JEWISH CENTER Disagreement Over a Rabbi's Contract

After a heated annual meeting on Aug. 21 at which hundreds of members of the Jewish Center of the Hamptons turned out to support Rabbi David Gelfand, the center's board is considering whether to extend the rabbi's contract, which expires in June, by an additional two years.

The board has until as late as February to make a decision on the matter, but with rumors swirling that it might not extend his term, supporters forced the issue to the table last month.

"The board advised the rabbi in July that a majority of the board did not want to give him a new contract when his present contract expires next year," said Leonard Gordon, a former president of the Jewish Center who still serves on the board. Mr. Gordon and others who support Mr. Gelfand formed a group they called the Committee to Save the Rabbi.

They encouraged people to attend the annual meeting and stand behind the rabbi and have also petitioned, Mr. Gordon said, for a special meeting on Sunday to give the rabbi a three-year contract.

"About 500 people showed up on the day of the [Aug. 21] meeting and they were extremely noisy," said Susan Pashman, a congregation member who also teaches at the Jewish Center. "It was a real zoo. The cantor began the meeting with a song asking for peace."

The center holds its annual meetings in August, when seasonal or weekend congregation members are most likely to be in town, but usually only a dozen or so people attend, Ms. Pashman said. Members authorize board proxies to vote on their behalf on agenda items, rather than vote themselves. Many had sent in their proxies for the Aug. 21 meeting, but decided to attend instead.

The contract was not on the agenda, but was on the minds of those at the meeting.

When Kenneth Bialkin, an honorary trustee of the Jewish Center, made a motion to authorize the board to negotiate an extension of the rabbi's contract, the majority of those in the room were in favor, Mr. Bialkin said Friday. However, many of them had already given their proxies to the board. The motion did not pass at the meeting, but Mr. Bialkin said he believes that after seeing the strong show of support for the rabbi, "the board is taking note that many people in the congregation were upset."

Attorneys for both the board and the rabbi confirmed that the two parties entered into discussions on a contract extension after the meeting. Rabbi Gelfand was out of town and could not be reached for comment. Several board members also declined to comment or did not return calls.

The rabbi's attorney, Michael Weber, said Saturday that the board had resolved some "big-picture issues," but was still "ironing out" some side issues. "I think over all, the tremendous, vast majority of the congregation is 100-percent supportive. Some board members had some concerns," he said.

After a board meeting on Sunday, Laura Hoguet, an attorney for the Jewish Center, said the board has "deferred making a decision pending some issues."

"The board's job is to think about and evaluate the performance of all staff and clergy," Ms. Hoguet said. "The board is taking the time it needs to develop the information it needs to make an informed decision."

According to Mr. Gordon, the board has had five meetings on the matter since Aug. 21. Supporters thought they had worked out a two-year extension, but the board "could not agree." His group has now changed its name to the Committee to Save the Jewish Center.

Ms. Hoguet confirmed that the Jewish Center board had filed a complaint with East Hampton Village Police alleging that a former Jewish Center employee improperly accessed files containing the e-mail addresses of congregation members. East Hampton Village Police Chief Gerard Larsen would not comment on the matter other than to say that it was still under investigation.

"What use was made of the files I don't know, but I would like to know," Ms. Hoguet said. "We are trying to find out what the facts are about that incident. We really don't know what happened."

Mr. Weber said the issue was "whether somebody who had entitlement to that list got it in an appropriate way."

Ms. Hoguet declined to comment on whether the incident is one of the issues keeping the board from making a decision on the rabbi's contract extension.

Some in the congregation are angry that the rabbi earns more than many clerics in the country, Ms. Pashman said. Mr. Weber said he had heard those complaints, as well. However, he said, "My sense is he's actually underpaid, from what he's done in the community he serves."

Rabbi Gelfand came to the Jewish Center in 1997 from Cleveland's Anshe Chesed Fairmount Temple, where he was the senior rabbi for almost a decade. For his first year in East Hampton, he was the center's interim rabbi, and in May 1998, he signed a three-year contract to act as the center's spiritual leader.

In the seven and a half years since, he has accomplished much, Mr. Weber said, including expanding the congregation and bringing many internationally renowned speakers to the center. "The rabbi brought all kinds of attention to the center," Mr. Weber said.

"Under New York State law, the board doesn't have power to give any rabbi a contract or to fire any rabbi," Mr. Gordon said. That task rests with the congregation members, he said.

To hold a special meeting, 20 percent of the congregation must sign a petition, Mr. Gordon said. "We have way more than 20 percent."

Mr. Weber said that there are guidelines indicating that clergy who serve a congregation for 10 consecutive years should be given the opportunity to remain with that congregation until their retirement, "but the guidelines are not something that's cast in stone."

"There is such a thing as a life contract, but that was not what was under discussion here," Ms. Hoguet said yesterday.