Message from the President, July 18, 2013
Dear Friends,
I am very pleased to announce that we have hired Rabbi David Lipper as our interim rabbi for the coming year. Rabbi Lipper will begin with us on August 1.
Rabbi Lipper has specific experience and training as an interim rabbi and he will not only serve as our spiritual leader but also assist us in our search for a new permanent rabbi.
Originally from Houston, Rabbi Lipper most recently served as interim rabbi at Temple B’Nai Israel in Little Rock Arkansas, ably assisting them as a bridge between a long-tenured rabbi and their new rabbi. Ordained in 1988, his experience includes congregations of similar size to TBC, both as a permanent rabbi, and in interim situations.
Rabbi Lipper has written:
“I love to study and learn and teach. I came across this quotation in the Book of Proverbs. It was a transformational discovery and energized my own approach to the rabbinate… “B’ain Hazon Yiparah Am … where there is no vision, the people perish.” Every day of my Jewish journey is filled with creating and filling this visionary outlook on life. I believe that a growing and ever expanding vision of our Jewish future is vital to our success as a people. It is a vision that needs to reach the young and the old. And it is my passion to share my vision of what our Jewish world could become.
“The essence of my Jewish vision is helping people find their own sacred paths wherever that may lead. I hope to journey with people in pursuit of sacred living. Through the modeling of sacred values, we become partners with God in the acts of creation. It comes through being agents of change and actively helping repair the broken fragments of the world. We also find sacred living in celebrating in the joy of a simcha or in comforting a friend or a family member in a difficult time. I feel that Judaism is a faith that inspires us to live better, more significant lives.”
Looking a little ahead, on August 23, we will have a special service welcoming Rabbi Lipper. More information will follow.
My personal appreciation to the Executive Committee for all their hard work these last six weeks to reach this accomplishment.
David Abraham, President