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August 24, 2001/Elul 5, 5761, Vol. 53, No.46
Paying to pray?
GIL MANN
Special to Jewish News
Dear Gil:
If a person doesn't have big bucks, no temple really wants them. Dues can be heavy for families and seniors on fixed incomes ... so no temple affiliation for them.
Reform temples are notorious for high dues. I realize that temples require $$$ to exist but churches collect at Sunday services. Synagogues can do the same with no hardship. Churches get turnout and temples do not do as well. My Christian friends have no problem at all attending Sunday services. I have not attended a temple service since I moved to Florida. I never had this problem back home up north.
T
Dear T:
With the High Holidays around the corner, I have chosen your e-mail for this week's column because I know many others feel as you do. Paying high dues for synagogue membership is a common complaint. This complaint becomes even more bitter around the High Holidays when most synagogues require tickets to attend services.
The complaint often sounds like this: "Imagine the audacity! I must pay to pray!"
I want to say that the issue you raise is not unique to the Reform movement. Requiring synagogue dues has nothing to do with denomination, it has to do with the need to pay the bills.
Further, no one has to pay to pray. Judaism does not require you to pray in a synagogue. You can pray anytime you want for free.
However, if you want to take advantage of the special facilities, equipment and trained staff of a synagogue, that costs money. That money comes from members.
This is no different than exercise. You can exercise for free. But if you want to use a health club, their equipment and staff, that costs money. That money also comes from members.
Unlike a for-profit health club however, most synagogues will work with a congregant to adjust and lower dues to allow them to participate.
You mention that churches do things differently. Someone I know who is active with the Roman Catholic Church once said to me that he admires how synagogues charge dues based on ability to pay. He said, relying as the church does, on voluntary offerings of an amount you are "moved" to give, constantly leaves the church struggling to make ends meet.
A church and a synagogue both have fixed expenses that don't change whether people are coming or not. So dues make even more sense to me than depending on offerings. Related to this, people have complained to me that they hardly ever use the synagogue, so paying the high dues is not only irritating, it's not a very good deal.
My response is twofold. First, a member has the option to attend often if they wish. Second, most synagogue members expect that the synagogue and staff be "on call 24/7."
If there is a sudden family emergency, the rabbi had better be there. The same is true if a wedding or funeral occur. Not only is the expectation that the synagogue be there, but it should be up and running well - with no leaky roof, good AC and heating.
We expect the fire department to be at our beck and call with trained staff and good fire trucks even if we never take advantage of the services. Few of us object to paying taxes for fire protection.
The synagogue is there for our emergencies too, and our High Holidays, but even more, for our day-to-day needs. Paying dues to keep it healthy is OK by me. And paying more to help subsidize those who have less is also OK with me, provided that everyone is honest about what they can afford.
Gil Mann started his professional career in broadcast journalism and then founded a company specializing in computer training video courses.
His column can be found at www.jewish.com/news/gilmann.shtml.
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