David Stein has been a synagogue administrator for three different congregations. But if he tried to get a job at the United Synagogues of Conservative Judaism, he’d be turned down.
The quality of Stein’s work isn’t the issue. Simply put, he’s gay.
While the Conservative movement’s refusal to ordain openly gay rabbis is well-known, Berkeley’s Congregation Netivot Shalom (where Stein is executive director) has launched a petition aimed at ending a less-publicized USCJ hiring practice: even teachers and administrators must adhere to a policy stating they fully follow Conservative Jewish law including the current statement on sexual behavior.
In a petition launched late last month on Netivot’s Web site (www.netivotshalom.org) the synagogue calls upon the USCJ to end its “discriminatory” hiring practice of not considering anyone who is “openly gay or lesbian for any job where the person will function as an educator or role model, regardless of his or her professional qualifications and experience.”
The petition was the result of a compromise made by Netivot Shalom’s board following an in-house survey that found the synagogue’s membership was strongly opposed to the Conservative movement’s policy regarding homosexuals.
After many years of avoiding formal affiliation with the USCJ (largely over policies such as the one the petition seeks to change) the board voted to join this year in order to gain access to candidates to replace Kelman as well as synagogue youth programs. But the board would approve joining only if a petition were created.
“The thing that is gratifying for me personally is that when I saw the results of this survey — and like most surveys at congregations you get results from all perspectives — this was one thing that stood out so profoundly for me. They were adamantly for the rights of gays and lesbians,” said Stein.
Added Kelman, “This petition is not initiated by clergy or staff but by the people in the congregation.”
While a handful of congregations, including San Francisco’s Beth Sholom, have released resolutions calling for the ordination of openly gay and lesbian rabbis, Stein said Netivot opted to take a shot at USCJ’s broader hiring stipulations.
“We’ve talked to other congregations, we’ve tried to stir things up,” said Stein. “The USCJ knows we’re doing this.”
He’s right about that. USCJ executive vice president Rabbi Jerome M. Epstein is well aware of the petition drive and supports Netivot Shalom congregants’ right to express their opinion. But he also has some cautionary advice for the petitioners.
“Certainly the petition deals with an important issue,” says Epstein. “But without commenting on the substance, I don’t think decisions of Jewish law should be decided by popular vote.”
Though the petition deals with administrators, not clergy, Epstein sees little distinction. “If these [administrative] posts require a person to be observant of Jewish law, then it’s hard to say observance is required except for this one thing. However, it may be a moot point depending on what happens with the law committee’s decision in December.”
That’s when the USCJ’s Committee on Law and Standards meets to consider the halachic status of gays and lesbians. That meeting could prove historic if the movement’s traditional ban on ordination of gays and lesbians is overturned.
Kelman added that the petition is not a symbolic gesture but an honest attempt to change a policy that rankles 95 percent of his congregation’s membership, according to the survey.
“I think the congregation realizes and the board realizes that they have no sway over the committee on Jewish law and standards or United Synagogues,” he said.
“But they do have a voice in this organization. And they are exercising that right.”