Mordechai Liebling

Last updated
Mordechai Liebling
Mordechai liebling.jpg
Born
Marvin Liebling

(1948-10-29) October 29, 1948 (age 75)
Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Education Cornell University (BA)
Brandeis University (MA)
Reconstructionist Rabbinical College
OccupationRabbi
Spouses
Devora Bartnoff
​
(died 1997)​
Lynne Iser
​
(m. 1998)​
Children5
Website Rabbi Mordechai Liebling

Mordechai Eliyahu Liebling (born October 29, 1948) is a rabbi, educator, and activist who has led Jewish and interfaith organizations dedicated to social justice missions. He founded the Social Justice Organizing Program at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College (RRC) to provide student rabbis training for engaging in the work of tikkun olam, Hebrew for "repair of the world".

Contents

Early life and education

Liebling was born in Brooklyn, New York October 29, 1948. [1] [2] His parents were Holocaust survivors. [1] He has a Bachelor of Arts degree in government from Cornell University and Master of Arts in the history of American civilization, specializing in American progressive movements from Brandeis University. He began his career working as a community organizer, [3] and was involved in radical political activism. [1] : 197  One day while too sick to work, Liebling read an essay by Mordecai Kaplan, founder of Reconstructionism, which rejects supernaturalism and patriarchy while promoting equality and social justice. This essay profoundly resonated with Liebling, aligning with his own beliefs and marking a transformative moment in his life. [1] He realized he'd be most effective as an agent for social change working in the Jewish community and decided to enroll in the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College (RRC), [1] graduating in 1985. [4]

Career

After graduating from rabbinical school, Liebling became the executive director of the Jewish Reconstructionist Federation, which is now part of Reconstructing Judaism, serving for 12 years before stepping down in 1998 to spend more time with his family after his wife died, staying on two days a week as a senior consultant. [5] In this role, Liebling served as a congregational consultant, assisting fledgling Reconstructionist synagogues in their establishment, guiding new congregations toward affiliation with the Reconstructionist movement, conducting board trainings, and supporting congregations facing difficulties. [5] Two years later he became Torah of Money Director at The Shefa Fund helping people apply Jewish values to how they spend, invest and donate their money. [3] When The Shefa Fund and Jewish Fund for Justice merged in 2006 to become Jewish Funds for Justice, Liebling became its vice president for programs helping to mobilize financial resources, train leaders, and conduct synagogue-based community organizing to support social justice causes. [6]

In 2010 he founded the Social Justice Organizing Program at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in order to educate rabbinical students on systems of power and resources with an emphasis on transformative change, integrating their passion for justice with Judaism. [3] [7] Because of this program and courses taught by Jewish Theological Seminary and Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, as of 2015 about 200 rabbis had been trained in community organizing work. [4]

He traveled to Ferguson, Missouri to protest the killing of Michael Brown, [8] [9] and to Charlottesville, Virginia to serve as a moral witness at the Unite the Right rally. [10] [11] He was arrested protesting the Keystone pipeline at the federal building in Philadelphia. [12]

Liebling was a member of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations for 12 years. [4] He has served on the boards of various national and international non-profit organizations including the Faith and Politics Institute [13] and The Shalom Center, [14] and was a founding board member of Rabbis for Human Rights-North America (now T'ruah). [10] He was honored in 2023 at the T'ruah gala. [15] He serves as Senior Advisor at Power Interfaith, the largest faith-based grass roots organizing network in Pennsylvania. [16] [11]

Personal life

He was married to Rabbi Devora Bartnoff (July 3, 1952 – April 30, 1997), who died age 44 after a two-year struggle with breast cancer. He married Lynne Iser in December 1998. [5] Liebling and Iser conduct workshops based on the teachings of environmentalist Joanna Macy, focusing on acknowledging the painful realities of the world as a crucial step in fostering intergenerational understanding and effective organizing. [8]

His family was the subject of the documentary film Praying with Lior, which followed his child Lior who has Down syndrome on his path to Bar Mitzvah. [17] [18]

Selected publications

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reconstructionist Judaism</span> Movement of Rabbinical Judaism

Reconstructionist Judaism is a Jewish movement based on the concepts developed by Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan (1881–1983) that views Judaism as a progressively evolving civilization rather than just a religion. The movement originated as a semi-organized stream within Conservative Judaism, developed between the late 1920s and the 1940s before seceding in 1955, and established a rabbinical college in 1967. Reconstructionist Judaism is recognized by many scholars as one of the five major streams of Judaism in America alongside Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, and Humanistic.

Tikkun olam is a concept in Judaism, which refers to various forms of action intended to repair and improve the world.

