A nonprofit, independent news source to inform, inspire, educate and connect the St. Louis Jewish community.

St. Louis Jewish Light

A nonprofit, independent news source to inform, inspire, educate and connect the St. Louis Jewish community.

St. Louis Jewish Light

A nonprofit, independent news source to inform, inspire, educate and connect the St. Louis Jewish community.

St. Louis Jewish Light

Sara Hurwitz, Amy Eilberg, Sandy Eisenberg Sasso and Sally J. Priesand, each of whom was the first female rabbi in her branch of Judaism.
Courtesy of The Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives

The ordination of the first female rabbi 50 years ago has brought many changes – and some challenges

Carole B. Balin, , Hebrew Union College - Jewish Institute of ReligionPublished June 3, 2022

Fifty years ago, on June 3, 1972, as Sally J. Priesand became the first woman ordained a rabbi by a Jewish seminary, her 35 male classmates spontaneously rose to their feet to acknowledge her historic feat. For nearly 2,000 years, the position of rabbi...

St. Louis born rabbi tells his story of working a Covid ICU

St. Louis born rabbi tells his story of working a Covid ICU

Jordan Palmer, Chief Digital Content OfficerPublished January 18, 2022

"As a rabbi who works as a chaplain at a hospital in Indianapolis, I’ve held my tongue a lot when it comes to COVID-19 and the emotional strain it puts on the medical staff. But now — as my team at Indiana University Health is responsible for pastoral...

Rabbi Manis Friedman

Author to talk about keeping the ‘wow’ in relationships

Published May 9, 2019

Chabad of Chesterfield will welcome author, lecturer and relationship expert Rabbi Manis Friedman for a discussion  of “Putting the Wow Into Relationships and Keeping It There” on Sunday, May 19 at the Hilton Frontenac, 1335 S. Lindbergh Blvd.The...

ISRAEL RABBINATE COUNCIL

ISRAEL RABBINATE COUNCIL

Published January 4, 2019

Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi David Lau, second from left; Sephardi Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef, third from left; and Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau at a special meeting of the Israeli Rabbinate Council at the Western Wall tunnels in Jerusalem’s Old City, May 24, 2017....

New rabbis who will be joining local Reform congregations are Adam Bellows, Karen and Daniel Bogard and Lori Levine.

Four young rabbis heading to STL congregations

BY ERIC BERGER, STAFF WRITERPublished April 4, 2018

A Reform rabbi starting a new job this summer in St. Louis will not have to look far to find someone having a similar experience.Four rabbis — including a St. Louis native — will join Central Reform Congregation, Congregation Shaare Emeth and United...

Amy Feder is Senior Rabbi at Congregation Temple Israel.

Visiting the sick: A rewarding mitzvah

By Rabbi Amy FederPublished April 6, 2016

In my teens, when I first started thinking of becoming a rabbi, I spent a summer shadowing several rabbis in St. Louis to get a sense of what they did every day and to try and imagine whether I could ever stand in their shoes. By the end of the summer,...

Rabbi Seymour Rosen-bloom retired recently after 36 years as spiritual leader of Congregation Adath Jeshurun in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania. He is now the president of the Jewish Social Policy Action Network. His commentary was distributed by JTA.

It’s time to allow Conservative rabbis to officiate at interfaith weddings

Uriel HeilmanPublished April 4, 2016

ELKINS PARK, Pa. (JTA) — The Conservative movement’s leadership must drop its ban on Conservative rabbis officiating at interfaith weddings — before it’s too late.The Rabbinical Assembly’s unequivocal rule is that a Conservative rabbi may...

Getting chai on ‘Weeds’: the top Jewish references

By Jason Miller, JTAPublished August 2, 2012

WEST BLOOMFIELD, Mich. -- Fans of the long-running Showtime series “Weeds” know that writer and creator Jenji Kohan is not afraid to pepper the show with Jewish themes. While the show, now in its final season, has changed its flavor over the years...

Lay leaders and rabbis of small congregations participating in United Synagogue of Conservative Judaisms Size Matters 2012 conference in Wilmette, Ill., June 4, 2012.

Smaller congregations experimenting to stay vibrant, gaining attention from movements

By Yisrael Shapiro, JTAPublished June 17, 2012

CHICAGO — Sinai Synagogue in South Bend, Ind., has been struggling with issues facing many small congregations in an era of dwindling budgets and shifting demographics. In particular, with only 150 families, until recently it was increasingly difficult...

B’nai Amoona offers adult education classes

Published June 13, 2012

Congregation B’nai Amoona offers a variety of adult education courses throughout the week on an ongoing basis. Classes include: • Sunday Talmud Class — from 10:15 to 11:30 a.m. in the Hieken Conference Room, led by Rabbis Barry Friedman and Josef...

Rabbi James Stone Goodman leads a Passover seder at Southeast Correctional Center recently as part of Jewish Prison Outreach.

Rabbi Goodman: inviting people ‘back into the tent’

By Ellen Futterman, EditorPublished June 6, 2012

If there is anyone in the St. Louis Jewish community dedicated to those who feel neglected or overlooked, it’s Rabbi James Goodman of Congregation Neve Shalom. For the past three decades, the affable rabbi has helped to spearhead grassroots outreach...

Some 40,000 haredi Orthodox men filled Citi Field in New York to rally against the dangers of the Internet, May 20, 2012.

Haredim fill N.Y. baseball stadium to decry error of Internet’s ways

By Ben Sales, JTAPublished May 21, 2012

NEW YORK — The sellout crowd that filled Citi Field on Sunday night wore black and white, not the New York Mets’ blue and orange. And instead of jeering the Philadelphia Phillies or Atlanta Braves, they faced a foe that was, to hear them talk about...

Load More Stories