David Nathan Saperstein is an American

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 ...

, lawyer, and Jewish community leader who served as United States Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom. He previously served as the director and chief legal counsel at the

Union for Reform Judaism The Union for Reform Judaism (URJ), known as the Union of American Hebrew Congregations (UAHC) until 2003, founded in 1873 by Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise, is the congregational arm of Reform Judaism in North America. The other two arms establishe ...

Religious Action Center The Religious Action Center (RAC) is the political and legislative outreach arm of Reform Judaism in the United States. The Religious Action Center is operated under the auspices of the Commission on Social Action of Reform Judaism, a joint body of ...

for more than 30 years.Official biography
from rac.org.

Early life and education

Saperstein was born in New York City. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to tea ...

, Master of Hebrew Letters from

Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

, and

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice l ...

from the

Washington College of Law The American University Washington College of Law (AUWCL or WCL) is the law school of American University, a private research university in Washington, D.C. It is located on the western side of Tenley Circle in the Tenleytown section of nort ...

American University The American University (AU or American) is a private federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C. Its main campus spans 90 acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, mostly in the Spring Valley neighborhood of Northwest D.C. AU was cha ...

Career

Saperstein succeeded Rabbi Richard G. Hirsch as leader of the Washington D.C.-based political lobbying arm of the North American

Reform movement A reform movement or reformism is a type of social movement that aims to bring a social or also a political system closer to the community's ideal. A reform movement is distinguished from more radical social movements such as revolutionary m ...

. There, he advocated on a broad range of

social justice Social justice is justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has often referred to the process of ensuring that individuals ...

issues. He directed a staff who provided extensive legislative and programmatic materials to synagogues,

federations A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government ( federalism). In a federation, the self-governi ...

and

Jewish Community Relations Council A Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) is a locally based Jewish organization that carries out "action agendas on behalf of and in the name of the local Jewish communities." Councils may aim "to represent the consensus of the organized Jewish ...

s nationwide, coordinating social action education programs that train nearly 3,000 Jewish adults, youth, rabbinic and lay leaders each year. He has been described as America's most influential rabbi. Freedom of religion or belief (30128115920)

Freedom of religion or belief (30128115920)

On July 28, 2014, President Obama nominated Saperstein to be the first non-Christian to hold the post of United States Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom. In December 2014 Saperstein's appointment to the post won U.S. Senate confirmation. He has co-chaired the Coalition to Preserve Religious Liberty, and serves on the boards of the

NAACP The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E.&n ...

Common Cause Common Cause is a watchdog group based in Washington, D.C., with chapters in 35 states. It was founded in 1970 by John W. Gardner, a Republican, who was the former Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare in the administration of President ...

, and People For the American Way. In 1999, Saperstein was elected as the first Chair of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. On August 28, 2008, Saperstein delivered the invocation at the Democratic National Convention's final session, before Senator Barack Obama accepted the party's nomination for president. In February 2009, he was named to President Obama's

Council for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships The White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, formerly the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives (OFBCI) is an office within the White House Office that is part of the Executive Office of the President ...

. In 2009 ''

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis (businessman), Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print m ...

'' named him # 1 on its list of "50 Influential Rabbis." Saperstein is also an adjunct professor at Georgetown University Law Center.

Personal

He is married to four-time

Peabody Award The George Foster Peabody Awards (or simply Peabody Awards or the Peabodys) program, named for the American businessman and philanthropist George Peabody, honor the most powerful, enlightening, and invigorating stories in television, radio, and ...

winning journalist

Ellen Weiss Ellen Weiss (born January 30, 1959) is an American journalist and four-time Peabody Award winner. She joined National Public Radio (NPR) in 1982, eventually running the NPR News national desk and serving as executive producer of the NPR News maga ...

. They are the parents of musician Daniel Saperstein. His brother is Jewish Historian and Rabbi Marc Saperstein. Their parents were Rabbi Harold Saperstein and Marcia Saperstein. He is a graduate member of the Tau Epsilon Phi fraternity.Jeff Sondhelm
''President Obama Nominates Brother David Saperstein as Ambassador!''
TEP.org website December 18, 2014. Retrieved December 19, 2014

References

External links

Text of Rabbi Saperstein's invocation at the 2008 Democratic National Convention
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Saperstein, David 1947 births 21st-century American rabbis American Reform rabbis Cornell University alumni Tau Epsilon Phi Living people People for the American Way people HuffPost writers and columnists United States Ambassadors-at-Large

Early life and education

Career

Personal

See also

References

External links