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Ute Steyer (born 1967) is a 
She is the rabbi of the Jewish Community of
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 o ...
in Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
, the first woman to serve as a rabbi in the country.
She is the rabbi of the Jewish Community of Stockholm
Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
and of the Great Synagogue of Stockholm
The Great Synagogue of Stockholm ( sv, Stockholms stora synagoga, he, בית הכנסת הגדול של שטוקהולם ''Bet ha-Knesset ha-Gadol shel Stokholm'') is located on a small street called Wahrendorffsgatan, close to the park Kungstr ...
, a Conservative congregation, which serves as the city's main synagogue and center of Jewish life. She also works at Paideia – The Institute for Jewish Studies in Sweden as the resident lecturer of talmud.
Steyer was born in 1967 and grew up in London, Athens, and Berlin, as her parents were diplomats and moved frequently.
After working for Ericsson and the Chamber of Commerce in Stockholm in the 1990s and studying at Lund University, during which time she became fluent in Swedish
Swedish or ' may refer to:
Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically:
* Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland
** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...
, she chose to become a rabbi. She was ordained in 2009, through the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
The Jewish Theological Seminary (JTS) is a Conservative Jewish education organization in New York City, New York. It is one of the academic and spiritual centers of Conservative Judaism and a major center for academic scholarship in Jewish studie ...
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
* '' ...
, and graduated with a master's degree in Jewish philosophy
Jewish philosophy () includes all philosophy carried out by Jews, or in relation to the religion of Judaism. Until modern ''Haskalah'' (Jewish Enlightenment) and Jewish emancipation, Jewish philosophy was preoccupied with attempts to reconcile ...
. She then worked at Yeshiva University's Center for Jewish Law and the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
The Jewish Theological Seminary (JTS) is a Conservative Jewish education organization in New York City, New York. It is one of the academic and spiritual centers of Conservative Judaism and a major center for academic scholarship in Jewish studie ...
, before moving back to Sweden after 15 years in New York.
When she took over as the Great Synagogue's rabbi in January 2015, she became the first female rabbi in Swedish history. She attributed the delay in the country reaching this landmark to the small size of the Swedish Jewish community.
During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, she led her congregation in the first virtual services of the Great Synagogue's 150-year history.
See also
* Timeline of women rabbisReferences