Who Am I and Who Are My People?: A Rabbi's Reflections on the Rabbinate and the Jewish Community

This is a quick read on the role of Rabbis in synagogue told by an orthodox shephardic Rabbi. His writings gave me the information I sought for my conversion, though my conversion is Reform. It is important to understand the perspective of a religious leader when it is sometimes hard to do so. It is disappointing however that Catholicm = Christianity when a variety of positions are taken i.e. as in Prostantism. It seems to be a common flaw among Rabbis (thankfully not by the Rabbi I am studying with).

In But Who Am I And Who Are My People?: A Rabbi's Reflections On The Rabbinate And The Jewish Community, Rabbi Marc Angle address the question of how the public views the position and role of the rabbi. The spectrum of perception runs from a sort of charismatic guru telling others what to do and think, to a social worker, politician, administrator, religious functionary, interpreter and teacher of Torah, or as a "public Jew" representing the Jewish community to the non-Jewish world. In fact, some rabbis assume each and several of them at any given point in time. But Rabbi Angel's principle message is that rabbis have an inner life of faith, self-doubt, and anxiety. That any rabbi deserving of the title will find himself balancing personal, community, and theological requirements. But Who Am I And Who Are My People? is a welcome, insightful, informative, and "reader friendly" addition to any Judaic studies reading list or reference collection.