Hayim Herring - Tomorrows Synagogue Today: Creating Vibrant Centers of Jewish Life

Praise for the Book

Thoughtful synagogue leaders, both lay and professional, have read books and attended conferences about creating and nurturing synagogues that will lead to a thriving, meaningful Jewish way of life. Hayim Herrings book takes us beyond all the learning we have done so far to new questions. Herring asks exactly what I need to know: Can the mission of my synagogue be framed and shared in such a way that it will find an authentic place in the everyday lives of congregants? Can I challenge preconceptions about the very mission of my synagogue? In pursuit of my goal to create a synagogue that is influential in peoples Jewish lives, Herring provides real examples, accessible theory, and concrete suggestions.

Paula Mack Drill, Orangetown Jewish Center, Orangeburg, New York

Hayim Herring articulates the core changes that must occur for Jewish communities to work most effectively. I would suggest that if one substituted the word synagogue with nearly any Jewish agency or organization, many of the same principles that Herring has written would apply. All parts of the Jewish community have to change significantly, and the rules of engagement must be rewritten now.

Allan Finkelstein, president and CEO, Jewish Community Centers of North America

Change in our world is no longer incremental but exponential. Every institution must respond to the realities of the modern world, and the synagogue is no exception. The synagogue, while continuing to offer fundamental Jewish values, will be communicating and delivering these key messages vastly different in 21st century. While change at this level can be frightening, it is imperative for the survival of the synagogue. Rabbi Herring inspires us to see how exciting this change can be. He breaks down the walls of fear by imagining a synagogue that is flexible and creative in meeting its challenges. It makes me want to roll up my sleeves and get to work.

Marcia Zimmerman, senior rabbi, Temple Israel, Minneapolis

One does not have to agree with all the points in this book to see that Rabbi Herring is an exceedingly keen observer of both the external and internal trends that powerfully affect the Jewish community. Readers from all backgrounds within the Jewish communitylay leaders, organizations and the rabbinatewill find ideas and material in this important work that should be thoughtfully considered as our community envisions its future. We ignore Rabbi Herrings observations at our own peril.

Joseph S. Ozarowski, Jewish Healing Network of Chicago and Visiting Rabbi, Congregation Darchei Noam, St. Louis Park MN

After exploring the challenges facing the American synagogue with vigor and clarity, Tomorrows Synagogue Today provides fresh and creative avenues for rethinking what congregations should be doing. Herring gives concrete examples, suggests new ways for training rabbis and considering rabbinic careers, and provides practical suggestions that can help any synagogue.

David Teutsch, Louis and Myra Wiener Professor of Contemporary Jewish Civilization; chair, Department of Contemporary Jewish Civilization; director, Levin-Lieber Program in Jewish Ethics

Reading Rabbi Hayim Herrings Tomorrows Synagogue Today gave me hope for religious life in the times to come. Too often we are staid and rigid in our conceptions of the ways we organize ourselves, and unimaginative in the application of our faith. Herring helps us to loosen up and get creative. Insightful and sharp in its analysis, this book offers us a glimpse into what life could be like as faith communities seek to follow the Creator in seeking peace, justice, and wholeness in the world.

Landon Whitsitt, author of Open Source Church: Making Room for the Wisdom of All

The synagogue members of today and tomorrow are Gen Xers, Millennials and Gen Z, whose lives are organized in fundamentally different ways than how many synagogues operate today. Synagogue leaders must align their congregations with these generations, whose understandings of hierarchies and collaboration, native use of technology, and desire to play an active role in producing their own realities are already having a profound impact on the Jewish community, and synagogues in particular. Herrings big vision and practical knowledge of synagogue life unite here to provide the roadmap and insights to help leaders steer their congregations from here to there.

Lisa Colton, president, Darim Online

Dynamic services, inspiring rabbis, engaged congregants, increasing memberships: these can be accomplished through reenvisioning and reenergizing the congregation. No matter what your religious persuasion, this book has good practical advice about how to accomplish these goals. It shows how, in an electronically connected world, the synagogue can become more inclusive, nurturing, and meaningful. For those who care about the future of the synagogue, I highly recommend this book.

Alfred A. Marcus, professor and Spencer Chair in Strategy and Technological Leadership, University of Minnesota, Carlson School of Management

Rabbi Herring provides an extremely thoughtful consideration and analysis of the challenges that confront the institution of the American synagogue and its rabbinical and lay leaders in view of current technological, demographic, societal, and cultural realities and trends. Tomorrows Synagogue Today is a most reflective book that is must reading for all persons striving to create the institutional frameworks that are necessary to meet the ongoing spiritual and communal needs of American Jews in the 21st century.

David Ellenson, president, Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion

Hayim Herring has distilled years of experience as a successful congregational rabbi, a leading student of institutional change, and an expert in American religion and Jewish life into what is the definitive book on synagogue transformation. Wise, insightful, truthful, and prescriptive, Tomorrows Synagogue Today is a must read for anyone interested in reimagining the synagogue in the early 21st century.

Irwin Kula, president, Clal-The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership

Tomorrows Synagogue Today is a bold, gutsy look at the North American synagogue. Rabbi Herring raises radical questions, most importantly asking if synagogues are doing the right work. He lays out an audacious and compelling vision for synagogues, with boundaries and roles fundamentally different from what we know today. But the book is not pure rhetoric. A set of scenarios concretize the vision and take the reader from the big idea down to the details of a reimagined synagogue. By the time we are through reading, we have the sense that radical change is indeed possible.

Amy L. Sales, associate director and senior research scientist, Cohen Center for Modern Jewish Studies, Brandeis University

Rabbi Hayim Herring is one of those rare people who can simultaneously observe acutely, manage wisely, and innovate creatively. Herring uses all of those gifts as he invites us to capture a vision in Tomorrows Synagogue Today. Herrings wisdom provides a practical and entrepreneurial guide to forming vibrant, relevant synagogue life.

Carol Howard Merritt, author of Tribal Church and Reframing Hope

Hayim Herrings new volume adds immeasurably to our understanding of what it takes for synagogues to reinvent themselves into engaging institutions that exist at the center of peoples lives. Herring offers a nuanced, thoughtful reimagining of synagogues, based on a clear assessment of the larger forcesdemographics, technology, grassroots movementsthat shape how vibrant spiritual communities are developed and maintained. He provides a vision of synagogues based on big ideas and collaborative relationshipsand clearly articulates the leadership practices of rabbis and congregants necessary to enact that vision. The book contains just the right blend of theory and practice, offering a valuable guide to the creation of the most vibrant synagogues.