Women in the Secular Humanistic Rabbinate

Secular Humanistic Judaism believes that Jewish culture can be interpreted in a pluralistic way, respecting the diversity of interpretations and the legitimacy of each stream within Judaism. Its ideal is ethnic/national unity without uniformity. This way of seeing Judaism considers humans to be in charge of their own decisions and accountable for their actions toward fellow human beings. Ideally, people democratically elect their rulers and are governed by the laws they determine through respect for and equality of all human beings. 

According to Secular Humanistic Judaism, Jewish culture was created by the Jewish people, beginning with their classical literature three thousand years ago. This literary creation evolved through the present, developing through the Jewish diaspora and in all the languages Jews used. Jewish culture included every aspect of human creativity, such as music and painting, and was also the result of interaction with cultures with which it coexisted.

Humanist ideas, which consider the well-being of human beings to be at the center of our action, have been present throughout Jewish history. As secularism and the abandonment of theistic beliefs began to gain greater importance in the second half of the nineteenth century and during the twentieth century, however, these views gained an increasing foothold within Ashkenazic Jewish world. 

In twentieth-century Europe, North and South America, Australia, and Israel (also before 1948), hundreds of small communities arose based on these convictions, often mixed with other progressive beliefs, such as socialism. In Detroit, Sherwin Wine, a Reform rabbi who adopted secularism, recognized the need for more synagogue-like formats for humanistic Jews. He created the first rabbi-led Secular Humanistic Jewish community, the Birmingham Temple, in 1963. In 1969 this initiative was expanded with the founding of the Society for Humanistic Judaism (SHJ). Simultaneously, the Congress of Secular Jewish Organizations (CSJO) brought together more than 50 secular Jewish communities. 

In 1985 the International Institute for Secular Humanistic Judaism (IISHJ) was founded in Israel with the participation, among others, of Rabbi Sherwin Wine, Israeli Supreme Court Justice Haim Cohn, Prof. Yehuda Bauer, and Belgian Senator Simone Susskind.

The organization’s goal was to train professional leadership for Secular Jewish Humanistic communities. In 1992 a new training program for Secular Humanistic rabbis was inaugurated at the IISHJ–North America, under the direction of Rabbi Wine. Its first rabbinic ordination, of Rabbi Tamara Kolton, took place in 1999. In 2004 Rabbi Wine entrusted the first Israeli Secular Humanistic rabbi, Sivan Malkin Maas, to form a second rabbinical institute in Jerusalem, IISHJ–Tmurah Israel. Rabbi Wine was the provost of both institutes and after his death in 2007 this position was held by Prof Yaakov Malkin. The first class of Israeli Secular Humanistic Rabbis graduated in 2006.

Through 2025, IISHJ–North America under the direction of Rabbi Dr. Adam Chalom has ordained 20 rabbis, of whom twelve are women, and trained 51 community leaders, educators, and ceremony officiants, 38 of whom are women. IISHJ–Tmurah Israel has ordained 50 rabbis, of whom 24 are women. In North America, Humanistic Rabbis are members of the Association of Humanistic Rabbis. In Israel, they are members of MERHAV: The Council of Secular Humanistic Rabbis in Israel.

The principles of equality of sexual orientations, genders, and respect for personal definitions of gender, including identifications as male, female, lesbian, gay, bisexual. Queer, and nonbinary or trans or other genders, are among the ideological foundations of Secular Humanistic Judaism. Consequently, there is no differentiation among the rabbis based on sexual orientation or gender identity. Likewise, the acceptance of both matrilineal and patrilineal descent reflects Secular Humanism’s ideas of equality between women and men.

The entirety of western culture has been transformed as a result of its evolving gender egalitarianism. More than other major Jewish movements, Secular Humanistic Judaism has embraced these changes and the growing inclusiveness of genders.

