Yeah. I know a couple people who would happily become rabbis if they could afford it and a Conservative shul near where I grew up was lay-led for YEARS. I don’t think that this article really found the heart of the issue.

One of the two major issues I see is money. [Heterodox] rabbinical school is expensive, and that’s before factoring in the time that students are not earning that money at another job. We need better networks in place to not only support students while they are not making their own money but also to enable them to meet rabbinical school’s fees. As it is now, rabbinical students need very supportive and wealthy families. We are missing out on some fantastic potential rabbis just because the dollars and cents don’t work out. Not to mention that congregational rabbis tend not to make all that much money. Sure, some people will do this job for the love of it, but they deserve better and that again limits you to people who marry lawyers or can otherwise afford it.

The other issue is of affiliation. For example, we get people in this sub complaining all the time that their congregation doesn’t have much to offer people in their 30s with no kids. I believe one of the duties of a rabbi is to bring the community together. Have events people will want to come to. Build a refuge and a place of connection. Of course, the synagogue board should also be helping with that. But it’s a major issue with keeping congregations alive.