Bea Wyler (born 1951 in

Baden, Switzerland Baden (German for "baths"), sometimes unofficially, to distinguish it from other Badens, called Baden bei Zürich ("Baden near Zürich") or Baden im Aargau ("Baden in the Aargau"), is a town and a municipality in Switzerland. It is the main tow ...

) is the second female rabbi in Germany (the first being

Regina Jonas Regina Jonas (; German: ''Regine Jonas'';As documented by ''Landesarchiv Berlin; Berlin, Deutschland; Personenstandsregister Geburtsregister; Laufendenummer 892'' which reads: "''In front of the signed registrar appeared today... Wolff Jonas... a ...

) and the first to officiate at a congregation.

Life

Bea Wyler grew up in

Wettingen Wettingen is a residential community in the district of Baden in the Swiss canton of Aargau. With a population about 20,000, Wettingen is the second-largest municipality in the canton. Geography Wettingen is located on the right bank of the Li ...

Aargau Aargau, more formally the Canton of Aargau (german: Kanton Aargau; rm, Chantun Argovia; french: Canton d'Argovie; it, Canton Argovia), is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of eleven districts and its capita ...

, studied at

ETH Zurich (colloquially) , former_name = eidgenössische polytechnische Schule , image = ETHZ.JPG , image_size = , established = , type = Public , budget = CHF 1.896 billion (2021) , rector = Günther Dissertori , president = Joël Mesot , ac ...

agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...

with a specialization in poultry farming, and worked as an agricultural journalist. The

Basler Zeitung ''Basler Zeitung'' (literally: "Basler Newspaper"), or ''BaZ'', is a Swiss German-language regional daily newspaper, published in Basel. History and profile ''Basler Zeitung'' was created in 1977 through the merger of the '' Basler Nachricht ...

hired her as its first science editor in 1980, where she headed the science

resort A resort (North American English) is a self-contained commercial establishment that tries to provide most of a vacationer's wants, such as food, drink, swimming, lodging, sports, entertainment, and shopping, on the premises. The term ''resort ...

. She then worked for a chemical company in

Basel , french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese , neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS ...

in the

public relations Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization (such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization) to the public in order to influence their perception. P ...

department and was responsible for publications of the company. After a stay in

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 ...

, she studied in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

Leo Baeck College Leo Baeck College is a privately funded rabbinical seminary and centre for the training of teachers in Jewish education. Based now at the Sternberg Centre, East End Road, Finchley, in the London Borough of Barnet, it was founded by Werner van ...

and in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

at the Jewish Theological Seminary. In May 1995, at the age of 44, she was ordained as rabbi by the JTS.

First female rabbi serving a German congregation

Bea Wyler was the first female rabbi appointed to a German congregation. The first female rabbi in Germany (and worldwide) had been

, whom Rabbi

Max Dienemann Max Dienemann (September 27, 1875 – April 10, 1939) was a German reform rabbi, publicist and philologist. He was one of the leading Liberal rabbis in Germany. Together with Leo Baeck, he headed the Rabbinical Association of Germany, in which libe ...

had ordained in 1935. Rabbi Jonas preached in several Berlin

synagogue A synagogue, ', 'house of assembly', or ', "house of prayer"; Yiddish: ''shul'', Ladino: or ' (from synagogue); or ', "community". sometimes referred to as shul, and interchangeably used with the word temple, is a Jewish house of worshi ...

s from the 1930s to the 1940s and also served as rabbi there after her

deportation Deportation is the expulsion of a person or group of people from a place or country. The term ''expulsion'' is often used as a synonym for deportation, though expulsion is more often used in the context of international law, while deportation ...

to the

Ghetto Theresienstadt A ghetto, often called ''the'' ghetto, is a part of a city in which members of a minority group live, especially as a result of political, social, legal, environmental or economic pressure. Ghettos are often known for being more impoverished ...

in captivity. Bea Wyler was appointed in the year of her ordination, 1995, to serve the Conservative Jewish synagogue of

Oldenburg Oldenburg may also refer to: Places *Mount Oldenburg, Ellsworth Land, Antarctica *Oldenburg (city), an independent city in Lower Saxony, Germany **Oldenburg (district), a district historically in Oldenburg Free State and now in Lower Saxony *Olde ...

. Her appointment was much criticized by Ignatz Bubis, the head of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, who generally opposed the appointment of female rabbis, saying that he would not visit a service led by her. she was Germany's only Conservative rabbi. She served as a rabbi in

, Brunswick and

Delmenhorst Delmenhorst (; Northern Low Saxon: ''Demost'') is an urban district (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in Lower Saxony, Germany. It has a population of 74,500 and is located west of downtown Bremen with which it forms a contiguous urban area, whereas the ...

until 2004, over a decade in which Jews from the former USSR came to Germany. The congregation in Oldenburg grew from 90 to 350 members under her rabbinate. Her direct successor in Oldenburg in 2004 was Jonah Sievers; in 2010 however, her second successor became

Alina Treiger Alina Treiger (born 1979) is the first female rabbi to be ordained in Germany since World War II. Biography Treiger was born in Poltava, Ukraine. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, Treiger formed a Jewish youth club in Poltava and then ...

who had been ordained as the first female graduate at

Abraham Geiger College Abraham Geiger Kolleg is a rabbinic seminary at the University of Potsdam in Potsdam, Germany. History Abraham Geiger Kolleg was founded 1999 as the only seminary in Germany since the Holocaust, when the Hochschule für die Wissenschaft des Jud ...

in Potsdam. In May 2004, for family reasons Bea Wyler resigned from her posts in Germany and returned to Switzerland. Since, she has been active primarily in teaching and publishing, but also holds synagogal services at various places, e.g. in Basel. In June 2021, Bea Wyler received an

honorary doctorate An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hon ...

from the Jewish Theological Seminary (JTS) in New York in recognition of her contribution to Jewish life.Honors 36 Rabbis for Their Dedication and Commitment at June 2021 Convocation", date=June 7, 2021, New York, NY
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wyler, Bea 1951 births 20th-century German rabbis 21st-century German rabbis German Conservative rabbis Living people Swiss Conservative Jews Swiss expatriates in Germany Swiss rabbis Conservative women rabbis

Life

First female rabbi serving a German congregation

See also

References