Aaron Leibowitz is an American-born
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
i rabbi.
Rabbinic and political career
Aaron Leibowitz is a noted educator, and started
Hashgacha Pratit, a
kosher certification
A hechsher (; he, הֶכְשֵׁר "prior approval"; plural: ''hechsherim'') is a rabbinical product certification, qualifying items (usually foods) that conform to the requirements of halakha.
Forms
A hechsher may be a printed and signed certif ...
independent of the
Israeli Chief Rabbinate
The Chief Rabbinate of Israel ( he, הָרַבָּנוּת הָרָאשִׁית לְיִשְׂרָאֵל, ''Ha-Rabbanut Ha-Rashit Li-Yisra'el'') is recognized by law as the supreme rabbinic authority for Judaism in Israel. The Chief Rabbinate Co ...
.
He is also a councilor for the Jerusalem municipality for the
Yerushalmim
Yerushalmim ( he, ירושלמים; ) is an Israeli local civilian organization and political party in Jerusalem.
History
Yerushalmim was formed in 2008 by Rachel Azaria, who was elected that year to the city council of Jerusalem. Yerushalmim is a ...
party.
In 2018 Leibowitz handed over the kosher certification to the larger organization, Tzohar, however Leibowitz remained CEO of Hashgacha Pratit. The organization began officiating weddings outside of the Chief Rabbinate, despite this being illegal in Israel. He called the Chief Rabbinate "racist" because of their views on who is a Jew, and their use of DNA testing to determine Jewish status.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Leibowitz, Aaron
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)
American rabbis
Israeli rabbis
Israeli educators
American emigrants to Israel
21st-century American Jews