Transcript Slide 1
PEARL: Providing Education and Resources for Leadership
A Sacred Trust: Effective Leadership Skills and
Governance that Works II
Rabbi Mordechai Liebling
Rabbi David Teutsch
March 28, 2011-12:00 p.m.-1:15 p.m.
Jewish Reconstructionist Federation
Transformative Judaism for the 21st Century
101 Greenwood Avenue
Beit Devora, Suite 430
Jenkintown, PA 19046
215.885.5601 / fax: 215.885.5603
www.jrf.org
Suggested blessing for any leadership activity
Baruch atah Adonai, Eloheynu melech ha-olam, asher kideshanu
b’mitzvotav, v’tzivanu, la’a’sok b’tzorchei tzibur.
(Developed by Rabbi Jeremy Schwartz)
Blessed are you God Creator of the Universe, Source of Holiness
in our actions, when we engage in the needs of the
community.
(Interpretative translation, Rabbi Shawn Israel Zevit)
Rabbi Kalonymus Kalman Shapira (Warsaw Ghetto),
from Conscious Community, translated by Andrea Cohen-Keiner
Our association is not organized for the purpose of attaining power or intervening
in the affairs of community or state, whether directly or indirectly. Quite the
opposite: Our goal is to gradually rise above the noise and tumult of the world by
steady, incremental steps. It is not consistent with our goals to hand out awards as
to who is advanced and who lags behind. Holiness is our key and our primary
value; honors and comparisons serve no useful purpose. It is vitally important that
we do not create, God forbid, any boundaries that separate us from Jews who are
not members of our group. The whole point of our association is to love each
other as much as possible. Each one “saves” in the way he can, but {some with
special skills} can be more effective. The techniques available to a group are
qualitatively different from what an individual can hope to attain. It is important
for us to be explicit and clear that our society accepts into its ranks only those
individuals who share these concerns. If people know in their hearts that they are
not similarly burdened with these concerns…we ask that they do not join our
group… Their presence will serve as a distraction to the rest of the group, whose
hearts and minds are sincerely focused on this work.
Congregational Systems and Leadership
The Rabbinic-Congregation Relationship: A Vision for the 21st Century
• Systems theory recognizes that what appears to be discrete and individual
is, in fact, interconnected, dynamic, and determined by a multiplicity of
factors that interact in complex ways. Nothing is static; everything is in
process. For Reconstructionists, this may sound familiar: What
contemporary organizational theorists call systems theory is similar to
what Mordecai Kaplan called the principle of “organic reciprocity.”
• A system needs to be seen within the larger system of which it is part; a
specific congregation exists within the larger pattern of congregations,
such as the Reconstructionist movement, and is influenced as well as
having influence on the larger system. Subsystems, such as a
congregational board, or the education, ritual, fund-raising or social
action committees, are all microcosms of the system as a whole and will
often duplicate its patterns (Dr. Nancy Post, Mishkan Shalom, PA)
A Vision for the 21st Century
The Rabbi-Congregational Relationship
The relationship between rabbi and congregation is ideally
understood as a sacred covenant in which the partners share
in the nurturance, guidance, planning, and programming of
the synagogue. As in any relationship, however, the best
intentions, strongest commitments and agreement on shared
values do not guarantee that the relationship will always run
smoothly. As in any relationship, differences must be
negotiated, compromises reached, and decisions made with
which each partner may not always be in full agreement.
Making a Difference
Making a Difference
Governance in Faith Community: Who Does What?
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Membership
Helps determine mission and values of the
community;
Helps to create long-range direction;
Approves major initiatives (building campaign, initial
hiring of rabbi);
May approve annual budget;
Provides input to and participates in policy
deliberations.
Governance in Faith Community: Who Does What?
Executive Committee
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The executive committee of a congregation is usually comprised of the
(co-)president(s), vice president(s), treasurer, secretary, rabbi, and
sometimes the executive director.
Manages the functioning of board and committees;
Vets proposals to the board (checks to see if proper research has been
done, that the proposals are presented in an appropriate manner, that
relevant committees have been consulted);
Sets board agenda;
Supervises committee structure;
Makes urgent and necessary decisions between board meetings.
The executive committee does not make decisions for the board, but helps
manages the inflow and outflow of information to and from the board.
Governance in Faith Community: Who Does What?
Committees
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Develop strategy to meet goals determined by board;
Plan programming/events/ meetings as appropriate;
Develop proposals for consideration by board;
Communicate with board via executive committee;
Recruit and integrate new members into leadership.
Committees in congregational life are like staff persons in other nonprofits. Once they have their mandates, they only go back to the board in
their decision-making processes when they are asking for money,
recommending a policy change, making interim reports, or seeking
additional information. A committee has relative autonomy as long as it is
following congregational policy and acting within its mandate.
Governance in Faith Community: Who Does What?
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Board
Sets yearly and long-range goals;
Sets annual budget and approves major spending initiatives;
Determines policy;
Establishes and empowers committees;
Approves rabbi’s contract;
Initiates programs and projects in keeping with community
mission and vision; and
Initiates long-range planning process.
Further Resources
• Resources On Congregational Leadership And Governance compiled by
Rabbi Shawn Zevit http://jrf.org/showres&rid=167
Reconstructionist Publications on Leadership:
• http://stores.jrfbookstore.org/-strse-61/Jewish-Communal-Leadershipand/Detail.bok , Zevit and Stutman
• http://wsupress.wayne.edu/series/A-Guide-to-Jewish-Practice-Series , DAT
• http://wsupress.wayne.edu/books/1154/Making-a-Difference , DAT
Previous PEARL programs (www.jrf.org/pearl)
• http://jrf.org/pearl/2008/boards-that-work-building-and-sustaining-aneffective-governance-structure
• http://jrf.org/pearl/2009/cultivating-new-leaders-for-your-congregation
• http://jrf.org/node/2567