With three blessings we welcome the Sabbath and with three blessings we say good-bye. Both Kabbalat Shabbat and Havdallah thus teach us that farewells are just as important as hellos, and that both can be blessed moments. The Transitional Training Institute is designed to facilitate the transitions of rabbis into synagogues. These transitions are inherently complicated. They often involve feelings related to the ending of relationships. loss, sadness, resentment, relief, anger. that go unacknowledged yet play a significant role in how rabbis leave their synagogues. They involve complicated logistical issues as well, related both to the leaving and to the entering of pulpits.

Rabbis and synagogues are often left to deal with these emotional and logistical issues on their own, operating on the basis of precedents and trial-and-error experiences that may not have proven fully successful in the past. When managed well, these transitions enable rabbis and congregational leaders to build a foundation for their future work together that is based on a clear assessment of their respective needs, values, and conditions for success. The aim of this Institute is to enable participants to learn to build those foundations through the thoughtful managing of their transitions.

Guiding Premises

The guiding premises of the Institute are twofold: first, leadership transitions are significant opportunities for spiritual leaders and congregations to create strong relationships to sustain their future work together; second, spiritual and congregational leaders can best take advantage of these opportunities when supported by a set of ideas, experiences, and a cohort of others working to manage similar transitions. During the Institute, participants will thus reflect on their experiences of both previous and current transitions, guided by a set of insights and tools related to the effective management of transitions.

Participants

The program is designed for two types of participants: rabbis who are in some type of transition toward or away from serving as spiritual leaders of congregations and wish to effectively manage their exits and entrances; and congregational leaders who are involved in a process of seeking, selecting, and working with new spiritual leaders and who wish to do so in ways that build the foundation for effective collaborative relationships with those leaders. Rabbis and congregational leaders are not required to be affiliated with one another. Any synagogue may be represented by its new rabbi, congregational leader(s), or by both.

PROCESS -How it works

• Separate and Integrated Perspectives
• Preparation
• Two Day Residential Session
• Faculty and Peer Coaches

CONTENT - What we teach

• The Nature of Transitions
• Rabbis in Transition
• Synagogues in Transition