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Laying
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Welcome
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Shaarey Zedek reaches
out to LGBTQ+
community.

BARBARA LEWIS CONTRIBUTING WRITER

C

ongregation Shaarey Zedek is making
a concerted effort to reach out to mar-
ginalized communities, starting with
those who identify as “LGBTQ+”: lesbian, gay,
bisexual, transsexual, queer and any sexual or
gender minority that doesn’t
yet have an initial.
Rabbi Aaron Starr
announced the initiative in
his May 26 Shabbat morning
sermon, followed by a letter
to the congregation.
Many listeners and read-
ers felt the rabbi was not
Rabbi Aaron Starr
breaking new ground but was
rather acknowledging and
publicizing the Southfield congregation as a
welcoming community.
LGBTQ+ people had never been shunned
at Shaarey Zedek, they “just weren’t there,”
said board member Nicole Eisenberg, 48, of
Bloomfield Hills, who was part of an “inclu-
sion committee” that recommended affirma-
tive outreach to LGBTQ+ Jews.
“No one was talking about it. Now we’re
saying, ‘Hey, we are here. We are the inclusive
congregation,’” she said.
In his May 26 sermon based on the Bible
verse in Numbers, “How goodly are your tents,
O Jacob,” Starr said the Jewish community as
a whole has neglected to welcome all people.
“We’ve done just the opposite of what we
were supposed to have been doing over these
last many years. What can we do to open our
tent wider and to whom must we work even
harder to open our tent?” he asked.
One sign of a congregation’s welcome is
clergy’s willingness to perform same-sex mar-
riages. The Reform movement recognized
the validity of same-sex unions in 1996. The
Conservative movement did so with reserva-

tions in 2006 and again more wholeheartedly
in 2012, though some rabbis use a different rit-
ual from the one traditionally used in hetero-
sexual marriage. Orthodox Judaism remains
opposed to same-sex unions.
Jeri Fishman of Southfield, current con-
gregation president, formed the inclusion
committee after she and
other Shaarey Zedek leaders
attended the biennial confer-
ence of the United Synagogue
of Conservative Judaism last
December. Participants were
challenged to practice “radi-
cal hospitality” toward those
who had traditionally been
Jeri Fishman
excluded.
“I wondered if we had
members who felt isolated and had a fear of
not being accepted if it was known they were
LGBTQ+,” said Fishman, a retired court case-
worker.
Starr acknowledged that Shaarey Zedek
has a reputation of being cold, formal, even
unfriendly but says it’s an outdated stereotype.
At Shabbat services, newcomers are warmly
welcomed, and there’s always a sit-down lunch
afterwards. “We are an open, non-judgmental
family,” he said.
Starr admitted that Shaarey Zedek’s mem-
bership has declined from a high of more than
1,800 families, mirroring a national trend in
Conservative congregations. But with 1,000
families now, he’s not worried about the num-
bers. The inclusion effort is not intended to be
a membership booster.
“Any responsible organization needs to self-
evaluate to stay current,” Fishman said.
Committee members are reaching out to
LGBTQ+ organizations and individuals to let
them know they are welcome. In his sermon,

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June 21 • 2018

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