(![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
debka_notion Oct. 14th, 2007 10:19 am)
debka_notion Oct. 14th, 2007 10:19 am)I think my subject line reads like a paper title, but oh well. I was just reading a blog post somewhere about how bar and bat mitzvah celebrations tend to take over the entire service so that the community does not want to come, so they do not come so they family takes over more, so the community comes let, etc etc- into your standard vicious cycle.
Similarly, at shabbos lunch we were discussing the senior sermon at JTS- which tends to take on a similar atmosphere, complete with charge to the student, family who has no clue about the service sitting around waiting for the sermon, but getting as many honors as we can squeeze out for them, etc. (This week there were two senior sermons, one at night and one in the morning. At the one in the morning, there really was that atmosphere, complete with relatives using a shawl that wasn't a tallit as a tallit and thinking that it was one, etc. Amusingly, this was the grandson of friends of my maternal grandmother, and his grandparents were sitting in front of me and recognized me- they invited me back to the celebratory luncheon, but as I had plans already, I had a good reason not to go. Otherwise- I can only imagine that that would be Quite awkward.)
Last year, our new dean talked about trying to make the senior sermons less like a second bar/bat mitzvah, and to give other options that would be more meaningful. Apparently a lot of people like that sort of atmosphere though, according to the stuff I'm being told about current discussions on the issue. And it's very flattering, I'm sure. But it seems a little bit odd- that model of bar/bat mitzvah celebration doesn't prepare a child particularly well to be a responsible and involved Jewish adult. So why are we modelling an experience that is supposed to be the culmination of certain aspects of one's rabbinical training after a not-particularly-successful model? Or are we saying that a variety of preparation that is less than ideal for being a responsible Jew is actually ideal for being a responsible rabbi? Possible- but somehow, it still seems problematic to me.
It's possible that it is just me, as an active member of the JTS minyan of a reaosnably regular basis, kvetching because senior sermons often change the atmosphere completely- occasionally for the better, but generally for the worse. These weren't so bad- actually, the one in the evening was in the midst of some of the best Friday night davening that I've had in quite a while. But especially when I show up and all of a sudden the room is full of people who have never been at JTS before and never will again and don't know how to daven nor seem to want to pray- I resent it, because by that point it is generally also too rude to pick up and go elsewhere. It becomes a question of the minyan's priorities- community or senior sermon shtick. And there Ought to be some way to combine them better. Certainly we should celebrate the accomplishment of our graduating students- but maybe something a little more integrated would work better?
Similarly, at shabbos lunch we were discussing the senior sermon at JTS- which tends to take on a similar atmosphere, complete with charge to the student, family who has no clue about the service sitting around waiting for the sermon, but getting as many honors as we can squeeze out for them, etc. (This week there were two senior sermons, one at night and one in the morning. At the one in the morning, there really was that atmosphere, complete with relatives using a shawl that wasn't a tallit as a tallit and thinking that it was one, etc. Amusingly, this was the grandson of friends of my maternal grandmother, and his grandparents were sitting in front of me and recognized me- they invited me back to the celebratory luncheon, but as I had plans already, I had a good reason not to go. Otherwise- I can only imagine that that would be Quite awkward.)
Last year, our new dean talked about trying to make the senior sermons less like a second bar/bat mitzvah, and to give other options that would be more meaningful. Apparently a lot of people like that sort of atmosphere though, according to the stuff I'm being told about current discussions on the issue. And it's very flattering, I'm sure. But it seems a little bit odd- that model of bar/bat mitzvah celebration doesn't prepare a child particularly well to be a responsible and involved Jewish adult. So why are we modelling an experience that is supposed to be the culmination of certain aspects of one's rabbinical training after a not-particularly-successful model? Or are we saying that a variety of preparation that is less than ideal for being a responsible Jew is actually ideal for being a responsible rabbi? Possible- but somehow, it still seems problematic to me.
It's possible that it is just me, as an active member of the JTS minyan of a reaosnably regular basis, kvetching because senior sermons often change the atmosphere completely- occasionally for the better, but generally for the worse. These weren't so bad- actually, the one in the evening was in the midst of some of the best Friday night davening that I've had in quite a while. But especially when I show up and all of a sudden the room is full of people who have never been at JTS before and never will again and don't know how to daven nor seem to want to pray- I resent it, because by that point it is generally also too rude to pick up and go elsewhere. It becomes a question of the minyan's priorities- community or senior sermon shtick. And there Ought to be some way to combine them better. Certainly we should celebrate the accomplishment of our graduating students- but maybe something a little more integrated would work better?
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
From:
no subject
The biggest change I can imagine is not having so many guests at them. I have heard of how senior sermons at JTS used not to be such a huge deal; however, I am not positive currently that people would be keen on diminishing the familial and social excitement of their senior sermon.
Just out of curiosity - and perhaps I could suggest some of your ideas to other WLSS Gabbais - do you have any particular recommendations for how to integrate future senior sermons with the general rhythm of the WLSS community?
From:
no subject
I think having layners who aren't associated with the senior sermon (as we had this week) is a good move- although I think that they should be warned of the senior sermon in advance (as I was not), and that maybe taking some focus away from the celebratory lunch that almost everyone has and putting some on a nice kiddush for the whole community might help too. And maybe limiting the congratulatory speech/charge to one person would help too.
From:
no subject
I'd just take that out entirely. If they want to do that, they could do that at the private lunch.
When a rabbi speaks in shul, no one gets up to congratulate him. When someone else speaks in shul, they may get a single sentence thanking them for speaking - and a congratulation or acknowledgement if it is their first time (also, one sentence). Maybe that would help - treating it like a normal sermon until after shul is over.
(it also has the side-benefit of shortening davening, a useful idea, especially when it is a long parsha and also rosh chodesh, as it was this week)
From:
no subject
From:
no subject
From:
no subject
From:
no subject
Because they don't think it's an unsuccessful model. It shows us something very important about the kinds of rabbis they want to be - namely, they expect to be ones whose shuls manufacture that kind of bar mitzvah and call it Judaism. Such a ghastly ceremony culminating their rabbinical training is absolutely in keeping with what they're launching into.