What does the cantor do?  That question gets asked of me all the time.  Everyone knows that the cantor sings.  That’s a very public part of the job.  But the singing happens on Friday evenings and Saturday mornings; that’s about 3 ½ hours per week, and yet she works at least 6 days a week; so what is she doing the rest of the time?  The cantor’s job is to be there for the congregation.  Whether through teaching, counseling, visiting in hospitals or officiating at life cycle events, the cantor helps to bring Jewish knowledge and perspective to the members of the community.

Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion is the seminary that trains Reform Jewish professionals.  Cantors study there for 5 years of graduate school (after attaining at least a Bachelor’s degree) in subjects such as Hebrew, Bible, Nusach, Cantillation, Counseling, Education, Midrash, Liturgy and Jewish Texts.  At the end of the five years, cantors receive a Master’s Degree and become members of the clergy alongside their rabbinic partners at a special Ordination & Investiture ceremony.

Although each cantor’s position is a little different, at Temple Beth Am, I spend my week doing a variety of different things.  First of all, I teach.  I teach all of our b’nei mitzvah students, preparing them with their Torah and Haftarah portions.  I teach our 9^th and 10^th graders in the high school, and I teach our Post-Confirmands (11^th and 12^th graders) when they come once a month.  I also teach adult education in what is now our Lifelong Learning program.  Over the years, I have taught everything from A Taste of Judaism to Judaism and Animal Rights to Cantillation: the Art of Chanting Torah.  Of course, I try to find “educable” moments all the time; not just in the formal atmosphere of the classroom.  Whether I’m meeting with families at a kallah, or speaking from the bimah, I try to teach lessons which will help people express their own Judaism in a more meaningful way.

Of course, I lead services.  That’s the part of my job that everyone sees.  But, besides the Shabbat and High Holy Day services that we have at the temple, I lead many other kinds of services as well.  For instance, I officiate at funerals, weddings, conversions, baby namings, brit milah services and minyan services in houses of mourning.  Oftentimes, my weekends are packed with sharing life cycles with families.  I have the privilege of being with families at their happiest times and helping them to cope during their most challenging times.  It is not unusual for me to lead a Bar or Bat Mitzvah service on a Saturday morning, name a baby on Saturday afternoon, officiate at a wedding on a Saturday night, teach religious school on Sunday morning, officiate at a funeral on Sunday afternoon and lead a minyan service on Sunday evening.  Some of the most important work that I do is behind the scenes with families.  When I help them through the loss of a loved one or make their wedding ceremony so special that it could only be theirs, I know that my job has meaning, and I never forget how fortunate I am to be sharing such intimate times with our families.

Funerals, of course, don’t just happen on Sundays.  They can happen any day, and when they do, they take precedence over other things.  So sometimes, I am juggling other appointments to be able to meet with families, write eulogies and officiate at funerals and burials.  I also spend time during the week visiting our congregants in the hospital.  When I find out that a member is ill, I call them and I try to get to the hospital for a visit. Other times, we just speak on the phone.

I spend a lot of time during the week with our members.  Sometimes they call and make appointments.  Sometimes they just drop in.  But often, people need someone with whom they can talk and who will listen without judgment.  It could be a family problem, a bereavement, someone facing a serious illness, interfaith issues, or even how to observe a Jewish holiday.  Teenagers will often seek me out because we have a special relationship because of the time we’ve spent together preparing for bar/bat mitzvah, and I’m glad to provide a safe place for them when they are struggling with issues in their lives.  Of course, during the week, I also have the joy of leading tefillah in our religious school, teaching the Jr. Choir, teaching lessons in our religious school classes because the teacher has invited me, or just popping into a class to say hello and see the work they’re doing on a particular project.  I love visiting with the kids and seeing them excited about their Judaism!

My evenings are often spent here at temple meetings.  I attend the Executive Committee and the Board meetings, the Worship Committee meetings, Sisterhood Paid-Up Supper and Honors Dinner, and when requested, School Committee and Membership Committee meetings.  And in the community, I am part of the Framingham Interfaith Clergy Association, I teach music weekly in the nursery school, I prepare our choir for the Zimriyah, I lead a joint confirmation class trip to NY, and I represent the American Conference of Cantors and Temple Beth Am with my seat on the URJ (Union for Reform Judaism) board.

What does the cantor do?  The cantor does whatever is necessary to help perpetuate Judaism for the next generation.  The cantor works in partnership with the rabbi and the director of education to be there for our congregants when they need us and to be a resource for them in their own quest for a stronger Jewish identity.  The cantor helps to build relationships so that the temple is not just a place for meetings or services, but a community.  Oh yes, and the cantor sings.

L’shalom,

Cantor Jodi Schechtman