The Union for Reform Judaism (URJ), formerly known as the Union of American Hebrew Congregations (UAHC) until 2003, founded in 1873 by Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise, is the congregational arm of Reform Judaism in North America. The other two arms established by Rabbi Wise are the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion and the Central Conference of American Rabbis. The current president of the URJ is Rabbi Rick Jacobs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arthur Waskow</span> American author, political activist, and rabbi

Arthur Ocean Waskow is an American author, political activist, and rabbi associated with the Jewish Renewal movement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reconstructionist Rabbinical College</span> Jewish seminary in Wyncote, Pennsylvania

The Reconstructionist Rabbinical College (RRC) is a Jewish seminary in Wyncote, Pennsylvania. It is the only seminary affiliated with Reconstructionist Judaism. It is accredited by the Commission on Higher Education of the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools. RRC has an enrollment of approximately 80 students in rabbinic and other graduate programs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">World Union for Progressive Judaism</span>

The World Union for Progressive Judaism (WUPJ) is the international umbrella organization for the various branches of Reform, Liberal and Progressive Judaism, as well as the separate Reconstructionist Judaism. The WUPJ is based in 40 countries with 1,275 affiliated synagogues, of which 1,170 are Reform, Progressive, or Liberal and 105 Reconstructionist. It claims to represent a total of some 1.8 million people, both registered constituents and non-member identifiers. The WUPJ states that it aims to create common ground between its constituents and to promote Progressive Judaism in places where individuals and groups are seeking authentic, yet modern ways of expressing themselves as Jews. It seeks to preserve Jewish integrity wherever Jews live, to encourage integration without assimilation, to deal with modernity while preserving the Jewish experience, and to strive for equal rights and social justice.

Rachel Adler is Professor Emerita of Modern Jewish Thought and Judaism and Gender at Hebrew Union College, at the Los Angeles campus.

Menachem Creditor is an American rabbi, author and musician. He is the Pearl and Ira Meyer Scholar-in-Residence at UJA-Federation New York and the founder of Rabbis Against Gun Violence. His work has appeared in the Times of Israel, the Huffington Post, the Jewish Week, the Jewish Daily Forward, the Wall Street Journal, and The New York Times.

Dan Ehrenkrantz is an American Reconstructionist rabbi, currently serving as the outgoing president of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in Wyncote, Pennsylvania.

The Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association (RRA) founded in 1974, is the professional association of rabbis affiliated with Reconstructionist Judaism. It has approximately 300 members, most of whom are graduates of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College (RRC) in Wyncote, Pennsylvania, near Philadelphia. The RRA is a member of a number of national coalitions including the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations. Its first director was Rabbi Richard Hirsh who was hired in 1984 to work five hours/week when he was dean of admissions at RRC.

Jill Jacobs is an American Conservative rabbi who serves as the executive director of T'ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights, formerly Rabbis for Human Rights-North America. She is the author of Where Justice Dwells: A Hands-On Guide to Doing Social Justice in Your Jewish Community and There Shall be No Needy: Pursuing Social Justice through Jewish Law and Tradition. This book includes chapters on tzedakah, poverty, health care, housing, labor, criminal justice, and environmental justice in America, seen through a Jewish viewpoint. She has served as the Rabbi in Residence of Jewish Funds for Justice and as the Director of Outreach and Education for Jewish Council on Urban Affairs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jewish Reconstructionist Federation</span> Synagogue arm of Reconstructionist Judaism

The Jewish Reconstructionist Federation (JRF), founded in 1955, was the synagogue arm of Reconstructionist Judaism, serving more than 100 congregations and havurot spread across North America. In June 2012, the Reconstructionist movement underwent a restructuring that merged JRF with the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College to form a new national organization initially named RRC and Jewish Reconstructionist Communities. The merged organization was initially headed by Rabbi Dan Ehrenkrantz, a 1989 graduate of the College, and currently by Rabbi Deborah Waxman who took over in 2014. In January 2018, the merged organization changed its name to Reconstructing Judaism.

Tina Grimberg is a Reconstructionist Rabbi living in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Since 2008, she has been a leader in the inter-religious dialogue with Muslims and Christians in Ontario. She has been active in the movement against poverty in Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sharon Kleinbaum</span> American rabbi

Sharon Kleinbaum is an American rabbi who served as spiritual leader of New York City's Congregation Beit Simchat Torah for 32 years. She is now the synagogue's first Senior Rabbi Emerita. She has been an active campaigner for human rights and civil marriage for gay couples.