Secular Humanistic rabbis’ contributions include academic studies in the field of rabbinic community work, Jewish Studies, and the professional training that develops on their own. In addition to those who work primarily as pulpit rabbis with Secular Humanistic Jewish congregations, all Humanistic rabbis specialize in professions including regular and special education; teacher training; social welfare and community work; organizational consulting; business administration; law, psychology and psychotherapy; literary work; and the arts. They also participate in municipal councils and local religious councils and in leadership positions in NGOs that focus on social issues, human rights, and interreligious dialogue.

The rabbinic work of Secular Humanistic rabbis includes the performance of life cycle ceremonies such as welcoming the newborn, Bat and Bar Mitzvah, weddings, and funerals, as well as the leading of rituals to mark the rhythms of the Jewish year. All of their ceremonies are carried out in accordance with the convictions and beliefs of Secular Humanistic Judaism. They draw upon the foundational treasures of Jewish culture as well as modern and original writings to create liturgy that is meaningful, relevant, and responsive to the needs of the participants. who don't identify themselves with religious beliefs.

Rabbi Sigal Asher was ordained as a Secular Humanistic Rabbi by the IISHJ–Tmurah in 2010. She was also ordained as an Israeli Rabbi by the Hartman Institute and the Oranim College in 2024. She holds an MA in History of the Jewish People from Haifa University and a Teacher's Diploma in Arabic from Oranim College. Asher has extensive experience in institutional organization and administration of social justice educational programs and creative projects with disadvantaged students. She participated in the leadership of the Commission for Jewish Education and Identity in a joint project between Haifa and Boston. Asher has directed the Department of Civil Rights and the area of inter-religious relations at Rabbis for Human Rights since 2012. Since 2018, she has been a rabbi at the YAHEL Community—Liberal Humanistic Judaism in Haifa. Asher lives with her female partner, Hava, and is a mother to a daughter.

Rabbi Susan Averbach was ordained by the IISHJ–North America in 2014. She holds an MA in Jewish Studies from Gratz College in Philadelphia. Averbach expresses her skills in the arts, public speaking, and writing. Among other activities, she hosts a blog series called “Musings of an Agnostic Rabbi.” In recent years, she has participated in the activities of the online Secular Synagogue. 

Rabbi Ruthy Beidatz was ordained by the IISHJ–Tmurah Israel in 2015. She presided over MERHAV from 2019 to 2022. Since 2022, she has led Rabbis for Human Rights. She was also ordained as an Israeli Rabbi by the Hartman Institute and Oranim College in 2024. Beidatz holds a BA in Special Education and an MA in Cultural Studies with a special focus on Renewal of secular Jewish Communities in Israel. She teaches Jewish Thought at the Bet Yareach Education Institute in the Yavneel district of the Lower Galilee. Beidatz was a member of the local Council in Yavneel, led its Education Department, and organized a study community/Bet Midrash open to both secular and religious Jews. At the national level, she accompanies Palestinian shepherds in Area C of the West Bank. She is also active in the "Ruach Glilit" (Spirit of the Galilee) initiative, which promotes interreligious understanding. From mid-October 2024 through March 2025, she fasted regularly at the camp next to the Knesset to demand the return of the Israelis kidnapped by Hamas on October 7, 2023, and the end of the war in Gaza.

In 2012 Eva Rose Cohen became director of Or Emet: Minnesota Congregation for Humanistic Judaism’s Jewish Cultural Sunday School. In 2024 she was ordained by the IISHJ–North America and became the congregation’s rabbi. She earned her MA in Classical and Near Eastern studies from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities with a focus on the Hebrew Bible and the ancient Near East. In addition to leading services for the congregation and presiding over weddings and funerals, Cohen continues to teach and lead the congregation’s B’Mitzvah program.

