As we near the High Holidays, many congregations will be seeing new faces up on the bimah. Meet 10 new rabbis as they tell us a little about themselves and describe the one message of Judaism they feel strongly about and hope to impart on their new congregations.
Rabbi Jordan Bendat-Appell
Aitz Hayim Center for Jewish Living in Highland Park
Rabbi Jordan Bendat-Appell, a native of Wilmette, is the first full-time rabbi at Aitz Hayim Center for Jewish Living in Highland Park. He comes to Aitz Hayim after completing rabbinical studies at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in Philadelphia. During rabbinical school, he spent one year at Machon Pardes in Jerusalem, he worked for Hillel, led Jewish spiritual backpacking trips, and was an intern for the Institute for Jewish Spirituality, where he taught Jewish meditation and contemplative text study. Rabbi Bendat-Appell is also an avid backpacker and yoga practitioner. He and his wife Yael are the proud parents of Adin.
“Shortly before dying, Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel said, "...Let them remember that there is a meaning beyond absurdity. Let them be sure that every deed counts, that every word has power, and that we all can do our share to redeem the world in spite of all absurdities and all frustrations and all disappointments. And above all, [let them] remember ...to build a life as if it were a work of art." This statement gets to the core of so much that I find true and powerful in Judaism. Just as the artist brings her full attention and intention to the creative task at hand, so too we can aspire to engage in our lives with a similar quality of being. For me, Judaism is a practice of deepening the experience of being a human; striving, in partnership with the Divine, to live with courage, intention, and responsibility towards all life. It is this kind of Jewish living that I hope to share with my new community. Let us make our lives truly beautiful.”
Rabbi Reuven Brand
Rosh Kollel, Yeshiva University Torah Mitzion Kollel of Chicago
Rabbi Reuven Brand is the new Rosh Kollel of the Yeshiva University Kollel Torah Mitzion of Chicago. He was a member of the Bella and Harry Wexner Kollel Elyon at Yeshiva University, where he received his ordination from its affiliate, Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary. He holds a Master's degree in Jewish Education from the Azrieli Graduate School of Education and Administration and a B.A. in history from Yeshiva College. He also studied at Yeshivat Kerem B'Yavneh in Israel. He has published several articles on Talmudic topics and edited three different volumes of Jewish scholarship. Rabbi Brand is a founder of Lman Achai, a student organization dedicated to the needs of Jews in Israel, including feeding the hungry and supporting victims of terror. He has served as Scholar-in-Residence and directed educational programs in communities across the United States, in Europe and Australia. He and his wife, Nechama, have two sons, Chaim and Ilan.
“Jewish learning, Torah study, enriches and engages our lives, and it inspires us to grow in our journey through life. Celebrating our timeless tradition, its classical and contemporary texts, enables us to advance our Jewish living and inform our involvement in society. The mission of our Kollel is to provide an opportunity for every person to access and embrace this treasure with a team of talented, dynamic Jewish scholars and educators.”
Rabbi Darryl Crystal
KAM Isaiah Israel, Chicago
Rabbi Darryl Crystal is the new Interim Rabbi of KAM Isaiah Israel. He served for 18 years as the Senior Rabbi and Associate Rabbi of North Shore Synagogue, a congregation of over 900 families, in Syosset, New York. He has worked as an Interim Rabbi in small and medium congregations in Newburgh, New York, Madison, Wisconsin, Skokie, Illinois, and Chester, Connecticut. Rabbi Crystal was ordained at Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion, in Cincinnati, Ohio. He was one of the first rabbis to be trained by the Institute for Jewish Spirituality and also recently studied for a year in Jerusalem at the Pardes Institute and at the Conservative Yeshiva. He has also studied with Hebrew College, in Boston, with Chabad and Breslav Hasidic Rabbis, and with teachers of the Jewish Renewal movement at the Elat Chayyim Spiritual Retreat Center.
Working with children and teenagers is a joy for Rabbi Crystal. He brings an assortment of Beanie Babies, boxes of 96 Crayola Crayons (with the sharpener in the back), and costumes for stories with him to each congregation he serves. He served as the Chairman of the Committee on Youth for the Central Conference of American Rabbis and has worked at Union for Reform Judaism Camps in New York, Massachusetts, Mississippi, and Pennsylvania. Rabbi Crystal has worked at the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, which is the voice for social justice of the movement in Washington, DC. He also worked as a hospital chaplain at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, in Chicago.
“KAM Isaiah Israel is a dynamic and historic congregation. The members of the synagogue are deeply committed to social justice, Jewish learning, and the rich musical heritage of Judaism.
