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"My daughter and grandchildren
love coming to Fox Run.
They're always asking
when they can visit."

Beth Ahm's Rabbi
For A Generation

Stacy Gittleman

I Special to the Jewish News

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—Phyllis Pazner, Fox Run resident, pictured with daughter Sher

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November 28 • 2013

relationship of mutual
love and admiration has
blossomed into a long-term
commitment.
Rabbi Steven Rubenstein and
Congregation Beth Ahm in West
Bloomfield have inked an unprecedent-
ed 10-year extension of his contract.
Rubenstein, 43, has led the
Conservative shul since 2005 and will
remain for at least another decade — a
total 18-year pulpit presence.
For the rabbi and his wife, Robin,
and their children Ari, 12, and Tali, 9,
it means remaining amongst a loving
congregational community as well as
years of stability while the kids attend
nearby Jewish day schools.
For the shul, it also means stability —
and continuation of its steady growth.
"Rabbi Rubenstein came to a con-
gregation that was hurting from a
turnover of clergy, but through his
emphasis on building personal rela-
tions he is helping to rebuild our
community:' said Beth Ahm President
Risha Ring of Bloomfield Township.
"With this long-term contract, we
wanted to make a public statement
that we and the rabbi are in it for the
long haul."
Rubenstein's warm, person-to-per-
son approach has proven contagious.
Congregants describe the rabbi as a
humble man; some refer to him as their
"glue" and "motivation:'
Since 2005, Beth Ahm has increased
its membership from 300 to 350 families.
The rabbi attributes this growth to the
member-to-member relationships he,
the board and congregation promote.
"There is some importance in
programming:' said the rabbi, "but if
churning out programs is all we are
doing, we are failing to make connec-
tions between people, God and who
we are as a Jewish people:'
Rubenstein tries to be a presence
with all age groups in the synagogue.
He leads Tot Shabbat services and
"Teen Torah Madness" discussions on
Saturday mornings. In December, he
is organizing a Butzel Center retreat in
Ortonville for baby boomers.
One program Rubenstein introduced
to Beth Ahm is the Chai Mitzvah
project. It is a yearlong commitment
that asks participants to immerse
themselves in Jewish life. In its first
year, about 25 people in the congrega-
tion participated.

A

Rabbi Steven and Robin Rubenstein
with Ari, 12, and Tali, 9

Chai Mitzvah student Jeffrey Weiss,
50, of Farmington Hills, said that
Rubenstein's authenticity motivated him
to return to active congregational life.
"Before I started the Chai Mitzvah
program, going to shul was the furthest
thing on my mind," Weiss said. "But
something just clicked for me:' Weiss
now "feels good about helping my fel-
low congregants make a minyan."

Shabbat Learning

Rubenstein also changed the Shabbat
morning agenda. Hebrew school is con-
ducted on Saturday mornings, where
children experience Shabbat and learn-
ing as a family. A full Torah reading has
replaced the shorter triennial cycle. In
addition, every few weeks, Rubenstein
holds an informal Beit Midrash study
session instead of a sermon.
The rabbi believes that he must con-
tinue to develop his rabbinical presence
outside the synagogue. He makes it
a point to reach out to congregants
with a phone call or a cup of coffee
on a daily basis. He hosts a weekly
conversation cafe at Barnes & Noble
Booksellers in West Bloomfield during
the spring and summer.
Supporting the partnership between
the New York-born rabbi and Beth Ahm
is his partnership with Robin, a Chicago
native. A big factor in making their deci-
sion to stay is the way the congregation
has embraced them and how it lovingly
watches the couple raise their two chil-
dren. They are happy to call Detroit home.
For her part, Robin sees the shul
community as her community — and
encourages others to come to shul.
"It would be great if people were
open to the possibilities coming to shul
could bring into their lives:'

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