Linda Joy Holtzman is an American rabbi and author. In 1979, she became one of the first women in the United States to serve as the presiding rabbi of a synagogue, and the first woman to serve as a rabbi for a solely Conservative congregation, when she was hired by Beth Israel Congregation of Chester County, which was then located in Coatesville, Pennsylvania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">T'ruah</span> US-based human rights organization

T'ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights, often referred to as T'ruah, is a left-wing nonprofit organization of rabbis who act on the Jewish imperative to respect and protect the human rights of all people in North America, Israel, and the Palestinian Territories. Approximately 2,000 American and Canadian rabbis and cantors, very predominantly non-orthodox in denomination, are affiliated with T'ruah. T'ruah was founded as Rabbis for Human Rights-North America (RHR-NA) in 2002. On January 15, 2013, RHR-NA ended its formal affiliation with Rabbis for Human Rights in Israel, and was renamed T'ruah. The name T’ruah is based on one of the sounds of the shofar acting as a call to take action.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deborah Waxman</span> American rabbi

Deborah Waxman is an American rabbi and the president and CEO of Reconstructing Judaism. Waxman was inaugurated as the president of both on October 26, 2014. The ceremony took place at the National Museum of American Jewish History in Philadelphia. Waxman is believed to be the first woman rabbi and first lesbian to lead a Jewish congregational union, and the first lesbian to lead a Jewish seminary; the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College is both a congregational union and a seminary. She previously served as the vice-president for governance for the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College. In 2015 she was named as one of The Forward 50.

Aryeh Cohen is an American rabbi and scholar who serves as a professor of Rabbinic Literature at American Jewish University. His scholarship focuses on the Talmud, Jewish ethics, and social justice.

Shefa Gold is an American rabbi, scholar, and Director of the Center for Devotional, Energy and Ecstatic Practice (C-DEEP) in Jemez Springs, New Mexico. Gold is a teacher of chant, Jewish mysticism, Jewish prayer and spirituality who Rabbi Mike Comins described in 2010 as "a pioneer in the ecstatic practice of Jewish chant." Her chants have been used in synagogues, minyanim, and street protests; perhaps her most well known being "Ozi V'zimrat Yah". Combining traditional Jewish liturgical music with Hebrew chant, Gold has worked to cultivate a distinctly Jewish gratitude practice. Her "Flavors of Gratefulness" mobile app has 109 different chants for Modeh Ani, the brief prayer traditionally recited by religious Jews upon awakening. In 2024 she released "Flavors of Praise" with 61 different chants.

Elizabeth (Liz) Bolton is a rabbi, feminist, and activist. Hired in 2013 by Reconstructionist synagogue Or Haneshamah, she is Ottawa’s first female and openly gay rabbi. In the late 1980’s, she led efforts to address the exclusion of women from the cantorate in Canada.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Liebling, Mordechai (2010). "The Odyssey (of a Jewish Man)" . In Brod, Harry; Zevit, Shawn (eds.). Brother Keepers: New Perspectives on Jewish Masculinity. Men's Studies Press. pp. 194–200.
  2. ↑ "Mordechai Liebling CV" (PDF). gtfeducation.org. Graduate Theological Foundation . Retrieved July 17, 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 "Faculty Bios: Rabbi Mordechai Liebling". Reconstructionist Rabbinical College . Archived from the original on 2010-09-05. Retrieved 2010-08-19.
  4. 1 2 3 Cohen, Leon (January 29, 2015). "Liebling sees proliferation of Jewish social justice groups". Wisconsin Jewish Chronicle.
  5. 1 2 3 Silverstein, Marilyn (June 25, 1998). "Recon Exec to Be Full-time Father". Philadelphia Jewish Exponent. ProQuest   227264238.
  6. ↑ Holmes, Kristin (September 30, 2006). "A wider identity: A new generation explores what it is to be Jewish". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. B4. ProQuest   1909383696.
  7. ↑ "Social Justice Organizing". rrc.edu. Reconstructionist Rabbinical College . Retrieved July 17, 2024.
  8. 1 2 Barasch, Sarah (August 3, 2020). "Office Hours: Rabbi Mordechai Liebling". Jewish Currents .
  9. ↑ Cohen, Debra Nussbaum (October 14, 2014). "Rabbis Protest Police Killings in Ferguson, Missouri". Haaretz.
  10. 1 2 Cohen, Debra Nussbaum (August 13, 2017). "Charlottesville Rally: Rabbis, Jewish Students Face Down White Nationalists". Haaretz.
  11. 1 2 Dwight Dunston (May 14, 2024). "Solidarity in Heartbreak with Rabbi Mordechai Liebling" (Podcast). The Seed: Conversations for Radical Hope.
  12. ↑ Harris, Ben (January 26, 2021). "At 87, activist rabbi Arthur Waskow is still protesting — and still getting arrested". www.jta.org. Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
  13. ↑ "Board". www.faithandpolitics.org. Faith and Politics Institute . Retrieved July 17, 2024.
  14. ↑ "Bios | Board of Directors". theshalomcenter.org. The Shalom Center. Retrieved July 17, 2024.
  15. ↑ "Meet our 2023 Gala Honorees". truah.org. T'ruah . Retrieved July 17, 2024.
  16. ↑ "Rabbi Mordechai Liebling". powerinterfaith.org. POWER Interfaith. Retrieved July 17, 2024.
  17. ↑ Ilana Trachtman (Director) (February 1, 2008). Praying With Lior (Documentary). First Run Features.
  18. ↑ Kalish, Jon (January 30, 2008). "Challenging Community's Traditional Boundaries". The Forward.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.