After some months of active struggle, I make the difficult decision to step back from my volunteer roles** with Tzedek Chicago. I do this with the hope and prayer that this will be a temporary step: May my disappointment soon be replaced with renewed commitment to stated community values and their practice in congregational operations.
UPDATE October 31, 2025: Over the past four months, Tzedek Chicago has separated the congregation from both long-time co-cantorial soloists: in one case, using the vague “intractable differences” explanation often employed in quashing union/labor disputes; in another case, using specific language about misuse of power which seems directly contradicted by structures of the organization. While I do not deny any individual’s experience of harm, I have witnessed enough problematic uses of power within the organization by those making the public declarations to be wary of how these actions have been taken and announcements made. At this point, although I am deeply grateful for individual relationships I have made over the years and cannot rewrite history to remove my contributions to the congregation, I must re-evaluate any association with the congregation as an entity.
The congregation is under tremendous stress, as membership swells with many newcomers arriving from difficult, sometimes traumatizing, circumstances as a result of many Jewish communities’ support for Israel’s genocide against Palestinians. Meanwhile, longer-term members are suffering exhaustion from work to protest current policies and practices in the US — and some other countries in our worldwide membership — and from the on-going grief of witnessing so much collapse around us. And, of course, individual members struggle with ordinary and extraordinary burdens. All this means we need access to every ounce of “sweetness” we can find. (See discussion from Estelle Frankel’s Sacred Therapy.) Instead, however, I fear we have drifted into greater and greater harshness. And my failed efforts at expressing my concerns lead me to now step away for the present.
As I do so, I acknowledge that I — among many others — have failed the community in small and large ways, sometimes by failing to pay attention or engage, thus leaving decision-making, by default, to others. Please see Al Chet for Institutions, an offering as part of the Summer of Collapse series, which has been my personal and public struggle for the month of Elul.
Core Values and a Prayer
One of the things that drew me to Tzedek Chicago, more than five years ago, was its formation as an intentional community with these core values:
- Judaism beyond borders;
- Judaism of solidarity;
- Judaism of nonviolence;
- Judaism of spiritual freedom: promoting”spiritual exploration and encourag[ing] our members’ diverse beliefs”;
- Judaism of equity: “transparent and egalitarian governance and decision-making in our congregational life”; and
- Judaism beyond Zionism.
Over recent months, I have repeatedly witnessed leadership’s unwillingness to engage in transparent, egalitarian governance and decision-making — among the core values so many of us hold precious. In the interest of supporting those still working behind the scenes toward better outcomes, I do not share specifics at this time. I do say, however, that leadership’s express lack of interest in pursuing repair allows me no room to participate now: I cannot continue to donate my labor** while calls for repair, justice for employees, and honest engagement with community members, including dissenting voices, go unheeded.
Inspired by a sermon R’ Ariana Katz of Hinenu Baltimore gave earlier in Elul [5785], I close with a prayer that Tzedek and I will find our way back to one another.
UPDATE (10/27/25): I am no longer a member of Tzedek Chicago and not sure if there is any possibility of reconciliation.
UPDATE (10/31/25): I am deeply disturbed by organizational actions and forced to re-evaluate the place of my teachings and other contributions in support of the congregation.
** I am not an employee of Tzedek Chicago, but I have planned and hosted programs for the congregation, taught Torah study, and volunteered untold hours in administrative, emotional, and intellectual labor over the years.
"A Song Every Day" 