What Synagogues Can Learn From "Breaking Bad"

What will you be doing tonight at 9:00? If you're like me and 6 million other people, you'll be watching the final episode of Breaking Bad. And if you're like me and 4.8 million other people, you didn't watch the first season when it began; maybe not the second or third, either. You caught up later during a few weeks of "binge watching."

As the New York Times noted yesterday, Breaking Bad's audience grew over time because of word of mouth and its availability through Netflix:

"Breaking Bad" made its debut in 2008 to an underwhelming 1.2 million viewers - which would have caused many programming chiefs to drop it. But the show dodged cancellation and slowly built a following - especially once the old episodes were made available en masse on Netflix. 

Just using my own tv viewing habits as an example, similar cases can be made for The Wire, Boardwalk Empire, Rome, Downton Abbey, House of Cards, The Newsroom, Copper, and DaVinci's Demons. You can make your own list, or take this advice from Newsday if you haven't started this new habit.

It's a habit that is here to stay. Advice about what's good to watch comes from people who we view as reliable sources - our friends, family, coworkers, hair stylists - anybody, really, but the networks themselves. Amazon started us on the habit when they published reviews of books by readers, and then told us what other readers like us were also reading. We now buy music, clothing, shoes and housewares, eat in restaurants and stay in hotels AFTER we check the ratings from other people. Our computers and smart devices allow us to find what we want when we're ready.

I think this habit has implications in our kehillot, (communities). Clergy and lay leaders have tried for years to entice members to come into their synagogue buildings with programming. Volunteers have been burned out, budgets have been blown, new ideas have come and gone. Synagogue leaders complain of low engagement in programs, and yet continue to look for new ideas for programs. In part, it's because they ask their members what will get them more involved, and the answer they often get is, "New programs." Or, "More programs."

For this reason, I am watching data coming in from members of the 10 kehillot in United Syagogue's new Sulam for Strategic Planners program. Strategic planning teams are using our template and collection mechanism for congregational surveys to guide their planning.

We will share a summary of the aggregate data once participating synagogues have reviewed it, but here are the results from one question that has to do with programming.

Out of nearly 2,000 respondents, 593 people filled in the blank for the following question:

If our congregation would offer _____, I would attend and ask a friend to join me. 

A text analysis showed that the most frequently used words in their essay answers were adult, Jewish, social, Hebrew, services, programs, night, and classes. The most frequent phrases were Friday night, adult education, education programs, cooking classes, learning opportunities, Hebrew classes, social programs and more family.

There is nothing new in those answers.

I mentioned in a previous post that I look for the story where data points, rather than at the data itself, so I searched for other patterns. Hidden in the phrases of all of the respondents were feelings, not program ideas. Words like inspiring, ruach, exciting, convenient, illuminating, interesting, spiritual, enlightening, meaningful, dynamic, powerful, uplifting.

So, what can Breaking Bad teach synagogues? Its breathless fan base illustrates what is behind building an audience today. Think back to when you first heard the premise of the show: A high school science teacher dying of cancer decides to make money by getting into the methamphetamine business. If you ignored it, or found it a little repulsive, so did I...until my cool friends, and my most upright, straight-laced family members, told me I would feel like I got on a roller coaster and wouldn't want to get off. They didn't tell me what the story was about; they told me how I would feel. Against my own quantitative data about my preferences, (the amount of historical fiction listed in paragraph three of this post is no coincidence), I followed their advice. One Breaking Bad episode, and I was hooked faster than a...well, you fill in the blank with the clever meth addict metaphor.

People respond to word of mouth testimonials when they're about feelings, not content.

Advice to kehilla leaders: Planning any new successful program or initiative will require paying less attention to what the program planner thinks is good content, and more to how the program will transform people. It begins with assuring that new ideas are based on values, mission, and impact. If participation isn't a home run at first, before declaring it a failure, check to see if you have a few raving fans. Then help them bring in others. Synagogues might not have Netflix or On Demand where people can catch up or get on board, but we have You Tube, live streaming, Facebook, polls, newsletters, listserves, personal conversations, tutoring, Shabbat dinner, and services every week (or every day!). Find ways for a small community to build a larger community.

This week, we will publicly announce the recipients of the Centennial Solomon Schechter Awards. We'll honor the winning kehillot on Monday, October 14, at our Centennial Celebration. Their programs are excellent examples of planning that began with a holistic vision of transforming hearts and minds. Some were an instant success; others built their audience and impact over time. The best of the programs adapted and changed according to what they learned from the community. Watch for the announcement and descriptions as we highlight them on our website, in webinars, and at conferences throughout the year.

In the meantime, you'll find me at 9:00 tonight with my popcorn and beer in front of my tv. Because I'm a multi-tasking nerd who loves to find community among strangers, I'll also be enjoying the interactive surveys and quizzes on the Breaking Bad StorySync on my laptop.

