The Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association (RRA) founded in 1974, is the professional association of rabbis affiliated with

Reconstructionist Judaism Reconstructionist Judaism is a Jewish movement that views Judaism as a progressively evolving civilization rather than a religion, based on concepts developed by Mordecai Kaplan (1881–1983). The movement originated as a semi-organized stream wi ...

. It has approximately 300 members, most of whom are graduates of the

Reconstructionist Rabbinical College 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 Associa ...

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 The Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations (CoP; commonly Presidents' Conference) is an American non-profit organization that addresses issues of critical concern to the Jewish community, and the state of Israel in particu ...

. From 1987 to 1989, Rabbi

Joy Levitt Joy Levitt is an American rabbi and from 1987 to 1989 was the first female president of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association. Levitt is also the founder of the Jewish Journey Project, an initiative that attempts to replace individual synago ...

was the first female president of the RRA. In 2007, Rabbi

Toba Spitzer Rabbi Toba Spitzer became the first openly lesbian or gay person chosen to head a rabbinical association in the United States in 2007, when she was elected president of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association at the group's annual convention, ...

became the first openly

lesbian A lesbian is a Homosexuality, homosexual woman.Zimmerman, p. 453. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate n ...

or gay person chosen to head a rabbinical association in the United States when she was elected president of the RRA.

Past presidents

* Rabbi David Brusin (RRC '74) (1974-1976) * Rabbi Arnold Rachlis (RRC '75) (1976-1978) * Rabbi Dennis C. Sasso (RRC '74) (1978-1980) * Rabbi Elliot Skiddell (RRC '80) (1980-1983) * Rabbi Steven Sager (RRC '78) (1983-1985) * Rabbi Ira Schiffer (RRC '81) (1985-1987) * Rabbi

(RRC '81) (1987-1989) * Rabbi Sandy Sasso (RRC '74) (1989-1991) * Rabbi

Lee Friedlander Lee Friedlander (born July 14, 1934) is an American photographer and artist. In the 1960s and 1970s, Friedlander evolved an influential and often imitated visual language of urban "social landscape," with many of his photographs including fragm ...

(RRC '75) (1991-1993) * Rabbi Ron Aigen (RRC '76) (1993-1995) * Rabbi Michael Cohen (RRC '90) (1995-1996) * Rabbi Barbara Penzner (RRC '87) (1996-1999) * Rabbi Dan Ehrenkrantz (RRC '89) )1999-2001) * Rabbi Nancy Fuchs Kreimer (RRC '82) (2001-2003) * Rabbi Amy Small (RRC '87) (2003-2005) * Rabbi Brant Rosen (RRC '92) (2005-2007) * Rabbi

(RRC '97) (2007-2009) * Rabbi Yael Ridberg (RRC '97) (2009-2011) * Rabbi Fredi Cooper (RRC '00) (2011-2013) * Rabbi Jason G. Klein (RRC '02) (2013-2015) * Rabbi Nina H. Mandel (RRC '03) (2015-2017) * Rabbi Elliott Tepperman (RRC '02) (2020)

References

External links

Official web site
* Full tex
Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association publications
available online
Berman Jewish Policy Archive @ NYU Wagner

Reconstructionist Rabbinical College

Reconstructionist Judaism site
Rabbinical organizations Reconstructionist Judaism in the United States {{Jewish-org-stub

Past presidents

See also

References

External links