Rabbi Tamar Gidron was ordained by IISHJ–Tmurah Israel in 2025. She holds a BA in Education and Israel Studies and an MA in History of the Jewish People and the Literature of the Mishnah and Talmud. Gidron is the co-founder of the Hagut Institute for Jewish-Secular-Humanistic Research and Education, where she writes curricula about Jewish culture and holiday ceremonies. Gidron also mentors young people who have chosen to leave An ultra-Orthodox JewHaredi society in their first steps in secular civil society, as part of the organization Out for Change. She works in Jewish-Arab coexistence and initiated and teaches in the Olive Tree program, which supports Arab teachers in Jewish schools.

Rabbi Eva Goldfinger graduated from Bais Yaakov High School, Teacher’s College in Toronto, and studied Sciences, Psychology, and Hebrew at University of Toronto. She served as spiritual leader at Oraynu Congregation for Humanistic Judaism in Toronto beginning in 1988 and then as rabbi beginning in 2005, when she was ordained by the IISHJ–North America. Goldfinger earned Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Jewish Studies from Hebrew College, Boston. She is also a therapist with advanced training in inner child, cognitive, systems, and humanistic therapy from York University. Since 1986, she has run a successful private practice for individuals, couples, and families. At Oraynu, Goldfinger provides pastoral support and pre-nuptial counseling, adult education workshops, seminars, and lectures and is the Director of Life Cycles, coordinating and organizing ceremonies of Jewish life cycles and conversions/adoptions. She created “Intertalk,” a support group for couples in inter-cultural relationships, in the 1990s. Goldfinger is actively involved in building the Secular Humanistic movement and developing its philosophy and practices locally, nationally, and internationally.

Rabbi Tali Goren Sapir was ordained by the IISHJ–Tmurah Israel in 2017. She is a member of Kibbutz Gazit in the eastern Jezreel Valley. She holds a BA in Jewish Studies and a Teacher's Diploma from Oranim College and an interdisciplinary MA from the Kibbutzim Teacher's College. Her expertise is in teaching Hebrew as a second language. She has coordinated many programs about educational renewal in kibbutzim, including one teaching Hebrew to women in Arab society. Goren Sapir participates in the non-profit organization Yotzim Leshinui (Overcoming to Change), which helps Jews who abandon ultra-orthodoxy overcome the cultural gap and access academic studies. Goren Sapir specializes in conducting personal and meaningful funeral ceremonies.

Rabbi Reut Hamer was ordained by the IISHJ–Tmurah in 2006. She holds a BA in Sociology and Political Science and an MA in Jewish Studies from the Schechter Institute, Jerusalem. Since 1989, she has been a Counselor for the Israel Association of Community Centers in towns and cities of the Haifa and Valleys District. Hamer is a member of the founding team of Kehillah Nigun Halev, a pluralistic and egalitarian community in the Jezreel Valley. She is active in the preparation and performance of Jewish life cycle ceremonies, as well as accompanying families in mourning loved ones. Hamer leads community study groups on various topics and women's groups in Rosh Chodesh and Hafrashat Challah study.

Rabbi Denise Handlarski is the founder and rabbi of the online congregation SecularSynagogue.com. Ordained by the IISHJ-North America in 2013, she holds an MA in Jewish Studies and a PhD in English Literature from York University in Toronto. She is also a graduate of the Queen's-Trent Concurrent Teacher Education Program. Handlarski specializes in educational theory and pedagogy and educational and community leadership. She teaches at the Trent School of Education & Professional Learning. In her online community, she promotes Jewish learning, practice, and community that is accessible, and meaningful today. Handlarski is also a Doula. Her focus is on weaving Jewish tradition into the entire perinatal period, from pregnancy through postpartum. Handlarski is the author of The A-Z of Intermarriage (2020). 

Rabbi Miriam Jerris was ordained by the IISHJ–North America in 2001. She holds MAs in Near Eastern Studies from the University of Michigan and in Humanistic and Clinical Psychology from the Center for Humanistic Studies in Michigan. She also holds a PhD in Jewish Studies from Union Institute & University. She is an Associate Professor of Professional Development at the IISHJ–North America. In 2006 she received the Sherwin T. Wine Lifetime Achievement Award for her work as Rabbi of the Society for Humanistic Judaism. Jerris is co-editor, with Sheila Malcolm, of Here Is Our Light: Humanistic Jewish Holiday and Life-Cycle Liturgy for Inspiration and Reflection (2019).

