Hillel Norry

Last updated
Hillel Norry
Personal
Born
Rochester, NY
Religion Judaism
NationalityAmerican
Parent
  • Sharon Singer Norry (mother)
Alma mater Brandeis University

Hillel Norry is an American rabbi.

Work

Norry completed rabbinical school at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America (JTS) in 1993. [1] [2] After ordination, he taught at JTS for a short time. [2]

Contents

The synagogue Shaare Zedek hired Norry in 1994, where he was able to attract younger members to join it. Norry supported caretaking, cleanup, and responsibility over a cemetery owned by the synagogue, navigating declining interest for those tasks among board-members. He left Shaare Zedek in 2002, taking a position in Atlanta. [3] According to the New York Jewish Week, Norry "was widely credited with reviving" the congregation. [4]

In 2002, Norry took a senior rabbi position with Congregation Shearith Israel, a Conservative synagogue in Atlanta, Georgia. [4] [2] As of 2014, Norry remained in this position. [5] In April 2021, Norry was interim rabbi in Chattanooga's B’nai Zion, [6] then joined Temple Beth-El as interim rabbi in Birmingham as of June 2021, [7] and remains in that position as of August 2021. [5]

Norry is a member of the National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership's Rabbis Without Borders program. [1] In 2009, he was among the program's first cohort of fellows. [8]

Norry served as rabbinic consultant for Keeping the Faith , a romantic comedy released in 2000. The film depicts a love triangle between a Conservative rabbi, a Catholic priest and friend of the rabbi, and a childhood friend of the pair. Reflecting in 2020 on the movie, Norry said, "I met with Ed Norton, and they asked if I would be their consultant... I said I do want to do it, but I need to see the script and I need to know that it’s not disrespectful to rabbis and Judaism. They sent me a script, and I signed on, and I actually really like the story". [9]

Early life and education

Norry was born in Rochester, New York. He attended public school there. He attended Brandeis University, at that time intending to enter academia. [2]

His grandparents Ruth and Sol Singer were among Atlanta's Jewish leadership. His mother Sharon Norry was involved in arts and Judaica. [2]

Views

Norry participates in martial arts and says he began self-defense after a man who had previously sent him antisemitic messages appeared at his synagogue and threatened him in person. [10] He feels that similar intensity, focus, and ritual are present in both Jewish spiritual practice and martial arts, saying, "I think my martial arts practice changed my Judaism. I became a different kind of Jew. I began to really see my prayer life as a parallel to martial training." [11] Norry says he started learning Tae Kwon Do and marksmanship in the 2010s. He believes this allowed him to provide an experiential form of learning and arts. [1] As rabbi, Norry was accepting of congregants who brought concealed weapons to services, saying, "We have an armed security guard ... every Shabbat, but he's just one guy." [5]

Norry is vegan. He has a home garden and is a prolific pickler, a practice he learned from his mother. [12]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Jaffe-Hoffman, Maayan (January 5, 2016). "'Off the Beaten Path:' Rabbis Increasingly Finding Roles Outside the Pulpit, Education". eJewish Philanthropy. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Jaffe, Marcia Caller (February 26, 2020). "Charismatic Rabbi Reinvents Himself". Atlanta Jewish Times. Retrieved 1 September 2022.
  3. ↑ Wiener, Julie (October 18, 2002). "The Cemetery Nobody Wants". Jewish Week . Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  4. 1 2 Wiener, Julie (October 11, 2002). "Southbound". Jewish Week. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  5. 1 2 3 Berger, Paul (September 8, 2014). "Does Carrying a Gun to Synagogue Make It Safer or More Dangerous?". The Forward . Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  6. ↑ Shearer, John (June 26, 2021). "John Shearer: B'nai Zion Building Scheduled To Be Razed Is Example Of Unique 1970s Architecture". The Chattanoogan. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  7. ↑ Maxie, Chasity (July 7, 2021). "Temple Beth-El leaders say they will stand with family of missing Tuscaloosa doctor". WBRC. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  8. ↑ Cies, Alison (June 12, 2009). "Rabbis Without Borders Inaugural Meeting this Month". The Forward . Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  9. ↑ Silver, Stephen (May 10, 2020). "Clergy look back at 'Keeping the Faith,' an interfaith romcom ahead of its time". Times of Israel . Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  10. ↑ Blake, John (October 29, 2018). "There's scripture backing up Trump's idea to arm houses of worship". CNN . Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  11. ↑ Garrison, Greg (September 6, 2021). "New rabbi, martial arts expert, will lead High Holy Days services". Alabama.com.
  12. ↑ Caller Jaffe, Marcia (August 15, 2020). "Pucker up for Crunch and Intense Flavor". Atlanta Jewish Times . p. 34. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
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