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Engaging graduates of the Adolph and Ethel Beren Educators Institute’s Beren-Amiel Program and the Joseph and Gwendolyn Straus Seminary’s Straus-Amiel Practical Rabbinics Program continue to make their mark across the globe, infusing new energy into Jewish schools, college campuses, synagogues and communities throughout the world.

“My goal is to infuse the shul with a fresh spirit,” says Rabbi Ari Ellis, newly-appointed spiritual leader of the 100-family Herzlia Adas-Yeshurun Synagogue in Winnipeg, Canada, which had been without a rabbi for a year prior to Ellis’ arrival. At the same time, Ellis strives to serve as a resource for the entire Winnipeg Jewish community: “I see my mission as serving everyone, not only the Orthodox,” he declares.

Ellis points out that the Winnipeg winters present a unique challenge: “It’s a big commitment, to come to a program at the synagogue when you have to put on layers of clothing, snow pants, boots and gloves and drive through the snow and ice.” But the graduate of the Joseph and Gwendolyn Straus Rabbinical Seminary’s Straus-Amiel Practical Rabbinical Program, and his wife Tikvah are adding warmth to the community with their passionate and engaging approach.

As part of their efforts to cultivate a dynamic, welcoming synagogue, they are running programs designed to get people involved. “Our ’Bring a Friend to Shul Shabbat’ brought in numerous new faces,” he says, “with many of them so surprised and enthusiastic about the friendly atmosphere that they have begun to join us on a regular basis.” Other successful programs include the “Carlebach style” Friday night services and the communal havdala ceremonies, and Ellis is now also launching a crash course in Hebrew reading. “I want the shul to be central, hospitable and – most importantly – accessible to everyone, regardless of their Jewish educational background.”

JUDAISM IS RELEVANT

While Ellis departed the Israel Henry Beren Campus for the Winnipeg community, his former fellow student in the David Falk Kollel headed toward a different environment. The new assistant rabbi of Raleigh Close Synagogue, London, in the heart of the most active Modern Orthodox neighborhood in England, Rabbi Leo Dee finds himself tearing between five different morning minyanim as well as numerous children’s services on any given Shabbat. But while the synagogue has many members, Dee says, “we are still working hard to bring in new faces every week.”

Together with his wife Lucy, Dee has developed a series of innovative programs designed to attract families who might not otherwise have considered joining a synagogue. One such venture is a weekly birth-preparation course taught by a professional midwife, who explains the technical side of childbirth while Dee presents the Jewish aspects of the momentous lifecycle event. “Many young couples feel inhibited participating in classes at the state-run hospitals,” explains Dee, “so our sessions are perfect for them. They really appreciate having a friendly, Jewish environment where they can discuss these important and intimate issues.”

Veteran synagogue members are also benefitting from the Dee’s creative initiatives. Dee recently persuaded The White House restaurant to open its doors for the first time ever on a Friday night, for a synagogue Shabbaton, enabling participants to enjoy outstanding food for the body and the soul. In addition, he has organized an impressive list of guest speakers, including his own former rosh yeshiva from the Straus Seminary, Rabbi Shlomo Riskin, who visited at the end of January. “There is nothing more gratifying than to see a former student excel in the field,” says Riskin. “Rabbi Dee and his wife, Lucy, are shining representatives of the OTS philosophy of reaching out to the community with warmth and enthusiasm, showing that Judaism is relevant to people of all ages and backgrounds.“

MODERN AND ORTHODOX

“The greatest challenge that we face is in providing our students with an excellent Jewish education, stellar secular studies, and a dynamic spiritual and religious environment,” says Rabbi Yair Altshuler, principal of the middle and upper Maimonides schools in Boston, Massachusetts.

Maimonides was founded in 1937 by Rav Joseph B Soloveitchik, z”l, the architect of Modern Orthodoxy, and is a natural venue for Altshuler, a graduate of the Ethel and Adolph Beren Educators Institute’s Beren-Amiel Program. “Rav Soloveitchik was my teacher and mentor,” explains Rabbi Riskin, “and OTS is modeled very much on his philosophy. Having one of our graduates serving as a principal at Maimonides is fitting and gratifying,” he says.

