Rabbi Exhorts Congregants to Do More : Temple: Spiritual leader urges them to reach beyond the walls of their synagogue, beyond the Jewish community and into the world at large.

The congregants at University Synagogue are repeatedly told that it is not enough to come to temple. It is not enough to pray. It is not enough to study the Torah. It is not enough to send their children to religious school. Whatever they are doing, it is simply not enough.

They must, says Rabbi Allen Freehling, the Brentwood synagogue’s spiritual leader, reach beyond the walls of the temple, beyond the Jewish community and into the world at large. That’s because being Jewish, the rabbi says--and says and says--should be more than just one aspect of a person’s life. It should be one’s whole life.

“We can’t afford not to be involved in the community as a whole and to be authentically Jewish,” Freehling, 58, says. “As Jews it’s our role to be at the cutting edge, not to be self-satisfied, to work toward change.”

And that’s exactly what Freehling does, by word and by example.

Under his leadership, University Synagogue sponsors projects to help, among others, the homeless, people with AIDS and Soviet Jews seeking to resettle in Los Angeles. The synagogue, at 11960 Sunset Blvd., also is working with St. Mathews Episcopal Church to buy land and build housing for low-income families.

Not every member of the synagogue is as committed to social activism as their rabbi. In fact, some members think there is no place for political work in a house of prayer, even at a Reform temple, which practices the most liberal, least-traditional form of Judaism.

“I had a congregant come to me recently to tell me that he didn’t want to be beat up by his rabbi and he didn’t want to be told what to do,” Freehling says. “He wanted only to hear about Jewish issues.

“I asked him, ‘Is homelessness a Jewish issue?’ and he said, ‘No.’ ‘Even though there are Jewish people walking the streets?’ ‘No,’ he said, ‘not Jewish.’ I asked him, ‘Is AIDS a Jewish issue?’ and, again, he said, ‘No.’ ‘Even though there are Jewish people with AIDS?’ ‘No,’ he said, ‘not Jewish.’ What he wanted, he said, was to study the Torah.”

That there are people with vastly differing opinions at University Synagogue is as much a part of its fabric as is its liberal bent.

“One of the wonderful and unusual things about this synagogue is that Rabbi Freehling expects me to be an individual, not his mirror,” says assistant Rabbi Emily Feigenson, 36, who has been at the synagogue for about six months. “For example, he officiates at interfaith marriages, but he doesn’t expect me to. He encourages me to be my own person.”

Still, Feigenson concedes that “it would be awkward to be here if you felt uncomfortable with this level of political involvement in the community.”

“Rabbi Freehling’s passion is social justice,” she says. “It’s not for everybody. But if you’re not of liberal ilk and you wanted to have your kid in this preschool program then you would (have to) bear up under the level of political activism.”

Still, bearing up is far from the norm. Although the temple has, among other things, a preschool and kindergarten, special education programs, a religious school, youth group and sisterhood, its biggest draw is the rabbi and his involvement in “real world” issues.

“You talk about current events here, not just about religion,” says Lindsay Feldman, 12, who was attending a recent Friday night service. “At this temple you relate what you learn about Judaism to the outside world. That’s important to me.”

It’s also important to 33-year-old Hilary Kraft, whose family has been attending the synagogue for about 15 years. “I love this rabbi,” Kraft says. “He’s daring. His sermons are on politics rather than the fine points of Jewish law. There is non-traditional music here. It’s very rich, very current. The rabbi is the reason I keep coming back.”

He is the reason that Steffanie and Geoffrey Gee joined the synagogue in the first place. Three and a half years ago, the West Los Angeles couple were simply looking for a rabbi who would marry them because they were not members of a synagogue. Now, Geoffrey Gee is the synagogue’s vice president in charge of membership. Steffanie Gee is involved in the synagogue’s sisterhood. They attend Friday night services, are active on several committees and participate in educational programs held at the synagogue.

“Joining this synagogue is the best thing that ever happened to me,” Steffanie Gee says. “Before I had a place to put the spirituality that was tucked inside of me, I would walk by homeless people, and other than being a little scared, I didn’t feel anything. Now I am involved with the homeless. Now I feel it is important to constantly be doing mitzvot (good deeds). It’s part of my religion.”

Although the synagogue has a liberal political outlook, the heart of its ritual is based on tradition. “Rabbi Freehling’s main emphasis is to live, act and teach in the mode of prophetic Judaism calling to mind the call to action of the prophets,” says Cantor Jay Frailich, who like Freehling has been with the synagogue for 17 years. “I come from a traditional background that was very involved in the ritual and prayerful aspects of Jewish worship. Together we bring to the congregation the best parts of both of us.”

Freehling says about one-fourth of the synagogue’s 1,000 members participate regularly in community programs and synagogue activities. Others come to synagogue for the High Holy Days--Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur--and perhaps for a handful of other holidays and events. Many join, he says, simply to take advantage of the synagogue’s popular educational programs, which are available for children from birth through high school.

The synagogue’s annual operating budget is $1.7 million and its annual membership dues are based on a “fair share” program, which asks congregants to contribute 2% of their gross income. Some people contribute as little as $25 a year while others give as much as $5,000 a year, Freehling says. Each family also is expected to contribute annually to the synagogue’s capital improvement fund, which pays for things like new classrooms and renovations to the sanctuary. Costs for educational programs range from $2,500 to $5,000 a year for preschool and from $185 to $565 a year for religious school.

The synagogue, which serves the Bel-Air, Brentwood and Westwood areas, also offers a music program that features a 120-member children’s choir and a 15-member adult choir. And each year, the cantor commissions at least one, sometimes two, suites of music. “In this way we are not just relying on the best of what’s in the past,” Frailich says. “We are also forging ahead to create music for the future of Judaism.”

There also is a theater arts group that performs and produces at least one major work a year, most of which are original plays. The group also provides classes for congregants, and through its program, raises money for the synagogue.

Perhaps the best testament to what University Synagogue is all about comes from its children. Lindsay Feldman and her best friend, Katherine Steinberg, 13, recently had their bat mitzvah--a Jewish ritual for girls marking their coming of age into womanhood. It is part of the tradition to celebrate afterward with friends and family. It also is traditional for friends and relatives to give money to the Bat Mitzvah girl. Because of what they have been taught at synagogue, both Feldman and Steinberg plan to give part of what they receive to charity.

“In my Judaic studies class we learned a lot about how to give and why we should give,” Steinberg says. “In part, giving is what the synagogue teaches us about being a good Jew. I feel fortunate in my own life and it makes me feel good that I can help others.”