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# Men’s
traditional
fashion
as we see it
for Fall and Winter 1977
Natural Shoulder Styling |
in Natural Fibers
jack
HIMES eiseman
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Special Insight
Jewish
at air
academy is from Georgia
, by Lurry Hankin
COLORADO SPRINGS - As
in any other profession, in
dividual members of the rab
binate have their own
specialties. For some, it is
teaching; for -others, it may be
counseling. Rabbi Irvine
Ehrlich’s special talent is the
ability to make a small,
geographically-isolated Jewish
community into an active, viable
Jewish community.
Rabbi Ehrlich is the new
Jewish chaplain serving the US
Air Force Academy, a post he
assumed in June. He replaced
Rabbi Theodore Stainman who
is on assignment in Germany.
The Chaplain’s special ability
to cohere a small Jewish com
munity began with his “roots” in
Bain bridge, Ga., a town of some
12,000 persons. The Jewish com
munity of Bain bridge dates back
to the 1870s.
In 1882, Rosalie K. Ehrlich,
the Rabbi’s grandmother, was
born. She established the town’s
Jewish religious school, first
confirming her younger brothers
and sisters.
Mrs. Ehrlich continued her
teaching until she confirmed her
own sons, and retired upon con
firming ho- grandson, Rabbi
Ehrlich. Before Rabbi Ehrlich
went overseas as an Air Force
Chaplain, he dosed that school,
conducting its last confirmation
service.
“At the time in which I grew
up in Bainbridge,” the Rabbi
recalls, “there were 80 to 36 Jews
— not Jewish families, but 85
total Jews. We had our own con
gregation, Temple Beth EL It is
a beautiful Temple, which can
seat up to 250 people.
“The Jew in Bainbridge, in my
lifetime, has experienced no
anti-Semitism as they have in
other small Southern towns.
Jews have been active as mayors
and city councilmen. Forty years
ago, when the country club was
founded, Jews were very active,
contributing large sums of
money, so there wae never a
restricted country club or
anything of that nature.”
Because the community of
Rabbi Ehrlich’s childhood was
small, Judaism became a warm,
homo-centered experience. The
congregation was served by rab
bis traveling to Bainbridge from
Tallahassee, Fla., or Albany, Ga.
Rabbi Ehrlich ia Cadet
Chapel at AM Force Academy.
Since these rabbis were full-time
rabbis at their own congrega
tion, there were no Shabbos ser
vices at Temple Beth El in Bain
bridge. Instead, services ware on
Sunday, when the rabbis were
available.
“As a result, we always bad a
dinner service ait home on Friday
nights.”
It eras this warm, intensive
Jewish life that inspired Irvine
Ehrlich to attend Hebrew Union
Colege and he was ordained as a
Reform rabbi in 1970. He had
also received a BA degree from
the University of Georgia.
After his ordination, he served
civilian congregations in Lin
coln, Neb., and Springfield,
Ohio,' also relatively small
Jewish communities.
In 1974, Rabbi Ehrlich joined
the Air Force and became Capt.
Ehrlich. "To me, the Air Force
offered a viable chance to be a
rabbi in a somewhat different
setting than civilian congrega
tions. So far, I have found it to
be a very exciting life," the rabbi
explains.
His first assignment was in
Ramstein, Air Base in West Ger
many. “While in Europe, at one
time, I covered all of Turkey,
Greece and Spain as I was the
only Jewish chaplain. I would be
at some air bases in Eastern
Turkey, or in places where there
were only three or four Jewish
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families. I was the nearest rabbi,
coming from 2,000 miles away.
It was amazing because they
would turn out ‘en masse’
because I was the only Jewish
contact many of them had."
The Chaplain served in
Europe until he came to the Air
Force Academy three months
ago. He, his wife and two sons,
ages four and six, live at the
Academy and he feels it is an
“ideal place" for children to grow
up. “The boys love it — there is
always something for them to do
here.”
The entire cadet wing is now
back at the Academy for the
school year. There are the
Jewish cadets in the incoming
freshman class, three of whom
are women. “I find the cadets an
exceptionally bright group of
young people,” he remarks.
“They are a lot of fun to be with.
That is not only my opinion, but
that of the entire congregation.”
As a graduate of a Reform
seminary, Rabbi Ehrlich finds
no probelms in serving cadets of
different Jewish backgrounds.
"Orthodoxy presents no
problem. To my knowledge, we
have no Orthodox cadets. There
is a split between Conservative
and Reform, however. 1 try to
rua a middle-of-the-road
program to suit everyone's
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