Altshuler is no stranger to the OTS vision; before studying at Beren-Amiel, he was the principal of OTS’s Jacob Sapirstein High School in Ramot, Jerusalem. In Boston, he is also focusing on informal education programs, which he feels provide a creative environment in which to further his educational goals. “Our Shabbaton retreats and camping holidays offer a relaxed opportunity to interact and discuss ideas with our students,” he says. Altshuler is also ensuring that youth growing up in the suburbs of North America have an opportunity to help others. Each grade has its own “Chessed Day,” with students volunteering in a diverse range of locations, ranging from community soup kitchens to the local zoo.

OVERCOMING OBSTACLES

“While some of our graduates in the field are educating children toward performing acts of chessed with those less fortunate, others are dealing directly with the dire effects of poverty,” explains Rabbi Eliahu Birnbaum, director of both the Straus-Amiel and Beren-Amiel programs. No one exemplifies this challenge more than Rabbi David Alima who is currently serving the Jewish community of Bulawayo, Zimbabwe.

“This was once a thriving and prosperous community, but the troubled political situation has devastated the economy; sums that would once buy a house, now barely buy a bottle of tomato ketchup. A sense of humor is an essential qualification for the job,” quips the Straus-Amiel graduate, but Alima’s résumé also boasts a Masters degree in Public Management from Bar Ilan University and, in addition to his rabbinical ordination, he is also a certified ritual slaughterer. His diverse qualifications have prepared him for the myriad of diverse responsibilities he holds: Alima maintains the supplies of kosher meat, teaches in the schools, offers support to the residents of the local home for the elderly and runs outreach programs through the synagogue.

“I find myself drawing upon the practical skills I received from Straus-Amiel in so many of my leadership duties,” says Alima. But he also credits his academic studies in OTS’s George-Weinstein Semicha University Program, for providing him with the expertise necessary to impart professional counseling, mediation and leadership to the distressed community. “One program gave me hands-on tools and the other academic knowledge,” he acknowledges. “As a result, I feel very prepared for the challenges I face. Knowing that I can count on my teachers’ ongoing support and encouragement also strengthens me and helps me in my work.”

JUDAISM SHOULD BE ACCESSIBLE TO EVERYONE

Across the Indian Ocean, Beren-Amiel graduate Rabbi Ori Meir is working as the principal Bnei Akiva emissary to Australia and New Zealand. His home community of Melbourne houses the biggest single branch of Bnei Akiva in the world and is continuing to grow, thanks to Meir’s warm and innovative approach. He is proud of the fact that, despite the pressing financial climate in the country, more and more young people are registering for year-long programs in Israel. Meir works closely with another Beren-Amiel graduate, Rabbi Yoni Rosenzweig, who is heading a kollel, organizing and teaching classes for men and women within the community. “The fact that we studied together means that we share the same goals,” he says. “We work in complete partnership, for the good of the Jewish community.”

Aaron Stern (l) assists a retreat participant in laying tefillin

This year Meir launched “Shuval,” the very first Diaspora branch of Bnei Akiva created specifically for children with special needs. “It is amazing to have 20 children with Down syndrome and developmental disabilities bursting enthusiastically through the door for our weekly meetings,” he attests. Many of the Shuval branch members have also begun attending the Bnei Akiva-run camps and hope to benefit in the future from an Israel experience. They found a role model in one of their counselors at the most recent retreat, Aaron Stern, who returned from a year in Israel on OTS’s Darkaynu Program for young men with special needs. Stern was delighted to be able to contribute to his native Australian community by working as a part of Meir’s professional team.

“Torah can speak to everyone,” says Rabbi Riskin, “to the intellectual elite and the intellectually challenged, to the Jew who is completely immersed in Judaism and to the Jew who has no background,” says Rabbi Riskin. “The goal of our Jewish educators and spiritual leaders is to make sure that Judaism is accessible to each and every one of them.”

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