On December 9, 2008, 30 of my colleagues and I from around the United States and Canada were honored by the Jewish Theological Seminary with Doctoral Degrees. Every year, the seminary holds a special convocation ceremony to honor professionals in the Jewish community by offering these Doctorates. This year it was to members of the Conservative Cantorate.

I wish to thank those from the congregation who honored me by coming to New York for the Convocation and to Tom Wexelberg Clauser and Michele Siegal from JTS for all their hard work in helping to prepare for that day. Before the ceremony the group from Detroit had a tour of the rare books collection of the seminary library and learned from two of the librarians. One who spoke about the rare books dealing with prayer and music in the library and the second about the online musicology collection which can be accessed on the JTS web site: www.jtsa.edu.

After the tour, we had lunch together before the Convocation Ceremony. The auditorium was full and the contingent from Detroit, much to my appreciation, made their presence known. Below is the Citation which came along with the Diploma.

Hazzan Earl Gordon Berris
Doctor of Music

You are the beloved cantor of Congregation B’nai Moshe in West Bloomfield, Michigan. Respected marriage and family counselor, you began your illustrious thirty year career as a hazzan via your training at The Jewish Theological Seminary’s Cantors Institute. You became the treasured associate cantor in Farmington Hills, Michigan and served with distinction as cantor and religious school principal in Overland Park, Kansas.

You have devoted yourself to working tirelessly with children, adults and the developmentally challenged, and the new siddur you coauthored allows Jews with little Judaic background to feel welcome and participate with ease in Shabbat services. So adored are your original congregational songs, they have been published by the Cantors Assembly for use by other synagogues and cantors. You are a founder of the Bima Players, founder and president of the Michigan Board of Cantors, and you have served as esteemed chairman of the Cantors Assembly’s Tri-state / Great Lakes and Rivers Region, and valued president of the Cantors Council of Metropolitan Detroit.

Your love of sacred music, the Jewish people, and community life has offered solace to those in need and inspired many to follow in your distinguished footsteps.

I want to thank those of you who have, already, offered me a Mazal Tov and wish to invite all to come and continue this honor conferred upon me by supporting the seminary and joining us on January 18 for the local JTS reception and music program.