Board Installation Service Remarks

January 29, 2016

Shabbat Shalom!

Rabbi invited me to say a few words about Temple Leadership tonight – a fitting topic at this service where we install our Board.

Temple Sinai is not unlike many other not-for-profit organizations in that we have a paid staff and volunteer governance. And, like many other organizations, we started as a community of people with a shared passion and commitment who carved out time from their lives to create, nurture, and support that community. As the community grew, it became necessary to add paid staff to be able to support the activities and environment that attracted people to be a part of that community. In a faith-based community, such as Temple Sinai, first we hired a Rabbi to serve as our spiritual leader. And, as we continued to grow, and as the community’s expectations grew, we began adding to our paid staff (often recognizing some core volunteer commitments as meriting financial compensation).

As a result, we have an amazing staff – and, for what we as a congregation expect, are able to meet those expectations with a very lean operation. However, sometimes having such an accomplished and passionate paid support staff can create the illusion that we are not in need of lay leadership. After all, we are busy – we have “day jobs” with responsibilities that often extend into the evenings and weekends and holidays – and it is easy to think of OUR role as one that supports what our staff does . . . to begin thinking of Temple Sinai as a pay-for-service organization, rather than as a spiritual community.

This is a slippery slope. If all we are is an organization providing services to its members for an annual fee, then we are no longer a spiritual community dedicated to serving, embracing and engaging our Jewishness . . . supporting the three pillars of Judaism: prayer, study, and good deeds.

I think of the four children in the Passover story and one child serves as a cautionary example, when they ask: “What does this mean to YOU?” If we become a service organization rather than a community, we begin to think of Temple Sinai as “YOU” rather than as “US”.  If we expect to be served, then we isolate ourselves from the congregation and don’t accept the responsibilities that come with being part of a community.

This is why it is so important that we have a strong and committed and active lay leadership in Temple Sinai. So that we are able to shape and direct, build and develop our community. This takes commitment and this takes time – but not so much time as commitment, as we can contribute in ways that fit for us. Serve on a committee (where the real detail work is done) and you can see the immediate impact of your efforts. Chair a committee and oversee and lead the discussion and implementation of the group’s ideas. Serve on the Board and see how it all fits together.

But this is not like volunteering just anywhere – committing your time to Temple governance reinforces your community, your faith and provides opportunities for learning and personal growth. Our Board members all participate in governance at levels that feed into the Board. They represent the Temple in the broader community as well as represent to the Board constituencies within the congregation. Each Board member sits on the Bimah a couple of times each year as a representative of the Board. They host onegs and help make our community more welcoming for visitors and new members. In short: they act as role models for an engaged congregation.

Let me close by acknowledging and thanking our wonderful staff for providing the support that enables each of us to contribute to the Temple Sinai community. And let me thank the members of the Board (please stand!) for taking on a leadership role, by giving of their time and wisdom, and leading by example so that we all have a more meaningful, deeper, more connected Jewish community at Temple Sinai.

Shabbat Shalom!