Your donation will be tax deductible in the US to the extent allowed by the IRS.
To make a tax-deductible donation by wire transfer in the US, please contact:
Avrum Lapin, North American Representative
Toll-free: 1-866-830-3321
Email: schechter@thelapingroup.com
To make a tax-deductible donation in Israel, please contact:
Dina Gudai, Israeli Representative
Phone: 074-7800643
Email: dina@schechter.ac.il
Please mail your check to:
The Schechter Institutes, Inc. (a 501(c) 3 tax exempt organization)
Box #3566
PO Box 8500
Philadelphia, PA 19178-3566
Attn: Mr. Avrum Lapin, North American Representative
Toll-free: 1-866-830-3321
Email: schechter@thelapingroup.com
Please indicate the donation is "for your joint Schechter Institutes program."
Checks should be made payable to the Jewish Theological Society of Canada and mailed to:
Jewish Theological Society of Canada
c/o Camp Ramah in Canada
3845 Bathhurst St., Suite 310
Toronto, ON, M3H 3N2
Phone: 416-789-2193, ext. 2139
E-mail: accounting@campramah.com
Please mail a check to:
The Schechter Institutes
Attn: Dina Gudai, Finance Department
PO Box 16080,
Jerusalem, 9116002
Israel
For assistance, please call Dina Gudai at 074-780-0643 (8:00 AM – 3:00 Israel time Sunday through Thursday).
Your donation will be tax deductible in the US to the extent allowed by the IRS.
To make a tax-deductible donation by wire transfer in the US, please contact:
Avrum Lapin, North American Representative
Toll-free: 1-866-830-3321
Email: schechter@thelapingroup.com
To make a tax-deductible donation in Israel, please contact:
Dina Gudai, Israeli Representative
Phone: 074-7800643
Email: dina@schechter.ac.il
Please mail your check to:
The Schechter Institutes, Inc. (a 501(c) 3 tax exempt organization)
Box #3566
PO Box 8500
Philadelphia, PA 19178-3566
Attn: Mr. Avrum Lapin, North American Representative
Toll-free: 1-866-830-3321
Email: schechter@thelapingroup.com
Please indicate the donation is "for your joint Schechter Institutes program."
Checks should be made payable to the Jewish Theological Society of Canada and mailed to:
Jewish Theological Society of Canada
c/o Camp Ramah in Canada
3845 Bathhurst St., Suite 310
Toronto, ON, M3H 3N2
Phone: 416-789-2193, ext. 2139
E-mail: accounting@campramah.com
Please mail a check to:
The Schechter Institutes
Attn: Dina Gudai, Finance Department
PO Box 16080,
Jerusalem, 9116002
Israel
For assistance, please call Dina Gudai at 074-780-0643 (8:00 AM – 3:00 Israel time Sunday through Thursday).
24/11/2024
113 is an excellent number. Mazal Tov!
This is the number of men and women ordained by the Schechter Rabbinical Seminary (SRS).
On November 19th, Rabbi Yuval Katz of Vienna, Austria and Rabbi David Goodman of Jerusalem were ordained at a festive ceremony that included the participation of 25 guests from abroad in Jerusalem for Schechter’s 40th Anniversary Mission.
SRS’ first ordination class of four students completed their studies in 1988. Today some 36 years later, Yuval and David join this long list of esteemed rabbis from SRS.
“David and Yuval have chosen to celebrate their ordination with words and sounds of comfort. Leading a complex path, which bravely embraces the uncertain and uncomfortable qualities of contradiction – both Halacha and change, both “traditionalism” and flexibility, both truth and peace – is the task of the Masorti (Conservative) rabbi,” states SRS Dean, Rabbi Chaya Rowen Baker.
Dr. Yuval Katz received his PhD. from Vienna (Austria) University in Jewish studies. A book based on his dissertation concerning the souls of converts in Jewish Law and Theology – taken from a phrase in Genesis 12:5 ‘and the souls they have made’ – is forthcoming from Vienna University Press.
Rabbi Dr. Yuval Katz
For him, Schechter is the best rabbinical school that merges both academics and rabbinics. The seriousness of Talmud and Halakhah teaching is unmatched in Europe and Israel.
“Believe me”, he says, “I thoroughly explored institutions and found Schechter to be above and beyond the best for bringing together real-life experiences with truly academic religious studies.”
Yuval began his professional career as a computer engineer. His BA provided him with an expertise in hardware and real time engineering. In Israel, he worked on specialized communications equipment for Israel’s defense forces while in Austria he was part of the NASA team that developed and launched the Orion reusable crew spacecraft in the larger Artemis program.
“I studied at Tel Hai College in Kiryat Shemona and stayed after my studies completed to work on a project for the IDF. My parents, though, lived in Rishon Le’Zion which is three hours away. Today, though I am living in Vienna, it is still a three-hour journey to see my parents. So not much has really changed,” says Yuval.
Today, Yuval is the leader of a congregation which he describes as “Conservative Judaism adjacent.” “It is like a chavura where congregants participate in the service and the activities for families and children. I lead the weekly study sessions,” he reports.
David is currently the co-rabbi of Kehillat Moreshet Avraham, one of the Masorti Movement’s long-standing congregations located in Jerusalem’s East Talpiot neighborhood. Together with his wife, Rabbi Amirit Rosen, ordained by SRS in 2020, they have been co-rabbis since late 2020.
Rabbi David Goodman
“The congregation is exactly where I want to be a rabbi. It is a home to people from all around the religious spectrum. Some are very religious while others come from secular backgrounds. Everyone, however, finds a common space and a common conversation with each other. It is what makes us a community,” says David.
David was an organizer of community events prior to becoming a rabbi. He was instrumental in organizing Jerusalem’s Professors at the Pub happenings, arranging philosophy discussions at bars around the city. He holds a BA in Philosophy and Political Science and an MA in Philosophy from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. David was also active in Radio Merkaz Ha’ir JLM-FM, an internet radio station formerly broadcast from Jerusalem’s Mahane Yehuda market area.
Both Yuval and David are both highly involved in inter-religious relations.
Over the last decade, David has been involved in inter-religious dialogue. “There are so many interesting connections that I, as a rabbi, find among my colleagues from other religious communities. Together as religious leaders, we all face modern questions about belief and how to translate these answers to our congregants. Inter-religious dialogue helps me better understand my Judaism,” notes Goodman.
Yuval is the managing director of The Coordination Committee for Christian-Jewish Cooperation in Austria, the oldest interfaith group in Austria.
“The importance of inter-faith dialogue in Europe is of utmost importance, especially considering today’s political and social environments. Working closely with my Christian counterparts, we act towards opening people’s hearts and minds to build active groups to counter hatred,” comments Yuval.
Both David and Yuval served as infantry soldiers in the IDF’s Nahal Brigade.
Rabbi Rowen Baker asks them, “David and Yuval, raise your voice with might, and observe, and shine, and allow fear and joy to expand your heart. This is your call: Be those who hope in God. Teach hope for God.”
New Rabbis David Goodman and Yuval Katz with feamily members and mentors from the Rabbinical Assembly after the ceremony