And I'm open to suggestions for the next tv series to add to my binge watching queue.

What Has Changed in 100 Years?

The year: 1914.

From The American Hebrew newspaper, commenting on the second annual meeting of the new organization, The United Synagogue of America:

The United Synagogue is still in an embryonic state. This was proved by the many reports rendered during the all day session. The first year of activity showed no practical results, for no real work of any kind was indulged in. It was a twelve month period of experimentation. Each committee (there were six) conducted several investigations and at the meeting the chairman spoke of these investigations. Furthermore, each committee suggested plans of active work to be engaged in by the newly-appointed committee during the coming year.

I found this quote within a document, A History of The United Synagogue of America 1913-1963, written by Abraham J. Karp on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of United Synagogue. It's a commemorative piece, intended to show the growth of the organization. Knowing what I do about startups and organizational change, I'm not surprised that the second year progress report on the founding of United Synagogue seemed like an account of maddening committee wheel-spinning. As the founder of United Synagogue, Solomon Schechter's idea of a "big tent," according to Michael Cohen, meant balancing "inclusivity with boundaries." Where do you put the pegs of that tent? Some would argue that we're still working on it.

In addition to the history lesson, I'm fascinated by the challenges traced by Karp in the first 50 years of United Synagogue's history. Here are some examples:

1914: There were 24 congregations affiliated with United Synagogue. Their religious school students numbered 2385 boys and 2096 girls. At the United Synagogue annual meeting, Solomon Schechter commented on the report of the Education Committee, given by Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan:

The congregations have to maintain a double system of schooling in order to meet the wishes of the two classes of members that are usually to be found in every congregation, namely, those whose slogan is "more Judaism," and those who ask for "less Judaism."

 Excerpt from a Report on the 1922 Convention, by H.B. Bernstein:

...One would gather from what was said that unless we begin immediately to interpret our sacred literature in the light of modern thought we shall not be able to hold our college students against the free sciences they learn. This statement was repeated so often as to give the impression that there was no critical work being done today. This was not the case, was the reply.

 The Herald of the United Synagogue Recorder, May 1, 1925:

In addition, several new important activities are being inaugurated...Of considerable value is the Teachers' Registry which has been established. The hundreds of communities, large and small, that need teachers or principals, are finding their task made much easier through this Teachers' Registry.

The keynote of the Sixteenth Annual Convention held in Chicago in April, 1928, was "Reunite Synagogue and Life," and President S. Herbert Golden talked about lay leaders:

Our laity should be so brought up as to be ever prepared when the call of service comes to answer "hineni." By drafting the baale batim into the administrative tasks of the organization, we can leave the rabbis free to devote themselves to the religious and educational phases of our program. 

The biennial convention in Chicago from May 13-17, 1948, according to Karp, focused on Palestine, Europe and America.

On May 15th, the very day when the State of Israel was proclaimed, the session was devoted to "The Jewish State-Promise and Challenge."

And the theme of the 1953 convention was "Building Synagogue Leadership."

A National Survey On Leadership disclosed a vast gap between the actual and desired. The sessions were devoted to the bridging of this gap.

Education, Youth and Young Adults, Membership, Volunteerism, Israel, Leadership. We're still tackling issues of kehilla - sacred community - described since the earliest days of the 20th Century, even though the dynamics of what we're addressing and how we're going about it have shifted.

The 21st Century updates to these challenges will take place at United Synagogue's 100th anniversary celebration, October 11-15, in Baltimore. There are about 130 sessions and workshops. Here are some of them. I'll leave it up to you to recognize how our focus and direction have changed since that second annual meeting in 1914. And to be part of the next century's conversation.

Education

• Rabbi Jim Rogozen, United Synagogue's chief learning officer, will convene, The Future of Congregational Education, with Jonathan Woocher, David Bryfman, and Nancy Parkes
• Congregational Education for the 21st Century: Religious School in the Clouds, led by Wendy Light and Dr. Richard Solomon
• Terry Kaye will lead, From Vision to Nitty Gritty: Putting Educational Technology into Practice 
• Ensuring the Jewish Future: The Case for Day Schools, with Dr. Elaine Cohen, Rabbi Moshe Schwartz, and Bill Zarch
• Maximizing the School as an Asset of the Congregation, with Sue Wyner

Youth, College Outreach and Young Adult Engagement

• A Memo from Your Future, with Rabbi Dave Levy, Michael Sacks, and USYers
• Making the "Next Generation" the "Now Generation," In Order to Ensure a "Future Generation," with Yossi Garr, Teri McGuire, Rabbi Ita Paskind, and Rabbi Joel Seltzer 
• From Campus to Kehilla: What Synagogues Can Learn from College Communities (And Vice Versa), led by Seffi Kogan
• 50 Shades of Growth: Engaging the Hearts and Souls of 20s & 30s, led by Rabbi Jeremy Fine and Rabbi Aaron Weininger

