Rabbi in the News

Posted at 8:55 PM, Sunday, October 29, 2006

http://www.ajn.com.au/news/news.asp?pgID=1912 is where you will go to read the article that appeared about me in the Australian Jewish News this last Friday. For the record, the photograph was taken by Matthew Goode, president of Beit Shalom Synagogue and dates from my interview here in Adelaide in May. I'm afraid I don't know the name of the koala who appears alongside me. I'm really pleased with how well the article turned out, because the interview was something of a grueling experience. The reporter essentially opened with the question, "So, how do you feel about being the rabbi of a dying community?"

This is the kind of thing that makes Adelaide Jews nuts--whether they're affiliated with Beit Shalom, Adelaide Hebrew Congregation, both, or even neither. An AHC member notes that all articles about Adelaide in the Australian Jewish News end with the words, "In the last census, Adelaide had a Jewish population of fewer than 900 people." I guess it's meant as our death knell.

Of course, there are corners of the United States that would be thrilled to count 900 Jews. Bobby's family mostly live in and around Bozeman, Montana, which has a Jewish community of around 150. Maybe. Here in Adelaide, we have two synagogues, a Jewish day school, and a myriad of Jewish organizations. You can find something Jewish to do nearly every week, including lectures, concerts, and an occasional art exhibit. Dying we aren't!

I certainly felt like I was part of a very vibrant community when about 40 Beit Shalom members crammed themselves into our house this afternoon for a chanukat habayit--a house dedication. In typical Beit Shalom fashion, we began the afternoon with a fair amount of food, and ended with more. Guests brought cake, chips, dips, and home-baked cookies, as well as lovely gifts, including several bottles of South Australian wine. Everyone was very impressed with how roomy our house is, but of course there still is hardly any furniture in it. If we survive the scorching heat of summer with no air conditioning and the cold of winter with no central heat, we'll plan to have another gathering next spring and see what the house looks like then!