Schochet Blasts UK Establishment

By Rabbi Yitzchok Schochet, The Jewish Chronicle 15/03/2012

Now that the deadline has passed, a typical question I’ve been asked these past weeks is, “did you submit your application?” This of course is in reference to the position for Chief Rabbi. It has been flattering over the years to have my name touted as a future candidate, and more recently, when the position was formally opened, to have been mentioned as a contender in various media, including most recently, the Times religion columnist Ruth Gledhill giving me a ringing endorsement during a Radio 4 interview. I’m even aware of people taking bets on me. Alas they are to lose their money as I can confirm that I did not apply for the job.

I have two strikes against me which don’t sit well with the” establishment.” The first is the fact that I’m Chabad. When Miriam Shaviv published her all original list of potential candidates for the job, later copied by other newspapers, she told me that she had included “what with being Chabad his odds would be 770-1.” This was edited out by the paper, but it speaks volumes.

I’ve asked the following question of several people: Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks has certain unparalleled skills and abilities which warranted him becoming Chief Rabbi. But what if he was black? Would the colour of his skin be overlooked for the uniqueness of his traits, or would he have been deemed not suitable for the job? The response was invariably the same. By virtue of my Chabad identity, a badge I wear with honour, I am black. Having served as chairman of the Rabbinical Council for three years, and vice-chair for three years prior, I am very aware of a definite bias against Chabad, both from within the Beth Din as well as the lay leadership. There is an absurd perception of there being dual loyalty, though I am not sure wherein the conflict lies.

I’ve served the Mill Hill community now for more than eighteen years. I am proud of what it has become. Along with an exceptional and dynamic lay leadership it has developed into one of fastest growing communities in the United Synagogue, with more than five hundred kids under the age of ten. Not long ago I asked the question at a United Synagogue meeting: “If I applied for the job at Mill Hill today would I get a look in?” Of course the answer was yes with the typical platitudes that came with it. But with all résumés now having to pass through central office, and with someone from head office sitting in with synagogue selection committees to “guide them,” I have my serious doubts. Does the US look for the best man for the job, or simply who best fits their mould?

A senior colleague who is non-Chabad made the observation a while back at a Rabbinical Council meeting, that for the more than twenty-five years that he’s been in the system there has never been such a lapse of time in which not a single Chabad Rabbi was appointed to a Rabbinical position. I’ve been told it’s because there has not been anyone of substance forthcoming. I know that not to be true. I maintain it’s because we’re ‘black.’

My other ‘problem’ which Miriam Shaviv did highlight is that I am too outspoken. When I first became chairman of the Rabbinical Council I sought to change the restrictive eulogy policy at funerals, such that lay people could deliver them as well. It met with incredible resistance, and even as it ultimately prevailed, I was summoned and admonished. When the court ruling went against JFS on its admissions policy, I weighed in with a statement that had the full backing of the overwhelming majority of the Rabbinical Council. Still, I was called in and read the riot act. And when I put my neck out to help a colleague in what became a high profile standoff with his community and head office, I became the whipping boy.

“Unity not uniformity” has been the mantra of the US leadership. But a bone of contention amongst several colleagues over the years is that this is but only in words, hardly in practise. I inevitably earned the title ‘maverick’ because I give myself permission to communicate what matters to me and put a voice to my soul despite rejection or disapproval. It is, I am often told, very North American. Not something we approve of in the UK. Which I suppose is why we’re sitting ducks for verbal abuse often hurled from both within and outside the community.

To be sure, I am not suggesting I would have ever gotten the job of Chief Rabbi or that I am even suitably qualified for the position. But I do maintain that the hierarchy has its own preconceived idea of what it believes is suitable criteria which may not reflect the reality of its membership. Hence my argument for an election even as I knew it to be untenable – anything but the current process which is riddled with problems if not bias and prejudices.

Finally, now that I’ve made my position clear I would like to offer my endorsement for Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis, a view I am confident is shared by many other colleagues. He is authentic – what you see is what you get; he is experienced – having already served in that capacity in Ireland. He is of the right temperament – hence very popular with colleagues. And he’s not ‘black.’

As for me – without those shackles, I can be an even more outspoken Chabad Rabbi. Watch this space.

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