Avi Finegold is a Canadian

rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

. In 2015, he founded the Jewish Learning Lab for

adult An adult is a human or other animal that has reached full growth. In human context, the term ''adult'' has meanings associated with social and legal concepts. In contrast to a " minor", a legal adult is a person who has attained the age of major ...

Jewish education Jewish education ( he, חינוך, ''Chinuch'') is the transmission of the tenets, principles, and religious laws of Judaism. Known as the "people of the book", Jews value education, and the value of education is strongly embedded in Jewish cul ...

, and from July 2017 to 2018 served as interim rabbi of the

Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue of Montreal The Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue of Montreal, also known as Shearith Israel, is a Montreal synagogue, located on St. Kevin Street in Snowdon, which is the oldest Jewish congregation in Canada. The Congregation traces its history back to 176 ...

. Finegold previously served as executive director of the

Montreal Board of Rabbis Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-pea ...

. In 2021, Finegold started a podcast with

The Canadian Jewish News The Canadian Jewish News is a non-profit, national, English-language digital-first media organization that serves Canada‘s Jewish community. A national edition of the newspaper was published for 60 years in Toronto. A weekly Montreal edition in ...

called ''Bonjour Chai'', a weekly current affairs program discussing topics relevant to the Canadian Jewish community. His co-hosts are actor/writer David Sklar in Calgary and actor Ilana Zackon in Vancouver. He is married to

Maharat Yeshivat Maharat is a Jewish educational institution in The Bronx, New York, which was the first Open Orthodox yeshiva in North America to ordain women. The word ''Maharat'' () is a Hebrew acronym for phrase ''manhiga hilkhatit rukhanit Toranit'' ...

Rachel Kohl Finegold Rachel Kohl Finegold (born 1980) is a Montreal-based Open Orthodox Rabba at Congregation Shaar Haashomayim, and the first Orthodox woman to serve as synagogue clergy in Canada. Biography Kohl Finegold grew up in Brooklyn, New York, before attend ...

, of

Congregation Shaar Hashomayim Congregation Shaar Hashomayim () is an Ashkenazi synagogue in Westmount, Quebec. Incorporated in 1846, it is the oldest traditional Ashkenazi synagogue in Canada and the largest traditional synagogue in Canada. History Former building of Sha ...

References

Living people Concordia University alumni University of Chicago alumni Canadian rabbis Jews and Judaism in Montreal Year of birth missing (living people) {{Canada-rabbi-stub