIARY
INVITES THE COMMUNITY TO
both private and public, as they would
to no other man. He was a source of
strength in times of trial, a comrade
and friend in times of joy.
Rabbi Adler loomed larger than his
writings, addresses, public activities.
His character was so rich that he sug-
gested to us depths beyond the visible
aspects of his life and work. We react-
ed not only to his words, but also the
eloquence of his personality.
There was an indefinable, but
inescapable moral authority that he
exercised. You see about you, in this
great synagogue edifice, the embodi-
ment of his spirit. He dedicated him-
self to implementing the vision of a
new synagogue in Southfield in the •
beginning of the 1960s and he worked
with unflagging determination to real-
ize that dream. This very edifice is a
living monument to his life and labor.
His Special Gifts
He was striking and patriarchal,
especially with his beard. He complex-
ion was aglow with intellectual energy.
His voice was mellow and resonant.
His voice could change its timber in a
moment and resound.
He had a unique gift of bringing to
classical texts personal relevance and
a sense of immediacy. He had
absorbed his learning from his father
who was an Orthodox rabbi and from
his teachers at the seminary, City
College and from his own inquiry.
He conveyed more than information.
He had a ripe wisdom that reflected his
insight, experience and broad view.
When he was at his eloquent best, you
felt that you were part of a fellowship
through the binding force of his words.
Maybe that is what we mean when we
use the word "charisma."
It is no small tribute to Rabbi Adler
that he offered the example of a busy,
creative, dedicted rabbi who not only
did not neglect his family, but also
made them willing and cheerful col-
laborators in his career.
Goldie Adler's great charm, wit and
zest made her an important figure in
the life of the congregation by her own
unique gifts — candy and bubble
gum for the children.
Rabbi Adler was a loving father to
Naomi. Eli was as a son to him,
embraced by Morris' great affection
and respect. The rabbi found some of
the sweetest pleasures of life in the
presence of his grandchildren. His
intellectual curiosity and concern for
Judaism was caught not only by
Naomi, but also entered deeply in the
lives of his grandchildren.
Rabbi Adler was a passionate advo-
cate and spokesman for Conservative
Judaism. He was ordained at the semi-
nary and he served as a visiting
Homiletics professor in his mature
years. All the leaders of the
Conservative movement in Judaism of
his time were either his teachers, his
colleagues or his disciples.
And yet, he was critical lovingly of
certain aspects of the Conservative
movement. I quote from an address he
delivered at the United Synagogue
Convention in 1948:
"We must face the truth that we
have been halting between fear and
danger; fear of the Orthodox and dan-
ger of Reform. We have set our watch-
es by their timepieces. The time has
come for our emergence from the val-
ley of indecision. We must move for-
ward to a state in which Conservative
Judaism revolves about an axis of pos-
itive and unambiguous affirmations.
This will require a measure of bold-
ness and vision in our part which, as a
movement, I am sorry to say, we have
not thus far manifested."
He spoke of the "inertness which has
settled in vital areas of American
Jewish life. Multitudes of our people are
untouched, uninformed, uncovenanted.
They have not enough Judaism to live
it, nor enough interest to reject it."
Memories Linger
Rabbi Adler was a passionate and
dedicated man who made a difference
in the quality of life of his time. He
had his fingers on the pulse of Jewish
life. He offered to the rabbinate, to the
Jewish community, a worthy model of
temimut, or wholeness.
He fashioned a synthesis of thought
and action, of mind and heart, past
and present, of Israel and America. He
was perceptive in judgment, rich in
erudition, deeply in love with the
dynamic spirit of Judaism, reverent of
learning, scornful of vulgarity and
shame, courageous in battle for the
integrity of Judaism.
His jubilance and jolly nature and
wit matched his erudition.
We have recalled aspects of the life
and work and character of Rabbi
Morris Adler. All of these and more
offer convincing testimony that one
man in his time can bestow a gift so
great, so treasured, a gift without which
his generation and the subsequent gen-
erations would be much poorer indeed.
May we always cherish the gift and be
blessed by the memory of the giver. ❑
BROTHERHOOD NIGHT
2006
THURSDAY, MARCH 16, 2006
AT THE JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER
15110 W. 10 MILE ROAD
between Cooldige and Greenfield
OAK PARK, MICHIGAN
7:30 P.M.
There will be four exciting speakers for the evening:
Rabbi David Nelson, Congregation Beth Shalom, Oak Park
Beverly J. Leneski, Chief Voluntary Services,
Ann Arbor Veterans Medical Center
Tyrone Chatman, Associate Executive Director,
Michigan Veteran Foundation
Rev. Henry Reinwald, Four Chaplains
Following the program there will be a Dessert Reception catered
by Jewel Kosher Catering Company.
Tian you
1088460
to those who helped
bring joy to over 4,000 community members through your
participation in the Great Purim Parcel Project!
To Audrey and Bill Farber for their generous sponsorship!
and to the following groups
who brought the Great Purim
Parcel Project to their sites.. .
4 0.0.11,
Beth Achim Religious School at Mat Shalom
Synagogue, Congregation Belt Kodesh, Congregation Beth Ahm, Congregation Beth
Shalom, Congregation Shaarey Zedek, Congregation Shir Tikvah, Fleischman
Residence/Brown Pavilion, Fountains at Franklin Apartments, Friendship Circle, Jewish
Academy of Metropolitan Detroit, Jewish Community Center-Oak Park, Jewish Parent's
Institute, Pitt Child Development Center, Shalom Street... the Address for Jewish
Discovery, Temple Emanu-El, Temple Kol Ami, Temple Israel, Yeshiva Beth Yehudah
Pre-School, Yeshiva Darchei Torah, Young Israel of Oak Park
Federation's
/Alliance
Itill
tuf
1441,,t1, 1.1
This is Federation
Visit us online: www.thisisfederation.org
1080910
March 9 • 2006
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