MARK WASHOFSKY

The situation in liberal congregations is, of course, quite different. The liberal rabbi is seldom the mara d’atra whose rulings on questions of synagogue observance claim the status of definitive p’sag. In our communities responsibility over ritual matters is shared, rather than divided, between rabbinic and lay leadership. That is, questions which in the orthodox synagogue are the exclusive domain of rabbinic judgement are, in the liberal synagogue, passed upon by the congregation, usually represented through its ritual committee, as well as the rabbi. Liberal Judaism emphasizes the concepts of religious pluralism and autonomy, doctrines which are not particularly compatible with rabbinic halakhic authority. Then too, especially on the American scene, the democratic political ideology greatly influences ideas of synagogue governance; the majority rule principle often overcomes the traditional Jewish tendency to submit questions of ritual to rabbinic adjudication.’ Finally, the ritual committee often embodies the congregation’s concern for the preservation of its own traditions against the well-meaning interference of a rabbi who, however, beloved by the community, is not of the community.

Liberal rabbis acknowledge that their role is not, in the main, that of poseq, and some renounce on theological grounds even the slightest claim of"authority" over the congregation. Still, shared authority over ritual matters frequently provokes tensions between them and their laity. The liberal rabbi, no less than his or her orthodox colleague, serves the congregation as its resident expert in Judaica. By virtue of academic training and practical experience, the rabbi can justifiably claim that issues of liturgical and ceremonial observance fall within the area of his or her professional competence. As a professional, the rabbi will likely view ritual matters from a perspective other than that of the laity. And as a professional, the rabbi will become perplexed or distressed when the laity, asserting power within the traditional domain of the rabbi-scholar, make decisions which in the rabbi’s eyes contradict some higher principle or value of Jewish religious practice. Given

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