Announcing an Assistant Rabbi!
We are thrilled to announce
that we have hired Rachel Joseph
to be our Assistant Rabbi.
Rachel will be ordained June 2, 2012 at the Cincinnati Campus of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. Rachel, her husband Gabe, and their 10-month old son Max will then head West, joining our clergy team on July 1, 2012.
L’Dor V’Dor: The Generous Donor
With thanks to Jen Feldman, Development Director, and Rabbi and Cantor Cahana for their help procuring this generous gift, Betty Rosenfeld has established the Rosenfeld Family Assistant/Associate Rabbi Fund. We are most grateful for Betty’s admiration for the Cahanas and an investment in the future of Congregation Beth Israel. This gift is twofold: to give the clergy the help they need, as well as to give them the opportunity to mentor a young rabbi. L’Dor V’dor – this new rabbi will be the beneficiary of Rabbi Cahana’s mentoring and Betty’s commitment to the perpetuation of Reform Judaism, preparing the next generation of rabbis for our next generation of children. And while we want to thank and honor Betty, she was very clear that this is not about her but about giving CBI the opportunity to grow and nurture our congregation and the community and to provide Jewish leadership for the next generation.
B’Sheret: The Search Committee
CBI created a search committee, which included President Jill Rubinstein; Vice President/President Elect Stuart Chestler; Past Presidents Michael Simon and Craig Hartzman; Board Member and long–time congregant Renee Holzman; Leah Letts, a member of the leadership team for Jews Next Dor; and Ali Garfinkle, TOT Committee Co-Chair. Rabbi Cahana, Cantor Schiff, Cantor Cahana and our Senior Staff rounded out the committee. Our goal was to have a diverse cross section of our congregation represented. Once our application was posted in the CCAR Placement Office, CBI proved to be a much sought-after congregation, and many of the 5th year students responded with resumes. After the Search Committee reviewed the resumes, Rabbi Cahana, Jill Rubinstein and Stuart Chestler flew to the Cincinnati campus of HUC-JIR for a whirlwind round of interviews with the 5th year soon-to-be-ordained students. There was consensus for their favorites. We then invited the top candidates to have “Skype” interviews with the Search Committee. Again, there was a consensus for the favorites, and three candidates were invited to Portland to continue the interview process. All three were most impressive, but the final decision was unanimous among the Committee. Rabbi Cahana confirmed that he was in full agreement and that Rachel was also his first choice. He is looking forward to their collaborations, as well as to having the opportunity to mentor her. The Search Committee and the Board unanimously recommended and approved Rachel Joseph to be Beth Israel’s next Assistant Rabbi.
HaRav: Rachel L. Joseph
Rachel Joseph was born in Dayton, OH, and was raised in Cincinnati, OH. She was active at Isaac Meyer Wise Temple from a young age until high school graduation, and she spent every summer at Goldman Union Camp Institute, the URJ camp in Zionsville, Indiana. Rachel also lived internationally on and off during her childhood, while her father, Rabbi Sam Joseph, consulted in progressive Jewish communities from Australia and Brazil to Hong Kong. She attended Ohio University – Athens, where she majored in Interpersonal Communications with minors in Political Studies and Women’s Studies. After graduation, Rachel worked as a Legislative Assistant at the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism. She then began working for Americans United for Separation of Church and State, where she stayed for seven years in the Legislative Affairs Department as a lobbyist and Associate Director, until she resigned and began her rabbinic studies at the Jerusalem campus of HUC-JIR in Israel. Rachel is both a Wexner and Tisch Rabbinical Fellow. These are huge honors, given to the best and brightest in the class. Rachel completed her second and third years of studies at the Los Angeles campus of HUC-JIR, where she received her Master of Arts in Hebrew Letters. While in California, Rachel served congregations in Victorville and Merced as well as at Temple Isaiah of Los Angeles. She then moved back to Cincinnati for her fourth and fifth years of rabbinical school so she could be closer to family.
While in Cincinnati, Rachel has served as a chaplain at Cedar Village and is currently a student rabbi in Kokomo, Indiana. She is serving as a rabbinic intern for community organizing for the Union of Reform Judaism, Just Congregations and the Isaac Meyer Wise Temple.
To learn more about our new Assistant Rabbi, go to her website: www.rachelljospeh.blogspot.com
We look forward to welcoming Rachel and her family into the CBI family. We will have events planned for the summer and fall to help welcome her and meet our congregational family.