Membership

• Tefilla as a Vehicle for Engagement and Building Community, with Rabbi Lizzi Heydemann
• Inside Outside: Renewing Jewish Outreach, a panel discussion with Debbie Albert, Rabbi Daniel Burg, Rabbi Adam Greenwald, convened by Rabbi Michael Siegel
• Reaching Out to Interfaith Families, with Rabbis Elliot Cosgrove, Ed Feinstein, Deborah Wechsler, and Michael Siegel
• Technology and Engaging Families: It's not about getting them in the door anymore, with Jill Allenberg Stepak and aliza Sperling 
• Where is Your Place in Our Story? Storytelling as a Tool for Welcoming, with Jennifer Rudick Zunikoff
• Intermarriage and the Conservative Movement: Responding to the Challenge of Demographics, led by Rabbi Charles Simon and Steve Lachter

 Volunteerism and Leadership

• Volunteer Recognition: An Easy Resource Tool for Kehillot, led by Linda Sussman, USCJ kehilla relationship manager 
• V'Asu Li Mikdash: Build for Me a Sanctuary - Creating and Recreating the Kehilla of Today and Tomorrow, with Rabbi Hayim Herring and Rabbi Sid Schwartz, moderated by Rabbi Michael Siegel
• Creating an Effective Board, with Susan Kasper and Robert Leventhal
• Sacred Community and Fiscal Responsibility, with Fred Passman and Barry Mael

Israel

• Next Year in Jerusalem: Fact, Fiction, Fantasy or Farce? with Dr. David Breakstone, Rabbi Amy Eilberg, Yizhar Hess, Arie Katz, moderated by Rabbi Stuart Weinblatt
• 65 Years of Israeli Popular Music in 60 minutes, with Cantor David Lipp
• Why You're A Better Israel Educator Than You Think You Are, with Rabbi Josh Fiegelson and Aliza Goodman
• Maalot: Innovative Programs for Israel Education and Advocacy, with Rabbi Paul Freedman and Morey Schapira
• The Schizophrenic Zionist, with Dr. David Breakstone and Joel Chasnoff 

PJ Library Goes to USCJ

Leaders of 118 Conservative synagogues were notified yesterday that for the first time they will be able to bring the gift of Jewish books, available through PJ Library, to children in their communities. This unprecedented expansion of the PJ Library program is into areas where there are no other PJ Library "partners," like Jewish Federations or JCCs. These synagogues join 37 others that are able to access PJ Library resources through United Synagogue's partnership with the Harold Grinspoon Foundation. It will result in up to 30,000 new subscriptions over the next five years of the program.

Why does this matter?

PJ Library is one of the simplest and most elegant entry-point-into-Jewish-experience programs, in addition to Birthright, to emerge in our 21st Century community. Begun in 2005, PJ Library recently reached its one-millionth subscriber. A report on its impacts will be published soon, but at a February 2013 PJ Library partnership launch involving United Synagogue, Union for Reform Judaism and the Jewish Federation of South Palm Beach County, the good folks at PJ Library described some jaw dropping statistics. Between 40 and 80% of PJ Library subscriptions go to unaffiliated families, depending on the community.

PJ Library makes inroads because it's free. Grandparents sign up their grandchildren. Parents notice its "no strings attached" offer. But the best approach to any free gift has to include follow up and build relationships if the ultimate goal is to connect young families to the Jewish community. Synagogues are the natural entry point; they have the best chance of supporting Jewish identities and journeys over a lifetime. Many synagogue leaders ask how they can find and reach out to the unaffiliated. PJ Library seems to be a great answer.

The potential strength of this new program, and where we're testing new territory, is what happens in synagogues that commit to using this outreach tool. This is not a free gift to a synagogue; it's a matching grant. Although the cost per subscription is significantly low because of the underwriting by United Synagogue's donors and the Harold Grinspoon Foundation, each participating synagogue must commit to raise their share towards their subscription goals. Participating synagogues will get advice and help with securing donors in their synagogues. And we're offering resources for outreach and engagement, networking the professionals and volunteers who will work with PJ Library families in their kehillot. We're even providing strategic planning resources to align their work with the vision of their leadership. I believe that the synagogues that commit to offering PJ Library will strengthen their leadership, membership and infrastructure, in addition to giving Jewish books to young families in their communities.

Here's a video that gives a peek at what is being accomplished already in our pilot program with 33 synagogues in metropolitan New York.

