Rabbis paying dues (Shev 13b)

Should rabbis pay dues to their synagogue? It’s a tough question. On the one hand, rabbis are employed by their community. Therefore, paying dues might be viewed as a formality; paying a rabbi less will accomplish the same thing financially for a community. However, for some, rabbinical dues is a goodwill gesture. It show that they see themselves as part of the community and thus are willing to sacrifice something of theirs in order to see the community thrive.

I know I may change my mind when I get out of rabbinical school, but for now I see myself siding with this later view. The ideal rabbi should feel a part of their community. I’ve seen too many rabbis who view their rabbinate as simply a job. I don’t see it that way. Being a rabbi means having an intimate knowledge and connection to a community. It’s intense and therefore one must give up a part of themselves to succeed. Like time, energy, and space, a healthy abdication of some financial resources is an important gesture toward the community and shows the scope of a rabbi’s connection.

Reading the daf a few days ago, I found a great model for this. The high priest (modeled after Aaron) spends their life serving the Jewish community. They spend their time worrying about sacrifices and purity. They also receive their food from the offerings of those in their community. However, the Torah still mandates that when the Kohen Gadol brings their individual sacrifice on Yom Kippur it must come from them, meaning, they must purchase the bull with every penny of their own money. In doing this, the Kohen Gadol is made pure and he then (in his purity) can offer sacrifices that atone for the rest of the community.

I think this case has a lot to teach rabbis about the responsibility to one's community. The Kohen Gadol is a human like everyone else. Therefore they sin like others and must seek forgiveness like others. Unlike priests, rabbis are no closer to God than any other congregant is. For this reason, they must prayer, act, and give like anyone else. Although it’s problematic to say that membership and affiliation are akin to sacrifice (although it would be nice if all I had to do is give a bit of money and I’d achieved at least some form of atonement) I wonder if the Kohen Gadol can’t help tip the scales toward the argument that Rabbis should give something tangible of themselves as a way to cement their standing not just as the leader of a community but as part of it as well.