Rabbi Dr. Iris Karsin was ordained by the IISHJ–Tmurah Israel in 2021. She specialized in counseling in education, special education, and at-risk youth. She received her PhD in Education from Alta University in Budapest, Hungary, and her MA in special education from Bar-Ilan University, Israel. She has worked in educational settings in counseling, teaching, administration, instruction, and supervision. Karsin promotes various initiatives in the field of secular Judaism: "Reading the Bible," which brings the biblical texts in an experiential and secular way to adults who love the Bible; "Parashah and poems," which gives a secular perspective to the weekly parashah of the Pentateuch and the Haftarah, with nuances of poems and songs relevant to the present; and performances of "Bible and poetry" based on biblical themes and narratives intertwined with various interpretations from a current perspective, with musical accompaniment.

Rabbi Dr. Jodi Kornfeld was ordained by the IISHJ–North America in 2009. She is the Rabbi of Beth Chaverim Humanistic Jewish Community in Deerfield, IL. Kornfeld holds a PhD in Jewish Studies from Spertus Institute for Jewish Learning and Leadership and an MA in Jewish Studies from Spertus College. She also holds a Juris Doctor degree from Boston University School of Law. As of 2025, Kornfeld is the secretary and past president of the Association of Humanistic Rabbis. She is co-editor of Contemporary Humanistic Judaism: Beliefs, Values, Practices (2025) and author of “Visual Arts and Jewish Historiography” in The Routledge Companion to Jewish History and Historiography (2018). In her community, Kornfeld performs Jewish life cycle ceremonies, including weddings, baby namings, and funerals for members of the community and non-members.

Rabbi Elana Levy was ordained by the IISHJ–Tmurah Israel in 2010. She completed academic studies in Jewish Thought at Oranim College and Midrasha, where she also earned a Teacher's Diploma in Art. After completing a training course with the Limmud program in London in 2000, she established the Limmud Galil program for strengthening Jewish identity with a team of 25 volunteers and 300 participants. Since its inception, Limmud Galil has held 25 annual study and experiential gatherings for young people and adults of all ages. Levy is a teacher trainer within the framework of the Alliance Israelite Universelle education programs in Israel.

Rabbi Karen Levy was ordained by the IISHJ–North America in 2009. She served as the first Rabbi of Oraynu Congregation for Humanistic Judaism in Toronto, from 2009 until her retirement in 2015. Levy had provided leadership at Oraynu since 1984, including spearheading Bnai Mitzvah, Family Education, Social Action, and outreach programs; preparing curriculum resources; and nurturing the growth, harmony and creativity of the congregational community. Levy holds a BEd from the University of Toronto and an MA in Humanities with a Graduate Certificate in Jewish Studies from York University. She co-authored, with Eva Goldfinger, A Values and History Curriculum for Secular Humanistic Jewish Supplementary Schools, JK-7 (1995); edited The Early Modern European Roots of Secular Humanistic Judaism (1998); and co-wrote, with Leon Levenson, "Background Notes and Questions" for Leon Levenson, Doctor Yudelman’s Computer And Other Plays For Jewish Children (2002).

Rabbi Sivan Malkin Maas is the head of Secular Humanistic Judaism, Israel. She was the first Israeli to be ordained at the IISHJ–North America, in 2003. In 2004, Malkin Maas founded IISHJ–Tmurah Israel in Jerusalem with Professors Yaakov Malkin and Yehuda Bauer. She had since served as the Dean of the IISHJ-Tmurah Israel. Over her two decades of service, Malkin Maas fostered numerous educational initiatives and organized several international colloquia in collaboration with the IISHJ–North America; she supported the founding of MERHAV–Council of Secular Humanistic Rabbis in Israel in 2009 and its reorganization in 2011. In 2014 she promoted the establishment of SIHA, the network of Secular Humanistic Communities in Israel. Over the last fifteen years, Malkin Maas co-directed, with rabbis from MERHAV, a program of conversion to or cultural adoption of Secular Humanistic Judaism.

