There is a confidence and a sincerity that emanate from Rabbi Tracee Rosen when she anticipates how her life in Utah will play out as leader of the state's largest Jewish congregation.
Her honesty in "coming out with myself" as a lesbian in the past few years has given her a perspective on inner struggle and searching for peace. And it's clear that she views her gender as an asset in what has for centuries been a male vocation, reading Torah and preparing sermons that seek to imbue congregants with God's presence as something intimate and personal.
So she believes that the majority of Congregation Kol Ami is ready to embrace not only her gender and sexual orientation but the gifts of spirit she brings to the job.
"I think there are some people in the congregation that will need to be won over, but that's obviously not the majority," she said, anticipating the questions that come with her status as Utah's most visible Jewish leader.
Rabbi Rosen's recent selection comes at a time when the national spotlight has been focused on the place of gays and lesbians in most major denominations, and what role, if any, a candidate's homosexuality should play in selecting church leadership.
Utah's Episcopal Bishop, Carolyn Tanner Irish, has come out strongly in favor of the controversial ordination of New Hampshire Bishop Gene Robinson during that faith's General Convention earlier this month. While the move angered conservatives in the United States and abroad, it brought no visible negative reaction from local Episcopalians or any other faith group.
Rabbi Rosen said while there has been some measure of concern over her appointment, the openness of the congregation here made the decision to leave Southern California much easier.
"I was elected as rabbi with an 80 percent mandate. That's something most politicians never experience," she smiles. "Listen, it's normal for any rabbi to face opposition for a variety of reasons. Part of my task is to educate, and part of my task will be to be me.
"Some people will love that and others will be looking for a new synagogue. I hope it's the minority in the latter category."
In fact, she believes that's exactly the way it will be. Despite the state's conservative culture, she said she has felt at home here ever since she first became acquainted with the synagogue's 25-member search committee.
When she was first contacted by a committee member, she recalls the warm feeling she had during the conversation as she realized the two of them had attended the same synagogue in Los Angeles. "Right then it began to feel like home."
The prospect of coming to Salt Lake City from Encino, Calif., evoked fond memories of her childhood in Denver, but there were concerns about how she would be accepted in what she knew was generally a "right-wing conservative" kind of place. "I figured the Jewish population probably mirrors the local demographics, but that turned out not to be the case."
As the conversation was winding down and she was asked if she'd like to apply, "I was amazed to find myself saying yes."
And then came the "but."
When Rabbi Rosen said she was committed to her partner, occupational therapist Keren Goldberg, the conversation didn't skip a beat. "They had already contacted this professor who is a friend of mine and knew all the background. By the time they decided to contact me, the issue had already been discussed. The end result was there were some very passionate people who said they wanted the best rabbi they could find."
It's a sentiment that retiring Rabbi Fred Wenger echoes when asked by congregants and others about Rabbi Rosen's selection. "She not only looked wonderful on paper, but she was getting raves from everyone I knew in the L.A. area."
Yet Rabbi Wenger acknowledges there was "an awful lot of soul-searching that went on by the congregation."
"But as I've said to others, we didn't do anything so terribly brave. We just chose the best rabbi we could find."
And her work has already begun. Rabbi Rosen, who arrived in mid-August, is still moving into her office at the synagogue and has scheduled meetings with a variety of area religious leaders. She was scheduled to meet with the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Friday, and has already met with a local Muslim imam to plan a joint Sept. 11 commemorative service.
Interfaith work is important to her, and she's had experience bringing people of different faiths together to talk and better understand each other, she said. But her biggest challenge for the foreseeable future will be convincing her congregants that "I'm here for all of them."
Congregation Kol Ami includes both Reform and Conservative Jews, and many of the former may be wondering what she can do for them as a Conservative rabbi when they're used to having a "balance of power." Rabbi Wenger comes from the Reform tradition, while Cantor Lawrence Loeb is Conservative.
But she believes that once people experience life within the congregation, the denominational lines "tend to blur," reflecting a trend nationally that sees the Reform movement embracing more ritual and the Conservative movement opening to nontraditional practices.
After a childhood immersed in Jewish school and activities, she graduated from Washington University in 1983 with a bachelor's degree in Jewish studies and an MBA in accounting and information systems. Working for 13 years as assistant vice president at Banc One in Columbus, Ohio, she found herself empty of spiritual and social fulfillment, wanting to "do more than add two cents a share to the stock of Banc One." So she sold her home, packed her belongings and headed for rabbinical school in L.A. a la the "Beverly Hillbillies."
She was married for a short time during the move, but the union ended quickly. She was searching for herself and for God, she said, "so I came to the rabbinate after my own adult search" for greater meaning personally and spiritually. Having significant life and career experience before entering the rabbinate has given her "a leg up" in managing administrative affairs and measuring "quality of service."
It's that mandate to serve individuals that will underlie her stay at Kol Ami, where she stands ready to "empathize with people and provide a hand across the bridge on the way back."
Rabbi Wenger believes firmly in his successor's "strong desire to move the depth of spirituality here forward." In spite of whatever challenges may arise, "We're just lucky to have her."
E-MAIL: carrie@desnews.com