Regretting My Vote

My congregation's obit has not yet been written but last evening's congregational meeting exposed the reality that end of life planning is upon us.  In extending our Rabbi's contract by a wide majority of the vote, including mine, we not only kicked our rusty can down the road but silver-plated it before we did.  Had we not done this, come summer our congregation would be without a Rabbi or saddled with the immense expense of recruiting and investing in a replacement.  And we might be actually homeless.  Eighteen months until can invoke our no fault escape clause will not ruin us.  Having more of the same downward trajectory will.  So we have stability, or the illusion of stability, unless he invokes his escape clause which does not have a waiting period.  In exchange for predictability we gave up the more difficult choices.  We are a losing team.  Losing teams trudge along until a new coach with a new vision takes the helm.  There are no shortcuts for that.  What I saw at the meeting are people being risk averse, avoiding a roll of the dice that could be revival or could be rapid implosion for the certainty of long term depletion.  It was not a good long term choice.