The Culture War Continues...

LORD have MERCY!

Chancellor-elect Eisen's Letter to the Community

Jewish Theological Seminary To Ordain Gay and Lesbian Clergy
JTS to Accept Qualified Gay and Lesbian Rabbinical And Cantorial School Students
— Plans to Embark on Dialogue on Principles and Practices of Conservative Movement —
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PRESS CONTACT: Sherry S. Kirschenbaum
Office: (212) 678-8953
Mobile: (973) 650-6018 -->Email

New York, NY, March 26, 2007 — Following the completion of a thorough and deliberate review process, The Jewish Theological Seminary has decided, effective immediately, to accept qualified gay and lesbian students into its rabbinical and cantorial schools.

The decision comes three months after the Committee on Jewish Law and Standards of the Rabbinical Assembly approved a teshuva (responsum), permitting the ordination of gays and lesbians, thereby paving the way for JTS to consider the issue.

Immediately after these rulings were announced, JTS initiated a comprehensive process in which the views of a wide range of constituencies were solicited and seriously weighed, and likely consequences considered. (I myself would wonder about the dire consequences of this decision! Sodom and Gomorrah -remember what happened?!)

The process included faculty forums, student discussions with faculty and administration, meetings and/or lengthy discussions with the heads of the other Conservative Movement seminaries, consultation with the JTS Board of Trustees, and an international survey of Conservative rabbis, cantors, educators, lay leaders, and JTS students on the question. In addition, Chancellor-elect Arnold M. Eisen personally heard from hundreds of Conservative Jews on the matter during his travels around the country this year and through correspondence, email, and the JTS website.

"The immediate issue was the ordination of gay and lesbian students as rabbis and cantors for the Conservative Movement. But the larger issue has been how we can remain true to our tradition in general and to halakhah in particular while staying fully responsive to and immersed in our society and culture. How shall we learn Torah, live Torah, teach Torah in this time and place? Without these imperatives, the decision before us would have been far easier for many of those involved. That is certainly true for me," stated Chancellor-elect Eisen.

He continued, "I believe, along with the great majority of my colleagues on the JTS faculty, that the CJLS, by voting in equal numbers for two teshuvot, provided halakhic authorization for the ordination of gay and lesbian rabbinical and cantorial students. That permission having been given, I believe that the nature of our communities in contemporary America, the moral convictions we hold, and the mission of JTS, argue strongly for accepting gay and lesbian students for ordination.

"Moreover, the decision to ordain gay and lesbian clergy at JTS is in keeping with the longstanding commitment of the Jewish tradition to pluralism. That commitment has been all the more central to Conservative Judaism. Pluralism means that we recognize more than one way to be a good Conservative Jew, more than one way of walking authentically in the path of our tradition and of carrying that tradition forward. It means, too, that we respect those who disagree with us and understand that in the context of all that unites us, diversity makes us stronger."

Chancellor-elect Eisen also stated that JTS has no plans to take up the question of gay and lesbian commitment ceremonies or marriages, which are matters that rest with the CJLS and individual rabbis and congregations.

JTS also announced that in recognition of the significant implications of this decision on the nature and future of Conservative Judaism, it intends to embark on two new initiatives:
JTS will lead a dialogue - working with the Chancellor’s Rabbinic Cabinet, and through liaison with all arms of the Conservative Movement - engaging Conservative Jews about the belief and behavior that should guide JTS and the movement. These discussions - focusing on our shared dedication to mitzvah and halakhah - will be conducted over the next two years with the ultimate goal being a re-clarification of the principles of Conservative Judaism and a recommitment to its practices.

JTS will intensify contact with the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies at the University of Judaism in California, the Schechter Institute in Israel, and the Seminario Rabínico Latinoamericano in Argentina, and encourage an increased number of joint missions of lay leaders and more exchanges among the faculty and students at these institutions. JTS will also take special steps to strengthen the relationship between Canadian and American Conservative Jews.

Professor Eisen stated: "It is my hope and belief that getting Conservative Jews to talk about these matters will be a step toward greater commitment and consensus. Our communities will be strengthened by the very act of discussing our 'obligations of the heart' honestly and face to face. We will come to realize in doing so how much unites us as Conservative Jews. The sense of what binds us together will grow still more if we can arrive at consensus about the norms of belief and behavior that should guide us. I believe we can."

The full text of Chancellor-elect Eisen’s remarks can be found on the JTS website at http://www.jtsa.edu/.

The application deadline for the September 2007 incoming class has been extended until June 30, 2007, to accommodate any new applications that may be submitted as a result of this announcement. Information about applying to the rabbinical and cantorial schools is available by contacting: The Rabbinical School at (212) 678-8817 or www.jtsa.edu/rabbinical and the H.L. Miller Cantorial School at (212) 678-8036 or www.jtsa.edu/cantorial.
Editor/Reporters: For further information, or to schedule an interview with Chancellor-elect Eisen, please contact Sherry S. Kirschenbaum in the Department of Communications at (212) 678-8953, (973) 650-6018 (mobile), or email.

Founded in 1886 as a rabbinical school, The Jewish Theological Seminary today is the academic and spiritual center of Conservative Judaism worldwide, encompassing a world–class library and five schools. JTS trains tomorrow's religious, educational, academic, and lay leaders for the Jewish community and beyond.