“sermons are different, they involve moralizing, which, come to think of it, is just what they said Rabbi Lamden used to deliver when he ran the course. Besides, the people who hear my sermons are the people who pay my salary, and I always have the feeling they’re judging me to see if they’re getting their money’s worth.”
She was amused. “Oh David. I don’t know where you get that idea.”
“Besides, their minds are all fixed, their thought patterns crystallized. Nothing I say is apt to influence them. But these young people in school, they’re not frozen, they’re not afraid to express their ideas. Mostly they’re wrong, of course, but they hold them tenaciously and are ready to argue them, there was a girl today, obviously Women’s Lib, who tried to heckle me ”
“That I would have liked to see.” laughed Miriam.
The rabbi laughed, too. “She wasn’t bad, at that.”
He looked forward eagerly to his next lecture on Friday, the street was practically empty when he pulled up in front of the administration building, and for a moment he wondered if perhaps his watch was slow; but as he strode down the corridor he could hear voices from his classroom, as he pushed open the door, he thought he must have made some mistake. Only a scattering of students was present, then he had the sickening feeling that he had misjudged their reaction to his first lecture, he forced a smile. “The class seems to have shrunk.”
Several of the students smiled back and one volunteered. “Most of the kids cut on Fridays to get a head start.”
“A head start? A head start for what?”
“Oh, you know, for the weekend.”
“I see.” He understood now why the Dean had been apologetic about scheduling his course for Friday afternoon, he was nonplused, not sure how to proceed. Should he go ahead with the material he had prepared or devote the hour to reviewing his last lecture so that the absentees would not fall behind? He decided to deliver the lecture, but it was not the same, he could not help feel indignant, and he was sure the students were aware of it and took a perverse pleasure in his discomfiture.
At last the class was over, but his annoyance lasted all the way home. Fortunately, Miriam was busy preparing for the Sabbath, so there was no time to discuss it.
The following Monday he had full attendance again: twenty-eight. On Wednesday; too; but on Friday there were even less than the previous week: only ten, and so it continued: good attendance on Mondays and Wednesdays, a mere handful on Fridays.
When after a month they had finished the Pentateuch, he announced a quiz for Friday. It was a declaration of war on his part.
“Are we going to be responsible for all the names? You know, so-and-so begat so-and-so?”
“No, but I will expect you to know certain genealogical material. Certainly, you ought to know the names of Adam’s children, or Abraham’s.”
“Couldn’t we have the test on Monday?”
“Do you think you will be luckier then?”
“No, but we could have the weekend to prepare for it.”
“Look at it this way. Now you can have the whole weekend to recover.”
He stopped off at his office on Friday; and Professor Hendryx, seeing the bluebooks, looked up in surprise.
“You enjoy giving quizzes. Rabbi?”
“Not particularly. Why?”
“Because anyone quizzing on Friday has to quiz twice.” said Hendryx.
“I don’t understand.”
“Simply that you have to prepare not only the original, and then read the bluebooks and make all those comments in red in the margin and grade them, but the makeup as well. You can’t expect more than half your class to turn up on a Friday.”
“Oh, I think they’ll all be there today.” said the rabbi confidently. “I gave them plenty of notice and impressed on them this was an hour exam and important to their grades.”
But he arrived at the classroom to find only fifteen students, he spent the hour walking about the room as the
She was amused. “Oh David. I don’t know where you get that idea.”
“Besides, their minds are all fixed, their thought patterns crystallized. Nothing I say is apt to influence them. But these young people in school, they’re not frozen, they’re not afraid to express their ideas. Mostly they’re wrong, of course, but they hold them tenaciously and are ready to argue them, there was a girl today, obviously Women’s Lib, who tried to heckle me ”
“That I would have liked to see.” laughed Miriam.
The rabbi laughed, too. “She wasn’t bad, at that.”
He looked forward eagerly to his next lecture on Friday, the street was practically empty when he pulled up in front of the administration building, and for a moment he wondered if perhaps his watch was slow; but as he strode down the corridor he could hear voices from his classroom, as he pushed open the door, he thought he must have made some mistake. Only a scattering of students was present, then he had the sickening feeling that he had misjudged their reaction to his first lecture, he forced a smile. “The class seems to have shrunk.”
Several of the students smiled back and one volunteered. “Most of the kids cut on Fridays to get a head start.”
“A head start? A head start for what?”
“Oh, you know, for the weekend.”
“I see.” He understood now why the Dean had been apologetic about scheduling his course for Friday afternoon, he was nonplused, not sure how to proceed. Should he go ahead with the material he had prepared or devote the hour to reviewing his last lecture so that the absentees would not fall behind? He decided to deliver the lecture, but it was not the same, he could not help feel indignant, and he was sure the students were aware of it and took a perverse pleasure in his discomfiture.
At last the class was over, but his annoyance lasted all the way home. Fortunately, Miriam was busy preparing for the Sabbath, so there was no time to discuss it.
The following Monday he had full attendance again: twenty-eight. On Wednesday; too; but on Friday there were even less than the previous week: only ten, and so it continued: good attendance on Mondays and Wednesdays, a mere handful on Fridays.
When after a month they had finished the Pentateuch, he announced a quiz for Friday. It was a declaration of war on his part.
“Are we going to be responsible for all the names? You know, so-and-so begat so-and-so?”
“No, but I will expect you to know certain genealogical material. Certainly, you ought to know the names of Adam’s children, or Abraham’s.”
“Couldn’t we have the test on Monday?”
“Do you think you will be luckier then?”
“No, but we could have the weekend to prepare for it.”
“Look at it this way. Now you can have the whole weekend to recover.”
He stopped off at his office on Friday; and Professor Hendryx, seeing the bluebooks, looked up in surprise.
“You enjoy giving quizzes. Rabbi?”
“Not particularly. Why?”
“Because anyone quizzing on Friday has to quiz twice.” said Hendryx.
“I don’t understand.”
“Simply that you have to prepare not only the original, and then read the bluebooks and make all those comments in red in the margin and grade them, but the makeup as well. You can’t expect more than half your class to turn up on a Friday.”
“Oh, I think they’ll all be there today.” said the rabbi confidently. “I gave them plenty of notice and impressed on them this was an hour exam and important to their grades.”
But he arrived at the classroom to find only fifteen students, he spent the hour walking about the room as the
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