Amy Eilberg, who in 1985 became the first woman ordained as a rabbi by the Jewish Theological Seminary, chairs the Conservative Movement’s racial justice subcommittee. She is the author of the 2014 book From Enemy to Friend: Jewish Wisdom and the Pursuit of Peace.
Repenting for individual sins seemed too small in the face of the wars in Gaza and Lebanon
Think of a young child whom you love. Remember a time when your beloved child was tired, hungry or uncomfortable. What did she do? Naturally, she fussed, cried and reached for her parents for comfort. Now picture another parent’s beloved child, exhausted and terrified after a perilous journey, forcibly separated from their parent. The child…
What if Noah had been an exemplary spiritual leader and not just, as the Torah tells us, a righteous person by the standards of his own generation? Picture Noah as a true prophet of his time, a man who knows that God is about to destroy the world. Such a person would have done far…
Twenty-five years ago, when I received my rabbinic ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary, I was well aware of the historic nature of the occasion. On May 14, 1985, I became the first woman ordained in the Conservative movement, but I also knew that the path leading to this milestone was paved by many people….
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