55 Martha Road
Boston, MA 02114
Phone: 617.523.0453
Fax: 617.723.2863
www.bostonsynagogue.org
Our Spiritual Leaders
As a small community synagogue, The Boston Synagogue does not have a full-time rabbi. On many weeks it is lay-led.
But we do have a fabulous cadre of 'regular' world-class talent who are with us on a rotating basis. As befits our post-denominational focus, they represent a broad spectrum of Jewish practice. They also are available for weddings, bar/bat mitzvahs, and other life cycle events.
This coming year, we also will be welcoming Cantor Dvorah Buhr from Hebrew College, along with students from the Hebrew College Rabbinical and Cantorial Schools.
Compared to most ordinary shuls, where the services take on a somewhat predictable sameness, each of our rabbis brings his/her own unique style, making each week consistent but refreshingly different! It’s a dynamic ensemble approach.
Our Rabbinical Support (in alphabetical order)
Introducing Our New Rabbinic Intern:
David Cohen-Henriquez
David Cohen-Henriquez is a fifth year student at the Hebrew College Rabbincal School. A native of Panama, David is an extemely energetic individual who is full of ideas, including starting a group for young professionals. David will be leading services frequently on Shabbats and holidays, and will be with us for the High Holidays. He also will continue teaching in our Sunday School, as well as adult education classes.
Rabbi Al Axelrad (Liberal)
Rabbi Al S. Axelrad is the Chair of the Center for Spiritual Life and Adjunct Professor of Religion at Emerson College. 'Rabbi Al” has had an outstanding 34-year career as Brandeis University Chaplain and Hillel Director. The author of three books, Rabbi Al has long been recognized for his progressive social action and liturgical renewal.
Cantor Dvorah Buhr (Conservative)
Cantor Buhr is Program Administrator and Adjunct Instructor at the Jewish Music Institute at Hebrew College. She also teaches nusach to students at the Hebrew College Rabbinical School.
Cantor Buhr received her cantorial investiture from the Jewish Theological Seminary.
This coming year, Dvorah will be with us for several Shabbats, along with some of her students. We also are working with her on some exciting new programming concepts for the new year.
Dr. David Fishman (Conservative)
David is an ‘old friend’ of The Boston Synagogue (from his student days at Harvard), who is now Professor of Jewish History at The Jewish Theological Seminary in New York City, teaching courses in modern Jewish history. Dr. Fishman also serves as Director of Project Judaica, a Jewish Studies program based in Moscow that is sponsored jointly by JTS, YIVO, and the Russian State University for the Humanities.
Dr. Fishman travels to Moscow and Vilnius (Lithuania) frequently on behalf of Project Judaica. He has recently completed two surveys based on research completed on location: a Jewish archival survey in Belarus (a project spanning eight years) in cooperation with the Belarus State Archival Administration; and a survey of Jewish collections of the "Special Archive" in Moscow. Dr. Fishman is also an Adjunct Professor at Yeshiva University's Bernard Revel Graduate School of Jewish Studies.
Dr. Fishman is the author of numerous books and articles on the history and culture of East European Jewry. His books include Russia's First Modern Jews, published by New York University Press, and Embers Plucked from the Fire: the Rescue of Jewish Cultural Treasures in Vilna, published by YIVO. Dr. Fishman is the co-editor (with Burton Visotzky) of From Mesopotamia to Modernity: Ten Introductions to Jewish History and Literature (Westview Press, 1999), which recently appeared in a revised Russian edition called Ot Abrama do sovremenosti (Russian State University Press, 2002). His book Dimension of Yiddish Culture is forthcoming from Syracuse University Press. Dr. Fishman serves as Editor of YIVO-Bletter, YIVO's Yiddish-language scholarly journal.
A native New Yorker, David Fishman received his bachelor's degree from Yeshiva University and his master's degree and doctorate from Harvard. He has taught at Brandeis University and Russian State University in Moscow, and was a fellow at the Hebrew University's Institute for Advanced Studies.
David leads services at The Boston Synagogue for the High Holidays. He also leads the synagogue’s first night Passover Seder and services during the first part of the holiday. He is usually with the synagogue for either Succot or Shavuot.
