Saturday, July 17, 2010

Hanky Panky on a Shul Board (Hammerman on Ethics)

My latest Jewish Week ethics scenario: Hanky Panky on a Shul Board:

Q - I'm a shul president and I've just discovered that two of my board members have been carrying on an affair, using board meeting nights as cover for their trysts. I like them both and they are very hard workers. I like their spouses too. I'm not sure what to do. Do I confront them? Do I tell the rabbi? Do I kick them off the board?

A - Confront them in private and if they fess up, hope that they have the good sense to resign from the board, effective immediately. Otherwise, once the news gets out, if you do nothing, the reputation of your board and, by extension, your congregation, will be in the toilet.

See the full response (including a reference to my own experience dealing with this exact same situation) here.

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