Re: The cost of Jewish communal responsibility

[George Robinson <grcomm...>]

I have been an officer and/or trustee of my synagogue, Beth Am, the People's
Temple, in New York City over a dozen years. We do not charge for any
services except the High Holy Days and only do that because we have to
engage a cantorial soloist or cantor since we don't have one on staff. We do
not turn away anyone from those services who can't pay. And in the entire
time I have been a member of the congregation I have never seen anyone
discouraged from membership for lack of the wherewithal; indeed, for nearly
a decade we had a homeless man who was a member who paid no dues at all.

I have also never heard of a congregation that charged for services other
than the HHD's.

But the result of all that largesse -- and as President I pushed hard for
such measures, as did all my successors -- is that we ended up broke and are
consolidating with another congregation whose debts are actually greater
than ours. (But they own their own building, free and clear while we paid
rent, a small but significant difference.)

If you are a newcomer to New York City, you have noticed that the cost of
living is pretty high in this town. That goes for synagogues, too.

I am anything but unsympathetic to your plight and your concerns. I wish
that the UAHC were able to do more to help its small congregations, but it
can't and it doesn't.

George Robinson

Cry later, but for now let's enjoy the laughter.

 --Tupac Shakur, "God Bless the Dead"
----- Original Message -----
From: "Sam Weiss" <SamWeiss (at) bellatlantic(dot)net>
To: "World music from a Jewish slant" <jewish-music (at) shamash(dot)org>
Sent: Tuesday, September 09, 2003 10:05 PM
Subject: The cost of Jewish communal responsibility


> At 05:42 PM 9/9/03, Jeremy A Schiffer wrote:
> >Organized Judaism, in many places, seems entirely preoccupied
> >with extracting large sums of money from people.
>
> While I empathize with your plight, since I earn my livelihood from
> Organized Judaism it behooves me to address this oft-heard complaint in a
> general way, without meaning to cast any aspersions on Mr. Schiffer .
>
> >Now, I'm living in New York, and with my girlfriend, attempting to find a
> >place where we can worship this year and hopefully beyond.
>
> If more of the people who eventually decide to partake of Organized
Judaism
> in their middle-adult years instead made it a habit to affiliate and
> support their Jewish community on a more consistent basis, the economics
of
> affiliation would be vastly different.
>
> >Are working people, the middle class, not considered 'holy' or
> >'Jewish' because we're not willing to take on the financial burden
> >necessary to join the religious 'mainstream'?
>
> No one is evaluating anyone's holiness in such a situation, but the term
> "freeloader" is very often -- though certainly not always -- appropriate.
>
> >Is it wrong for us to believe that the organized Jewish community should
> >be opening its arms to people wishing to join, rather than first handing
> >people an itemized bill as a precondition to entry?
>
> It is the rare synagogue that does not make accommodations for financial
> hardship situations when those wishing to join present their case
> appropriately.  But it is also the rare synagogue administration
> irresponsible enough to make believe that an institution's budget can be
> balance on good will alone.  If one honestly feels that he cannot afford
> something which he wants and values, there should be no shame attached to
> asking for financial leniency in an honest and forthright way, instead of
> wishing -- as in a fairy tale -- that things could be free, that synagogue
> utilities and salaries and facility maintenance and capital improvements
> and communal charity needs etc. etc. would be magically paid for
> by.....  By whom?  By the local Catholic diocese?
>
> >I have never heard of a Christian church turning away worshippers, even
on
> >Christmas or Easter
>
> Because responsible community-minded Christians -- even those who only
> attend services on Christmas -- know the value of supporting THEIR church,
> THEIR pastor, THEIR soup kitchen =all year round, and all of their
> life=.  This is a fact of life which many otherwise culturally savvy Jews
> have trouble understanding.  And because of this vast support, Christian
> denominations can pool the resources of their "franchises" and have the
> money to support local churches in economically deprived locations,
whereas
> among synagogues it's every congregation on their own.  Which is why...
>
> >... it is standard practice in synagogues to require
> >expensive tickets for admission to services
>
> _____________________________________________________________
> Cantor Sam Weiss === Jewish Community Center of Paramus, NJ
>
>
>
>


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