This is turning out to be quite a farcical week among the alphabet soup of Jewish organizations; consider:

At the Jewish Agency, the nominating committee met yesterday to select a new chair of the executive. An open position with only one candidate. The meeting quickly turned unprofessional with voices raised and insults hurled. The result, no nominee. Hopefully a good night’s sleep has calmed everyone down.

At the Jewish National Fund, ghosts of Bush vs. Gore in the land-swap story. No hanging chads, just ‘x’ placed in the wrong box. Now, the courts are involved. Israeli politics at its best. Here’s more from The Jerusalem Post.

Finally, at Hebrew Union College, the story turns out to be ‘Much Ado About Nothing’. From the big need in April to close a campus (or two), suspend programs, sell buildings, reorganize the entire College in order to close a budget gap it appears nothing is changing. The imperative to make decisions at this week’s Board meeting vanished. The eyes-only Board publication, “A New Way Forward for HUC-JIR,” (June 15, 2009), must have been some read.

In all seriousness, these three organizations face major challenges in charting a course for the future. All three, in their own way, are proud institutions with a long history. All three play an important role in our global Jewish world. And, all three must get their own houses in order quickly. Whether we choose to admit it or not, we depend on each and every one of them to fulfill their individual missions. Quite simply, failure is not as option.