I have been strongly influenced by the commitment to social action of the Reform movement, which affirms the words of Deuteronomy ‘Justice, justice you shall pursue.’ I am also moved by teachings of the early Hasidic masters. The often quote the verse from Psalms, ‘I place God before me always.’ They say that every moment of life provides an opportunity to experience the presence of the Divine in the world.
The ideal by which I strive to live and which I work to share with others is that we create a just society through our actions. Every single deed provides an opportunity to add a tile of kindness to the mosaic of a compassionate world which our tradition strives to create. The poem, ‘A Rebbe’s Proverb’, translated from Yiddish by Danny Siegel in his book, And God Braided Eve’s Hair, brings this value to life:
If you always assume the person sitting next to you is the Messiah waiting for some simple human kindness—you will soon come to weigh your words and watch your hands. And if he chooses not to be revealed in your time—It will not matter.”
Rabbi Zvi Engel
Congregation Or Torah, Skokie
Born and raised in Montreal, Rabbi Zvi Engel comes to Congregation Or Torah in Skokie, after serving as the rabbi of Congregation Ahavath Achim in Fairfield, CT. After completing his studies at Hebrew Academy in Cote St. Luc, Rabbi Engel studied at Yeshivat Har Etzion in Israel, then earned his Diplôme d'Etudes Collégiales in Pure & Applied Sciences from CEGEP at Marianopolis College in Montreal. Rabbi Engel holds a B.A. in English Literature from Yeshiva University, and received his rabbinic ordination from the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary (RIETS) in 2002. Rabbi Engel draws inspiration from his wife Laurie, and together they feel blessed by their sons, Gavriel, 4, and Yaakov, 20 months.
“A Jewish spiritual life filled with joy, purpose, and meaning, is a Jewish spiritual life that invites the presence of the Holy One Blessed Be He into every facet of life, walking the path set by our Torah and Sages, called the Halakha. My teacher, Rabbi Aharon Lichtenstein, teaches that the peaks and the plateaus, the poetry and the prose, the mystique and the minutiae, are all part of a life that must be sanctified by the Halakha.”
Rabbi Matthew Futterman
Anshe Emet Synagogue, Lakeview
Rabbi Matt Futterman comes to Anshe Emet Synagogue after serving for four years as the first rabbi of the Israel Center of Conservative Judaism. He previously served for 18 years in Israel as rabbi of the first Masorti (Conservative) congregation of the city of Ashkelon, Kehillat Netzach Israel. Rabbi Futterman was instrumental in establishing Ashkelon’s second Masorti community, Kehillat Hineinu Kan (“We are Here”) serving the needs of Russian speaking immigrants who lived too far from his own former congregation. Prior to making aliyah, Rabbi Futterman served as the rabbi of Congregation Beth Ohr in Old Bridge, New Jersey. Rabbi Futterman received his ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary in 1982 where he also earned B.A and M.A. degrees. He earned a B.A. degree at Columbia College and both M.A. and Ed.M. degrees in counseling psychology from Teachers College at Columbia University. He specialized in family counseling and cross cultural counseling.
Rabbi Futterman has been married for nearly 29 years to his wife, Chana, who currently teaches at the Abraham Joshua Heschel School in Manhattan. They have three children, Yael, 24, Itamar, 20 and Alon, 25, all living in Israel.
“The Yamim Noraiim (Days of Awe) provide us with much needed ‘second chances’ helping us to become better and stronger human beings. By allotting time for intense prayer and self examination we are able to recognize our strengths and—even more so—our weaknesses and thereby effect change in ourselves and ultimately in our societies.”
Rabbi Ruth Gelfarb
University of Chicago Hillel
Rabbi Ruthie Gelfarb comes to Chicago to serve as the Senior Jewish Educator at the Newberg Center at the University of Chicago—a position being piloted on six campuses across the US—where she will engage Jewish university students on the periphery of Jewish life. Prior to joining us in Chicago, Ruth Gelfarb was the Director of Service at the American Jewish World Service, an international development organization. A second career Rabbi, she worked in the non-profit/philanthropy sectors for 15 years including at the New Israel Fund and the Chicago Foundation for Women. Rabbi Gelfarb is a graduate of Harvard College, Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion and the Pardes Insitute of Jewish Studies. In addition, she trained as a Navy Chaplain, is a fluent Spanish Speaker and led Jewish immersions trips in Africa, Asia, Israel, and Central America.
