Four Approaches to Teshuva Rabbi Avi Bart is a shaliach of the Straus-Amiel Emissary Training Institute serving as the Assistant Rabbi of Blake Street Synagogue in Melbourne, Australia Eyes closed, face buried in your machzor; you stand in shul. Swaying gently in rhythm with the haunting melody of ונתנה תוקף ‘Let us voice the power …
The Emotional Pull of the Shofar Rabbi Nir and Andy Koren are shlichim of the Straus-Amiel Emissary Training Institute serving as Rabbi and Rebbetzin of the Jewish community in Quito, Ecuador At the climax of Yom Kippur, right after the solemn Tekia Gedola (the long shofar blast), a woman from our community who defines herself as someone who …
Shlichut as a Way of Life: Serving the Jewish People Through Emissary Work Rabbi Eliahu Birnbaum is the founding director of OTS’s Beren-Amiel and Straus-Amiel Emissary Training Programs For me, Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur are days of contemplation, a time to reflect upon my life and my place in this world. Alongside the beautiful …
The Breath of Life Rabbi Shlomo Schachter is a shaliach of the Straus-Amiel Emissary Training Institute serving as the Associate Rabbi of Congregation Schara Tzedeck in Vancouver, Canada As a general rule of thumb in Judaism, the more important something is to us, the more rules we have about it. Shabbat, for example, is the …
Chicago to Israel to Kenya A family’s story of living Jewishly on three continents Michelle Cohen, May 28, 2021 When Avital Kaszovitz prepared to be a Modern Orthodox shlicha (emissary) to the Jewish community in Kenya, she never imagined one of the first things she would do would be sending homemade challah and chicken soup to recovering COVID-19 …
Ensuring Jewish Community Growth, Even During a Pandemic When idealistic, committed young adults embark on the two-year Straus-Amiel Emissary Training Program for rabbinical couples, they cannot possibly imagine all of the challenges they will face building Jewish community throughout the Diaspora; least of all, those that will arise due to a worldwide pandemic. During the …
Exodus to Freedom in New Zealand: Seder night without masks or social distancing Members of the Jewish community are registered on an app and at any given time they know who needs to self-isolate and who has been exposed to a Covid-19 patient. However, this is insufficient to reduce worry about gatherings, and only half of …
Ayala (Shapira) and Eliran Shabo Athens, Greece Eliran Shebo is serving as Deputy Rabbi while Ayala (Shapira) Shebo is a teacher as well as being responsible for community projects in the Jewish community of Athens, Greece. The couple was the first to go out on shlichut from last year’s crop of graduates (because of COVID); …
“One Extended Family” – OTS Emissary Training Programs Reach Out to Students’ Parents When a young couple makes the decision to leave Israel and serve as emissaries, the move impacts not only them, but their parents, as well. Over the last 22 years, Ohr Torah Stone’s Straus-Amiel Rabbinical Emissary Program, Beren-Amiel Educational Emissary Program and …
Natalia and Shaul FribergHeidelberg, Germany Rabbi Shaul and Rabbanit Natalia Friberg have been serving as the Rabbi and Rebbetzin of the young people in the “Hochschule für Jüdische Studien” community in Heidelberg, Germany, for the past 13 years. Children:Hannah- 24Raphael- 22Sarah – 20Shimon- 18Chava- 16 Tell us about the community you’re in:We serve as the campus …
Ruchama and Ariel YeshurunMiami, Florida, USA Ariel and Ruchama Yeshurun have been serving as the Rabbi and Rebbetzin of the Skylake Synagogue in Miami, Florida for the past 10 years. Children:Avner Yishai – 20Akiva Nechemia – 18Tamara Naomi – 16Leah Zahava – 10Sasson Moshe – 7Yakira Mazal – 2 Tell us about the community you’re …
Collector of Jewish souls: A rabbi’s treasures culled from around the world When he arrives in a new community, Rabbi Eliahu Birnbaum, 62, slips into detective mode: “I’ve found amazing old books, prayers, Haggadahs and more in those places.” By Deborah Fineblum | January 25, 2021 (JNS) A 12-branch copper candelabra kindled on holidays by Jews …
