Rabbi Roos Blog

"In Through the Out Door": Lessons from Led Zeppelin for Carpool Pickup and the Entire Temple.

Even before I joined MRT, I had heard complaints about the religious school pick up procedures: too dangerous, too slow, too cold, too hot, too controlling, not controlled enough.  The parents, the teachers, the principal, the clergy, and the board of trustees all knew of the problems.  And yet, no solution seemed acceptable or actionable. 

This school year, I suggested an “out of the box” solution: go in through the out door.  I have heard lots of feedback and I have been thinking about Led Zeppelin ever since. 

Led Zeppelin’s final studio album, In Through the Out Door (1979), points to many of the principles required for us to transform our synagogue so that it can best respond to operational challenges (like the parking lot) and philosophical or strategic ones (like what it means to be a temple member nowadays and in the future).

The album’s title was drawn from the band’s concerns about their own need to overcome internal challenges like damaged relationships while also responding to external pressures like the rise of punk music.  Bonham, Page, Jones, and Plant recognized that they must take these pressures seriously if they wanted to continue their stellar international success.  They had to be willing to reconsider everything, including their basic assumptions about what’s in and what’s out.  We are in a similar position, and like them, must consider whether going in through the out door makes better sense – literally in the parking lot case, or metaphorically speaking in any other realm of the temple.

The album was released with six different covers: a photograph of the same scene taken from six different angles.  Each album jacket was covered with a plain brown paper sleeve and sealed in plastic.  While the album itself was the same, you never knew which of the six covers you would get until you bought it.  Synagogue performance involves a similar degree of chance: we never know exactly how any innovation will turn out until we commit to it for a while.  But because the core mission and values inside the temple do not change regardless of new systems or procedures, we should not be overly afraid of innovation.

The hammer gods of rock also demonstrate that you can’t resist the tide forever.  Led Zeppelin had been one the highest profile bands to refuse digital download and distribution of their music.  But, Apple announced on October 23rd that they would be offering a ”digital box set” containing Led Zeppelin’s entire discography - including In Through the Out Door - exclusively through Apple’s iTunes.  The entire catalog will be available for single song download by the end of November.

In the meantime, we continue to look at our temple parking lot and wonder what system will work most efficiently for our students, families, and staff.  The details are not quick or easy to work out.  Nevertheless, I believe more than ever that in order to become the best resource for Jewish learning and living in Monmouth County, we must be open to considering everything – even the possibility of coming in through the out door.

Return of the blog

This blog started simply as a way to stay connected while I was in Jerusalem this past summer.  Readership was high.  Responses were postitive.  I had not considered an ongoing blog…

In response to popular demand, the blog will return with a slightly new format and some new features (i.e. you’ll be able to post comments onto the blog itself).  The blog returns on Tuesday, October 16th.

Don’t forget the Monmouth Reform Temple trip to Israel this summer!  See the itinerary and registration form on our temple website’s homepage.

Peace,

RJR

"I'm Leaving On a Jet Plane..."

John Denver died during Sukkot ten years ago when I lived in Jerusalem.  In his honor, a group of us sat in the Sukkah at HUC-JIR and had a big John Denver sing along.  Singing, “Leaving on a Jet Plane,” we really meant it when we said, ”…don’t know when I’ll be back again.”  This time it’s different.  We’re not singing much John Denver (no disrespect to the Rocky Mountain High) and we know the exact date we will be back again.  Wednesday, June 25, 2008, we will take off for Israel with a group from MRT.  Please consider joining us for this special opportunity to travel the land of Israel, study, worship, and connect with each other.  If you have any questions about the upcoming temple trip, any doubts, or you want to know more about the experience my family and I had during these past three weeks, just call or email and I am happy to speak with you and your family about it.

I leave you with one last lesson from my Talmud studies this past week.  The Talmud follows Rabbi Yosi’s story (see below) with this lesson:  “There are three reasons why a person should not go into an abandoned ruin: On account of suspicion, on account of a collapse, and on account of demons.”  Suspicion, according to Rashi, means people who see you going into the ruin may suspect you are going in to meet a prostitute.  Collapse needs no explanation given the recent news.  Demons refers to the possibility that something evil could be waiting for you inside.

These three points teach us something about visiting Jerusalem - the ruins of Rabbi Yosi’s visit were Jerusalem after all!  First, your entry into the place has an impact on other people.  They will interpret your actions in a way that may influence them.  If they think you are doing something illegal, they may do likewise.  If they see you supporting Israel, learning about your culture and religion, and teaching it to your children, they may do likewise.  Second, while a ruin is more likely to collapse because you have entered it, Israel is strengthened against collapse by your entry.  Finally, we know that demons aren’t real, but a projection of our own internal fears or the manifestation of myth.  In fact, Rabbi Yosi experiences the opposite of evil when enters the space.  By entering the remnants of Jerusalem, he gains direct contact with the voice of God and merits a personal visit from Elijah the Prophet.

Come to Israel with us next year.  The trip will have a great impact on others in our community, it will strengthen Israel, and it will bring you deep insights into your own relationship with your history, your people, and with God.

L’hitraot - see you soon!

How Low Can You Go?

The floor of the Judean desert is merely 15 miles outside Jerusalem but the 4,000+ foot drop in elevation brings us to another world. The new tunnel under Mt. Scopus accentuates the dramatic ecosystem change.  We enter from Hebrew University’s panoramic view of a sprawling city and emerge from the tunnel’s darkness into a bleached, moonscape unfolding as far as the eye can see.  Primitive Bedouin encampments spill through the small canyons along the descent from Jerusalem.

This is Bible country.  David fled from Saul into this wildnerness, camping around Ein Gedi and raiding with his band of men as needed.  According to the Mishnah, the priests overseeing ancient Israel’s ritual of atonement sent the scapegoat of Azazel down these cliffs. The story of Sodom and Gemorrah takes place in this setting. Elisha the prophet operates in these parts. The Gospels say that Jesus spent time down here facing temptation. The Qumran scrolls were found in the dry caves of this desert.  A thousand Jews took refuge from the Romans atop Masada in one of Herod’s palace complexes.  Jericho is here.  One can see across the water to the hilltops of Jordan and imagine the site where Moses looked out to see the promised land, knowing he would never enter it himself.

This is political country.  The road to Ramallah, headquarters of Abbas’ Palestinian Authority, is halfway down the hill from Jerusalem to the Dead Sea.  We pass through three army checkpoints on the road to Ein Bokek.  Though the walls may have tumbled down for Joshua, the city of Jericho is squarely under Palestinian control today.  Although Highway One running east from Jerusalem and Route Ninety running south all the way to Eilat are safe and controlled entirely by Israel, much of this is, technically, the West Bank until we get to Ein Gedi.

The resorts at Ein Bokek rise out of the desert like Vegas (just smaller and without all the lights).  There are several new, beautiful hotels with world class spas and well known restaurants.  These are not, typically, Americans’ destinations.  We tend to visit the sea for a day combined with a visit to Masada.  For the Israelis, these resorts are good vacation destinations and they run a full schedule of activities for kids, families, and adults only.  We swam, we floated in the sea, we covered ourselves with the mud, we played BINGO, and joined in the dance party with all Hebrew speakers.  It was like being in a twilight zone episode of a Club Med resort: the harsh gutteral “chet” and “chaf” vocalizations, lots of smoking, mixed with the natural beauty of the surroundings and the salubrious feel of the hotel’s aqua white decor.  We loved it.