Disillusioned

Made my first Shabbat morning visit to Beth Tfiloh since the pandemic, and since their senior Rabbi's retirement.  Not at all like what spurred me to make an hour and a half trip each way to experience the upside of what Shabbos morning could be.  The morning reminded me a lot like an observant Conservative service of the 1970s with a mechitza preventing their eviction from their parent OU affiliation.  They have an incoming Senior Rabbi who will be having an Installation formality next shabbos.  I do not remember Orthodox clergy getting publicly installed.  They had Riffraff, two of them, each summoned to his Aliyah with a lyrical baritone Ya-amod cubed, the type the Cantor would do at a Conservative Bar Mitzvah.  As much as I abhor the interruption of the weekly Torah portion with those InterAliyah Sound Bites, something that never happened under the direction of the Rabbi Emeritus, not only have they been introduced but as designated Squaw Work to make the women have a bimah presence.  At least the Emeritus, a master of Divrei Torah, took his turn this shabbos.  Great start but ran aground making his central point.

Well attended men's section, or perhaps the illusion by scattering people with seating distances, sparsely populated women's section.  Nice kiddush though, including meatballs and cholent which I did not have to stay pareve.  Helped myself to cookies and rugelach, though.

The New Senior Rabbi needs his chance to make his imprint.  Also needs his chance to make mistakes.