Sara Hurwitz is an Open Orthodox

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

spiritual leader. She is considered by some to be the first female Orthodox rabbi. She serves as "Rabba" at the

Hebrew Institute of Riverdale The Hebrew Institute of Riverdale is an Open Orthodoxy, Open Orthodox synagogue in the residential Riverdale, Bronx, Riverdale neighborhood of New York City. The congregation was founded in 1971 and has been led by Rabbi Avi Weiss since 1973, alth ...

, and the president and co-founder of

Yeshivat 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 Toran ...

, both in Riverdale,

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Biography

Hurwitz was born in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

, and moved to

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with her family in 1989. She earned a B.A. from

Barnard College Barnard College of Columbia University is a private women's liberal arts college in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded in 1889 by a group of women led by young student activist Annie Nathan Meyer, who petitioned Columbia ...

and a certificate from the Drisha Institute for Women. In June 2009, Sara Hurwitz was ordained by Rabbi

Avi Weiss Avraham Haim Yosef (Avi) haCohen Weiss ( he, אברהם חיים יוסף הכהן ווייס; born June 24, 1944) is an American Open Orthodox ordained rabbi, author, teacher, lecturer, and activist who led the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale in T ...

with the title "

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 Torani ...

". In February 2010, Weiss announced that he was changing the title to "Rabba", a move criticised by both

Agudath Yisrael Agudat Yisrael ( he, אֲגוּדָּת יִשְׂרָאֵל, lit., ''Union of Israel'', also transliterated ''Agudath Israel'', or, in Yiddish, ''Agudas Yisroel'') is a Haredi Judaism, Haredi Jewish political party in Israel. It began as a pol ...

and the

Rabbinical Council of America The Rabbinical Council of America (RCA) is one of the world's largest organizations of Orthodox rabbis; it is affiliated with The Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America, more commonly known as the Orthodox Union (OU). It is the main p ...

. Within several years of Hurwitz's ordination, subsequent Orthodox women also received ordination as well as positions within Orthodox synagogues. This development indicated that Hurwitz was no longer an exception within Orthodox Judaism. On Dec. 6th, 2010, at Temple Reyim in Newton, MA, Sara Hurwitz met with

Amy Eilberg Amy Eilberg (born October 12, 1954) is the first female rabbi ordained in Conservative Judaism. She was ordained in 1985 by the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, one of the academic centers and spiritual centers of Conservative Judaism. Yo ...

, the first Conservative rabbi

Sally Priesand Sally Jane Priesand (born June 27, 1946) is America's first female rabbi Semikha, ordained by a rabbinical seminary, and the second formally ordained female rabbi in Jewish history, after Regina Jonas. Priesand was ordained by the Hebrew Union Co ...

, the first Reform female rabbi, and

Sandy Eisenberg Sasso Sandy Eisenberg Sasso is the first woman to have been ordained a rabbi in Reconstructionist Judaism. She was ordained by the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in Philadelphia, on May 19, 1974. She is also the author of many children's books on ...

, the first Reconstructionist female rabbi. They and approximately 30 other women rabbis lit Chanukah candles and then spoke about their experiences in an open forum. On June 3, 2012, Priesand, Sasso, Eilberg, and Hurwitz met again, this time at Monmouth Reform Temple at a celebration honoring the four first women rabbis to be ordained in their respective denominations, and the 40th anniversary of Priesand's ordination.

Recognition

In 2013, Hurwitz was awarded the Hadassah Foundation Bernice S. Tannenbaum prize. The following year, Hurwitz received the annual Myrtle Wreath Award from the Southern New Jersey Region of Hadassah, and in 2016 she received the Trailblazer Award at UJA Federation of New York. Hurwitz was named as one of ''Jewish Week''s 36 Under 36, the ''Forward''s 50 most influential Jewish leaders, and ''

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''s 50 most influential rabbis. The art exhibit “Holy Sparks”, which opened in February 2022 at the Heller Museum and the Skirball Museum, featured 24 Jewish women artists, who had each created an artwork about a female rabbi who was a first in some way.https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2022/05/13/jewish-contributions-in-cincinnati.html Kathryn Jacobi created the artwork about Hurwitz.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hurwitz, Sara Living people American Modern Orthodox rabbis Barnard College alumni People from Johannesburg South African emigrants to the United States South African Orthodox rabbis People from Boca Raton, Florida Open Orthodox Jews Year of birth missing (living people) 2010 in Judaism Orthodox Jewish feminists 21st-century American rabbis Orthodox women rabbis

Biography

Recognition

See also

References