The Progressive Jewish Community of East Anglia
Registered Charity No. 1053565

A Constituent of the Union of Liberal and Progressive Synagogues
Liberal Judaism -- Supporting the Leo Baeck College-Centre for Jewish Education

NEWSLETTER APRIL 2006 - LETTER FROM RABBI DANNY RICH

Liberal Judaism
The Montagu Centre
21 Maple Street, London W1T 4BE
T:  020 7580 1663
F:  020 7631 9838
E:  montagu@liberaljudaism.org
W: www.liberaljudaism.org

8 March 2004

Dear Liberal Judaism Member,

My first letter to all of Liberal Judaism’s members focused on Settling In to my new job; this, my second, considers Partnership.

Partnership is the key to understanding the relationship which the movement’s headquarters based at the Montagu Centre ought to have with its constituent parts. In any federal organisation where constituents pay into a central body it is not difficult for the parts to resent the whole and for the organisation to misunderstand its members. Liberal Judaism is no theoretical exception to that rule, and so a major task of mine is, on the one hand, to clarify what is best done where whether locally or centrally, and what is best achieved together.

Local communities clearly know their own localities and priorities best but, perhaps building upon the collective wisdom and experience of all Liberal Jewish communities, Liberal Judaism centrally may be best placed to do what each community may not be able to do on its own. This is what I term partnership and what, since I took up the role of Chief Executive full time last June, I have promoted as the role of Liberal Judaism’s movement headquarters.

I start from the premise that for Liberal Judaism to thrive locally and nationally, both constituent communities and Liberal Judaism at the Montagu Centre need to play particular roles. Liberal Judaism as a movement is little without its constituents serving as beacons of the best of Liberal Jewish principles and practices, and our constituents will be best enabled to achieve their objectives if the Montagu Centre, as the central resource of the movement, is effective and efficient in carrying out its tasks.

Let me give you some examples from communities ranging from our smallest to our largest, from our nearly newest to our oldest, geographically spread from the North to the South.

• LJS needed to extend its engagement with young adults and, in partnership with Liberal Judaism, its employment of Young Adult Worker, Anna Gerrard has led to the successful ‘ideas café’;
• Edinburgh was without rabbinic support and the intervention of Liberal Judaism led to the ‘fostering’ of Edinburgh by Rabbi Mark Solomon;
• Northwood wanted to provide activities for a growing group of younger members, and, assisted by Liberal Judaism’s Outreach Director, ‘tent’ is now established (as it has been similarly in a number of other constituents including Brighton, Kingston and Leicester);
• Nottingham was temporarily without spiritual and educational leadership but the regular visits of Liberal Judaism’s rabbinic Chief Executive and Outreach Director for nearly a year has stabilised the position;
• North London needed support with its development and Liberal Judaism resources enabled it to expand its rabbinic services and its membership base; and
• Dublin has benefited from a special arrangement with Liberal Judaism that has enabled a number of its young people to attend Kadimah Summer Camp and other youth activities

The truth is that the relationship between Liberal Judaism and its constituents can, and should, be of mutual benefit. Liberal Jewish communities and the Liberal Judaism movement thrive best when each does its function to the best of its ability but recognises that without the other its own work is made more difficult.

Only three things will prevent that partnership from thriving - lack of will, lack of vision and lack of resources. Liberal Judaism and its constituents have the first two of these in abundance and, because we do, we will with the assistance of our Council of Patrons and others, resolve to find the third.

After ‘Partnership’ the theme of the next ‘From the Chief Executive’s Desk’ will be ‘The Montagu Centre’.

May I close by wishing you well for Pesach and by reminding you that you may contact me directly on 020 7631 9835 or by e-mailing to d.rich@liberaljudaism.

Danny Rich
Chief Executive