Parashah Acharei Mot I

This week's Parashah Acharei Mot I occurs on the seventh day of Passover. I found this portion intriguing and perhaps somewhat difficult to write something meaningful, current, and on-trend with what is occurring in today’s world. After many attempts, I decided to write something that focuses on sisterhoods/women’s groups. 

This parashah reveals a conversation between G-d and Moses. It discusses the death of Aaron’s sons, Nadab and Abihu who made an unsolicited offering of fire at the altar. G-d was not pleased as they drew too close to his presence. This resulted in G-d sending a divine fire that reached out and killed them. Moses is then tasked with sharing this terrible information with his brother Aaron and told him what must be done to remove the transgression of his house and the Israelites. Moses shares G-d’s detailed instructions to make things holy again and further states what will happen if these instructions are not followed.

Much like Moses had to share these instructions and the consequences handed down to us, this is also the time of year to look at our own ‘instructions’ or bylaws of our sisterhoods/women’s groups. This is the time to review if our current leadership model is working, trust in our nominating committees as they create new board slates, and not be afraid if changes are necessary. Is it time for change? What might that change look like? Are we changing our leadership model? Have we returned to in-person meetings vs. Zoom meetings?   

In the song “Turn! Turn! Turn!” released by The Byrds in 1965, it expresses the change some of our sisterhoods/women’s groups may be experiencing:
 

To everything turn, turn, turn

To every season turn, turn, turn

And a time to every purpose, under heaven

A time to be born, a time to die

A time to plant, a time to reap

A time to kill, a time to heal

A time to laugh, a time to weep 

To everything turn, turn, turn

To every season turn, turn, turn

And a time to every purpose, under heaven

A time to build up, a time to break down

A time to dance, a time to mourn

A time to cast away stones, a time to gather stones together . . .

As the President of WRJ Southwest District, I’ve had many conversations with existing sisterhoods/women’s group leaders, and it seems that almost every group has opportunities when it comes to change. We all have our bylaws and policy and procedure manuals. The real question is: how are your past and current practices relevant in today’s new reality? Is it time for a change? Perhaps changing our current leadership model is in order. Does an alternate leadership style address the needs of rising leaders more effectively than the existing one? Is it time to have shared responsibilities with a core group of women?  To meet their ever-changing needs,  each group will need to do a deep dive into what is important and what is needed to meet those obligations.   

Change is never easy, and it is definitely a paradigm shift. In the 1950s, Peter Drucker, an Austrian American management consultant believed that managers should, above all else, be leaders. Rather than setting strict rules and discouraging innovation, he opted for a more flexible, collaborative approach. 

I am proud to belong to a sisterhood that embraced change and successfully adopted an alternative leadership model that is still working today. Being flexible and willing to adapt to change will make all our groups successful. WRJ offers many examples of ‘alternative leadership models’ in Yammer and your District leadership can assist with implementation. 

By being open to change, we can accomplish just about anything! On this 7th day of Passover, we celebrate the miracle of the Israelites crossing the Red Sea and embracing the changes ahead of them. I wish you a joyous and productive spring and a willingness to embrace change in our ever-changing communities.