jews d

in
the

Gifted
Teacher

Join us to hear

Martin Belkin, DO

speak on the topic of

Coping With a
Loved One’s MS
Diagnosis

Don’t miss this
opportunity to learn
more about MS and
connect with others in
the MS community.

2/16/17 at 6:00 PM

Prime 29 Steakhouse
6545 Orchard Lake Road
West Bloomfield, MI 48322

This event is accessible
to people with disabilities.
A light meal will be provided.

Please RSVP
for you
and a guest
by calling

1-866-682-7491

2154820

18

February 9 • 2017

jn

B’nai Israel will honor its
newly ordained rabbi,
Mitch Parker.

STACY GITTLEMAN
CONTRIBUTING WRITER

B

’nai Israel Synagogue will
officially welcome its newly
ordained Rabbi Mitch Parker
with a tribute dinner at 5:30 p.m.
Sunday, Feb. 26, at the synagogue,
5085 Walnut Lake Road, West
Bloomfield.
For the 67-year-old psychologist,
who has been a member of the shul
since moving to Detroit in 2000, earn-
ing a rabbinical degree is the culmi-
nation of a life dedicated to Jewish
education for children, those with
special needs and adults.
Parker was ordained online
through New York’s Mesifta of Adath
Wolkowisk rabbinical academy.
Unlike the traditional rabbinical
seminaries, the program is designed
for mature adults in mid-career or
second careers who have already
demonstrated advanced experience
in Jewish education. The length
and breadth of the course of study
depends on the student’s knowledge
and experience.
To complete his rabbinic studies,
Parker did coursework in Hebrew,
rabbinics, Tanach and Jewish phi-
losophy, and he also studied weekly
with Rabbi Shneur Silberberg at the
Bais Chabad Torah Center in West
Bloomfield.
BI rents space within Temple Kol
Ami, which also this summer wel-
comed the arrival of Rabbi Brent
Gutmann.
“B’nai Israel’s presence in our build-
ing only makes us stronger and, as a
newcomer, I look forward to much
collaboration with Rabbi Parker and
his congregants,” Gutmann said.
Parker is a native Canadian with a
decades-long career specializing in
working with children with learning
issues in hospital, school and private

office settings. Over 20 years ago, he
was the founding director of Camp
Ramah’s Tikvah program, a full sleep-
away Jewish camping experience for
children and young adults with learn-
ing disabilities. In 2000, he moved
to Detroit with his wife, Cheryl, and
their two children to become special
needs director at Hillel Day School in
Farmington Hills.
In 2008, he became principal
and clinical director of Zareinu
Educational Center, a Jewish day
school in Toronto for children with
developmental and physical disabili-
ties.
“In that job, I truly had the best
of both worlds and was doing what
I had set out to do way back when I
was in university — I was saving the
world one child at a time through
Jewish education,” Parker said. “But
I was spending much of my week in
Toronto, and I missed my wife back
in Detroit.”
BI president Frank Elias described
Parker’s depth of Jewish knowledge as
“encyclopedic.”
“Earning his rabbinical degree was
a natural next step for Mitch,” Elias
said. “We are delighted and very for-
tunate to have him as our rabbi. “
Parker’s easy-going manner and
personal style shine through as he
often tells stories based on midrash
and guides text-based discussions in
lieu of traditional Shabbat morning
sermons.
He especially likes the psychologi-
cal dynamics that run through the
characters of Genesis.
“Because we study them at various
ages in their life, Jacob and Joseph are
the most complex biblical characters
to me,” Parker said. “Like we do in our
contemporary lives, they have numer-

ous relationships and experiences,
and deal with crises. There is much
to learn from them.”

DUAL ROLES
Parker will split his “retirement”
between his private practice as a
child psychologist and serving his
congregation, just as he has since
August. To him, psychology and the
rabbinate are a natural blend. In any
setting, even though he carries the
titles of doctor and rabbi, he still pre-
fers to be on a first-name basis with
students, patients and congregants.
“As a psychologist, I only throw
around the title of doctor when it is
urgent to get a hold of someone over
the phone,” Parker said. “People still
call me Mitch, and that is just fine.”
In today’s contemporary world
where American Jews are pulled in
many different directions, attracting
an active base of synagogue members
is challenging, he said. According to
Parker, congregational success relies
not on purely looking toward growth,
but also on keeping current member-
ship happy.
“There needs to be personal con-
nections with one another, and that
makes congregants feel both spiritu-
ally and socially satisfied,” Parker
said. “The happier and content con-
gregants feel about their synagogue,
the more likely they will say good
things about the place and thus bring
in others to be part of the commu-
nity.” •

The cost of the Feb. 26 tribute dinner is $118
per person. The synagogue is also accepting ad
journal entries. Proceeds will benefit programs
at the synagogue. For more information, call
(248) 432-2729.

