25 years of Abraham Geiger College: anniversary and controversy in Potsdam

25 years of Abraham Geiger College: anniversary and controversy in Potsdam

Potsdam
Dispute of rabbin training in Potsdam: The Abraham Geiger Kolleg is the focus

16.08.2024, 04:05 am

The Abraham Geiger Kolleg in Potsdam, an important training center for liberal rabbi, can look back on 25 years of successful educational work. Nevertheless, a persistent conflict over the future of the institution overshadows the celebrations. The anniversary will be celebrated on September 5 in Berlin together with the ordination of eight rabbisers.

The Jewish community in Berlin, which has taken over the college of the college since the beginning of 2023, sees the structures that it has introduced as necessary to restore lost trust in the institution. The current rabbinical director of the college, rabbi Andama, is critical of the plans of the Central Council of Jews (ZDJ), who is aiming for a restart of the colleague under a new foundation.

The importance of rabbi training becomes particularly clear, Aoft 47 graduates are now active in liberal Jewish communities in Germany and internationally. The ZDJ plans to take control of the training, which is a reaction to allegations of abuse of power in the former leadership of the college. The allegations were rejected by the leadership of the college.

A spokesman for the Central Council emphasizes that despite the criticism of the new sponsorship, the training of rabbisers should be continued. The existing continuity in training is crucial, and the support of other donors, including the Federal Ministry of the Interior and the State Government of Brandenburg, is secured for the planned foundation.

In addition to the Abraham Geiger Kolleg, the Zacharias Frankel College, which focuses on conservative rabbi training, exists in Potsdam, as well as cantorate training. These facilities are also to be integrated into the new foundation, which underlines the importance of rabbinical training in the region. However, it remains to be seen whether the dispute could endanger the successful training work that has grown over a quarter of a century.

The coming months will be crucial for the future of Abraham Geiger College. The school community faces the challenge of promoting the dialogue between the different stakeholders in order to find a constructive solution for a modern and transparent training structure.

- Nag