“Judaism is a wisdom/spiritual tradition that offers each Jew the opportunity to learn how to be a better person, to be a member of the community and take up our responsibility toward the other 6 billion people on the planet. My rabbinate is motivated by a passion for engaging others in the wisdom tradition called Judaism and for social justice domestically and globally.”
Rabbi Ira Grusscott
Congregation Ezras Israel, Chicago
Rabbi Ira S. Grussgott, a graduate of Yeshiva University, comes to Ezras Israel from Philadelphia, where he has served most recently as rabbi at Kesher Israel Congregation. He also has held pulpits Canada and New Jersey. Rabbi Grussgott was ordained at Yeshiva University, where, in addition to smicha, he earned a Master of Science degree in Jewish Philosophy and Cantorial certification. His undergraduate degree is a Bachelor of Science degree in Speech from Brooklyn College (C.U.N.Y). He also is certified in Pastoral Chaplaincy and has been active in Jewish communal and educational organizations wherever he has lived and worked. Rabbi Grussgott and his wife, Miriam have four grown children: Suri, Moshe, Josh, and Leba.
“The one facet of Judaism that I feel strongly about is that we are multi-faceted. Therefore I promote diversity and decry divisiveness; we are disparate, not disparaging; I promote unity, not uniformity (here in our local Jewish community and in Israel, especially).”
Rabbi Daniel Kroll
Assistant rabbi at KINS Chicago
Rabbi Daniel Kroll, the new assistant Rabbi at KINS Chicago, grew up in West Rogers Park and graduated Ida Crown Jewish Academy in 2001. Upon completion of two years of study in Israel, he went on to earn his BA in Psychology from Yeshiva University. Rabbi Kroll attended the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary (RIETS) of Yeshiva University. Along with his studies at RIETS, he is finishing up his MA in Jewish Education at the Azrieli Graduate School of Yeshiva University. Rabbi Kroll is also a veteran staff member at Camp Moshava and has served as the Rosh Moshava, head of programming, for the past two summers. Prior to his move to Chicago, Rabbi Kroll taught Judaic Studies at SAR High School in New York. Rabbi Kroll is married to Shira and together they have a five month old daughter, Rayli.
“I hope to energize my new congregation with the help of the synagogue's Senior Rabbi, Rabbi Leonard Matanky. I want to stimulate growth within our synagogue, by reaching out to all members of the community, both young and old. Exciting and innovative programming within the synagogue will help our community grow and thrive; the lifeblood of the Jewish community is the synagogue and I seek find ways to grow our congregation and make it even bigger and stronger.”
Rabbi Marc Rudolph
Congregation Beth Shalom, Naperville
Rabbi Marc Rudolph, the new rabbi at Congregation Beth Shalom in Naperville, was born and raised in Scranton, Pennsylvania. He earned a Bachelors of Arts from the University of Pittsburgh and a Masters Degree in Social Work from Boston University. Following his graduation from Boston University, Rabbi Rudolph worked as a psychotherapist, supervisor, and consultant for many years in community mental health and in private practice. In 2004, Rabbi Rudolph was ordained as a Rabbi from the Academy for Jewish Religion, an independent, pluralistic seminary in New York City and previously served as Rabbi at Congregation B’nai Jacob in Longmeadow, Massachusetts. Rabbi Rudolph and his wife Middy have two sons, Mario and Ariel.
“As Moses tells the Israelites, Judaism is not so far away that a prophet has to cross the far seas to bring it to them and teach it to them. Rather, Judaism is accessible to each and every one of us. Torah is relevant to our everyday lives, and there are many pathways to connect to it. I hope to bring people closer to Judaism, and inspire them to experience the beauty, majesty, and wisdom of our tradition.”
Rabbi Brian Stoller
Congregation B’nai Jehoshua Elohim, Glenview
Rabbi A. Brian Stoller is BJBE’s new Associate Rabbi. He has a commitment to teaching Torah and creating challenges to help others think in a new way, helping them to learn to love the intellectual and spiritual experiences of study. Before being ordained as a Rabbi from Hebrew Union College in May 2008, he served as press secretary to U.S. Senator Peter G. Fitzgerald. Rabbi Stoller brings to BJBE a vision of an open and loving community that is committed to lifelong learning, the creation of spiritual opportunities, and a meaningful engagement to our world through acts of kindness.
“I believe strongly in the overarching Reform principle of ‘informed choice,’ meaning that it is incumbent upon every Reform Jew to create his or her own mode of Jewish living and practice on the basis of knowledge of the tradition. Therefore, I believe that lifelong learning is essential to a meaningful and engaged Reform lifestyle; after all, we cannot make informed choices about our religious practice if we are uninformed.”