Find out if your kehilla is eligible for the USCJ-sponsored PJ Library program by emailing our PJ Library Coordinator, Rabbi Cara Weinstein Rosenthal. If not, it means you're in an area where PJ Library is already available. But don't feel left out. We have created a special venue for families in your community to build relationships, and have a great Shabbat experience at our Ramah-USY Family Camp at the Centennial Celebration in Baltimore. Scholarships for PJ Library families are available. So find the PJ Library families in your kehilla, and let them know you can help them receive the gift of Shabbat.

And Two Hard Boiled Eggs

My event planner friend told me that a recurring dream that's common in her profession is perfectly captured by the Marx Brothers in the stateroom scene in "A Night at the Opera." Change the dream location to anywhere - a dorm room, classroom, living room, studio, restaurant, office - the dynamic is the same. It starts with a simple food order that gets add ons, people pour in, then chaos begins as it all comes together.

Which brings me to United Synagogue's Centennial Celebration, October 11-15, 2013, in Baltimore. 

I wrote last October about the vision for the Centennial. To mark the 100th anniversary of the founding of United Synagogue, the simple order was to create a gathering to honor our history and celebrate our future. More than a party, it would be a conversation: the Conversation of the Century. We planned for a series of conversation starters with notable speakers to jump start our thinking, followed by workshops led by experts who would help us dig in to the topics. We were pleasantly surprised when more than 100 experts answered our call for workshop proposals, and our challenge began to find time and space for all of the wonderful people who wanted their voices to be heard.

Our menu "add on" was Shabbat. Our plan was that Shabbat would set the stage for conversation. We would experience the best of Conservative Jewish worship, learning, music, contemplation and relaxation together. So five different services were planned, with surprise and variety that would demolish anyone's definition of a "typical" Conservative religious service. Learning and music would punctuate the weekend. We added a Ramah-USY Family camp, so that the Shabbat immersion experience could start as early as possible for young families. 100 USY teens would be there as the next generation of leaders of our Conservative Jewish kehillot. 

And two hard boiled eggs.

As of last week, we realized that with a month to go, and the local Baltimore/Washington registrations still coming in, we had outgrown our space at the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront on Friday night. Rather than risk what happens at the end of the Marx Brothers' scene, we had to explore our options. Should we break up into two groups, one at our hotel and another in a different space? Should we declare our Shabbaton sold out, collectively hold our breath, and squeeze in? Or find another space that can accommodate everyone and more?

It was not hard to come to a conclusion, based on our original vision of having as many people as possible come together on Shabbat for joyful worship, learning, and contemplation. Friday night at the Centennial needs to set the stage for our celebration and shared experience of the best of Conservative Judaism. So, our Friday night dinner and services will be moved to a bigger stateroom at a nearby space in the Inner Harbor of Baltimore, one where we can stay together in our dynamic, multi-generational, historical gathering.

Join us for this once-in-a-century experience. There's still room.

Running the Bases Towards Rosh Hashanah

Since coming to United Synagogue in 2010, each year has been like a strange baseball game for me where runners never leave the basepath once they get a hit. I run full speed into home, and instead of going to the dugout, I turn the corner and head straight for first base again. The High Holidays force me to finally get off the field and sit down.

Today as I head for the bench, I'm thinking back at how I rounded the bases in 2012-13:

• Traveled to Boston, Boca Raton, Birmingham, Baltimore, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Atlanta, and Toronto, meeting about 400 people I never knew before.
• Spent 156 hours on retreat with 55 new and incoming synagogue presidents.
• And about 10 days on retreat with 70 United Synagogue staff and volunteers.
• Met 50 times with the team of staff and volunteers who have planned United Synagogue's Centennial Celebration.
• Answered 1,000 questions. Make that 2,000. And a number of them were trick questions designed to be posted online somewhere to prove a point I wasn't making.
• Wrote fewer blog posts than I did the previous year, but more reports and proposals.
• Thought 2 million thoughts. A day. Usually about synagogues and the people in them.
• Took a real vacation for the first time in three years. 

Tonight, I'll take my seat in the dugout. I'll have 10 days to reflect on what difference it made that I traveled so much, answered so many questions, and thought so much about things related to work. Before I judge my efforts harshly, telling myself that I should have spent more time on something else like volunteer work, exercise or sleep, I'd like to count, with gratitude, the blessings that came from all that base running:

• The stories of many of the people I met were interesting. Some were inspiring and unforgettable, and changed how I view the purpose of life.
• I learned that some people who ask difficult questions are not asking trick questions. I can find out the difference if I engage them instead of avoid them.
• When I spoke my mind, I was heard. When I disagreed, I was given the benefit of the doubt. When I asked for help, I got it. 
• I laughed thousands of times. 
• When I finally came home, I had a family and friends who were happy to see me.

Whether your annual game is baseball, rugby or ping pong, I hope that Rosh Hashanah begins your time out - to find a quiet place on the bench to take a breath, a sip of wine, and a moment to reflect on how your particular sport has changed you from one year to the next.

L'shanah tovah u'metukah.