Congregation Suspends Rabbi in Drug Arrest

NY Times

The congregation’s leaders were like disappointed parents. Earlier this month, their widely popular rabbi had been charged with possessing marijuana and driving while his ability was impaired by drugs, both misdemeanors. Now, the board of trustees at Congregation Sons of Israel had to decide on the proper punishment.

In the end, after a meeting that began on Tuesday night and lasted until 2 a.m. on Wednesday, they decided that the rabbi, Steven C. Kane, 50, should receive a 30-day paid suspension.

The state police said that around 1 a.m. on Aug. 1, they found 27 grams, nearly an ounce, of marijuana in Rabbi Kane’s car after pulling him over for erratic driving on Interstate 684 in Brewster, N.Y. A hearing is scheduled for next month in Southeast Town Court, in Brewster.

But in the thriving Conservative congregation of nearly 550 families in this Westchester County village, it seems that no matter how the case against Rabbi Kane turns out, there will be other consequences for many months to come.

“There is no manual for what to do in a situation like this,” said Paul Rosen, the president of the synagogue. “We had to show that there are ramifications to actions – some part of it could be viewed as punishment. But we also wanted to show that people have the ability to redeem themselves and have the opportunity to repent. We didn’t want to punish in unnecessary ways.”

Rabbi Kane will also be subject to random drug testing, Mr. Rosen said, and is expected to help develop a special curriculum on issues of drugs and alcohol, as well as moral and ethical questions, for youth groups and the teenagers and children enrolled in the synagogue’s Hebrew school.

Mr. Rosen said that he had received more than 80 e-mail messages and dozens of calls from members of the congregation in the last week, with some calling for Rabbi Kane’s outright dismissal and others simply urging a public apology.

Nearly 200 people showed up for the board meeting Tuesday night and heard Rabbi Kane, who has led the congregation for nearly 13 years, make a short statement apologizing for the episode and the embarrassment it has caused the congregation and his family. He also said he would refrain from using drugs and alcohol and asked for forgiveness from members, said several people who attended the meeting.

Rabbi Kane did not respond to several requests for comment left this week on his cellphone and his office answering machine.

As cars crowded the synagogue’s parking lot Tuesday night, many members gathered in small groups, speaking in hushed tones about what they expected or wanted to happen. Some parents worried that a light punishment would send the wrong message to their children. Others, with children long grown, seemed more willing to forgive and forget.

“We have to realize that people can change and learn and grow,” said Michel Goldschneider, a member of the synagogue for more than three decades. “It is a question of who we want our rabbi to be and what do we expect of him. We also have to be careful on the impact of the children.”

Many parents declined to speak for attribution, saying that the topic was too delicate and that they did not want to offend Rabbi Kane or others in the synagogue. But several said they had spent hours trying to figure out how to talk with their children about a rabbi whom so many of them adored.

Many congregants described him as dynamic and engaging.

A few said that their children were now reluctant to attend religious services. Others said they thought Rabbi Kane’s mistake could provide a valuable lesson on mistakes, ethics and forgiveness.

Rabbi Kane, who is married and has two daughters and a son, has worked in local Jewish summer camps for several years and taught at the Academy for Jewish Religion, a seminary in Riverdale, the Bronx.

The ethics committee of the Rabbinical Assembly, the governing body for Conservative clergy, will review the case and determine whether to issue any sanctions against Rabbi Kane, said Rabbi Joel H. Meyers, the executive vice president of the organization.

Several local Jewish leaders, including Rabbi Lester Bronstein, the president of the Westchester Board of Rabbis and the leader of Bet Am Shalom Synagogue in White Plains, called Rabbi Kane a respected colleague and sent letters of support to the synagogue board. Rabbi Bronstein called the board’s decision “impressive and mature.”

“They are finding some middle way of dealing with this and still acknowledging the real tear in their relationship,” he said. “If it works, it can be a real model for all types of religious institutions.”

Like several members of the congregation, Rabbi Bronstein spoke of the coming High Holy Days, which focus on repentance and forgiveness.

“There is a saying about how no righteous person can stand on the spot where a penitent person stands,” he said. “This is a chance for some real frank discussions. There will probably be a lot of tears on Rosh Hashana.”