Rabbi Ebn Leader (Trans-denominational)
Reb Ebn brings a unique spiritual style to the worship and holiday celebratory experience. He was born in California and moved to Israel as a youngster. He has a B.A. from Hebrew University and an M.A. from Brandeis University, where he studied under the direction of Dr. Arthur Green. He currently is co-director of the Beit Midrash program at Hebrew College’s new Rabbinical School.
Ebn is a co-contributor (along with Or Rose) to the recently published book, “God in All Moments: Spiritual and Practical Wisdom from the Hasidic Masters (Jewish Lights, 2003).
Check out these other links about Ebn:
YOM KIPPUR GROUPIES
“... We love it. While the minyan is always a blast, it especially rocks on the
High Holidays when Ebn Leader, son of founder Zelig, leads the services. ... “
www.wzo.org.il/en/resources/view.asp?id=1518 - 21k - Cached - Similar pages
THE DARKNESS OF WINTER ENVIRONMENTAL REFLECTIONS ON HANUKAH By Ebn ...
File Format: PDF/Adobe Acrobat - View as HTML
It has often been noted that the Jewish holidays function within a dual cycle of ...
www.coejl.org/Hanukkah/documents/Ebn-Hanukah.pdf - Similar pages
COEJL HANUKKAH: THE DARKNESS OF WINTER: ENVIRONMENTAL REFLECTIONS ...
The Darkness of Winter: Environmental reflections on Hanukah. By Ebn
Leader, Hebrew College. It has often been noted that the Jewish ...
www.coejl.org/Hanukkah/documents/ebn.shtml - 23k - Cached -
Rabbi Ben Lanckton (Conservative)
Rabbi Lanckton received his BA in Theater Studies and Philosophy from Yale College in 1990 and his rabbinic ordination, with a major in Talmud, from the Jewish Theological Seminary in 1996. He served at two Jewish Community Centers and a Hillel Center before joining the Chaplaincy at MGH and beginning his time teaching at the Boston Synagogue. He enjoys nurturing creative connections in the Jewish com munity and in the larger community. He lives with his family in Brookline
Rabbi Daniel Lehmann (Post-Modern Orthodox)
Rabbi Daniel Lehmann is the new President of Hebrew College in Newton, MA, one of the leading intitutions of Jewish learning in the United States.Rabbi Lehmann also is founding Headmaster Emeritus of the Gann Academy–The New Jewish High School of Greater Boston. He has rabbinical ordination from Yeshiva University and is a PhD candidate at the Steinhardt School for Education at NYU in Education and Jewish Studies. In 2001 Rabbi Lehmann received the Covenant Foundation Award for Excellence in Jewish Education. He has taught for the Wexner Heritage Foundation, CLAL, and the Hartman Institute. Recently he became the founding executive director of BIMA -- a three week summer camp program in the Berkshires devoted to music and cultural expression.
Noah Weingarten: Lay Ritual Leader
A couple from New York visiting their son in Boston recently stopped by the shul for one of our lay-led Shabbats, and saw a young man conducting Saturday morning Shaharit services. That same young man then read the entire Torah portion for the week. They were amazed at something they had never seen before in any shul.
The young man is Noah Weingarten, who for the past five years has regularly been leading services and reading Torah on Shabbat and holidays.
Noah is a graduate of the Solomon Schechter Day School of Greater Boston and Gann Academy/New Jewish High School in Waltham (where Rabbi Lehmann is founding headmaster emeritus).
Noah is currently attending the Joint Program at Columbia University and the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York, but will be back with us for the High Holidays and periodically thereafter.
See recent articles featuring Noah in local papers
Laura Crawford
Laura is our new administrator, and is doing an outstanding job handling the varied needs of our congregation.
Give her a call and say hello!
Our Officers/Board of Directors
In a small congregation, everyone is important. We are blessed to have the support of a core group of people who care about the shul and about each other. When we get together, it’s more like getting together with friends.
| Chairperson of the Board | Susan Schreiner Weingarten |
| President | Bette Siegel |
| Secretary/Treasurer | Jeff Steinfeld |
| Historian | Muriel Kantor |
Board Members |
Ruth Fein, Gerry Kleinstein, Eugene Myerov, Shlomo Pinkas, Howard Speicher, Marshall Schribman, Michael Weingarten, Ruth Aaron |