Malkin Maas maintains close relations with the deans of the rabbinical training institutes of the Conservative, Reform and Modern Orthodox movements and initiated a permanent forum of consultation. She also promotes relations with liberal members of the Lit. "assembly." The 120-member parliament of the State of Israel.Knesset. She has also facilitated the publication of journals and books that delve into Secular Humanistic thought and series featuring works in Hebrew, English, French, and Russian.

Malkin Maas holds a BA in Education and Art from the State University of New York, a Teacher's Diploma from the Kerem Institute for Humanistic and Jewish Studies, Jerusalem, and an MA in Bible and Art from the Schechter Institute, Jerusalem. She has officiated thousands of Jewish life cycle ceremonies such as B’nai Mitzvah and weddings in Israel, North America, and Europe, as well as the celebration of Jewish holidays.

Rabbi Shlomit Myers was ordained by the IISHJ–Tmurah Israel in 2019. She is a member of Kibbutz Ein Dor in the Lower Galilee. She holds first and second academic degrees in Science Teaching and Manpower Administration. She has worked in various fields, including education, teaching, school administration, kibbutz management, personnel administration in industry, and an educational mission in the United States. In recent years, she directed the content and development section of the programs and activities of IISHJ–Tmurah Israel. For many years she volunteered with a joint project between the American Jewish community in Michigan and communities in the central Galilee. Myers regularly performs Sabbath evening services and events for the Hebrew calendar at the Ein Dor cultural community, which she organized in 2006. Her work includes the design of Shabbat and Jewish holiday celebrations, the production of a Shabbat prayerbook, and workshops for the preparation of challah for Shabbat and other festivals. 

Rabbi Galit Oren Moran was ordained by the IISHJ–Tmurah Israel in 2010. She holds a Teacher's Diploma in Special Education from the Kibbutzim Teacher's College, a BEd in Special Education from Beit Berl College in Kfar Saba, and an MA in Jewish Studies from the Schechter Institute in Jerusalem. She prepared a humanist curriculum for Jewish special education and integrates Jewish themes into special education. Oren Moran performs Jewish life cycle ceremonies and ceremonies of the Hebrew calendar throughout the country, especially in the city of Kfar Saba. In the past, she was a member of the Religious Services Council of Kfar Saba, where she promoted the use of municipal budgets for non-Orthodox Jewish cultural activities.

Rabbi Mary Raskin is a founder and the rabbi of Cultural Synagogue serving Portland, Oregon, and Southwest Washington. She was ordained by the IISHJ–North America in 2022. She also holds an MA in Jewish Studies from Spertus Institute in Chicago and an MA in management and business from Marylhurst University in Marylhurst, Oregon. As of 2025, Raskin is also President of the Society for Humanistic Judaism. Raskin officiates lifecycle events such as baby naming, weddings, funerals, memorials, and Bat and Bar Mitzvah ceremonies. She also provides spiritual guidance and pastoral care. She teaches in the Bat and Bar Mitzvah and adult education programs and offers private instruction.

Rabbi Judith Seid, founder and rabbi of Tri-Valley Cultural Jews in Northern California, was ordained by the IISHJ–North America in 2003. She also holds an MA in Jewish Communal Studies from Hebrew Union College, Jewish Institute of Religion. Seid is the author of God-Optional Judaism: Alternatives for Cultural Jews Who Love Their History, Heritage and Community (2018) and We Rejoice in Our Heritage: Home Rituals for Secular and Humanistic Jews. She is the editor of Kumzits! A Festivity of Instant Jewish Songs. She conducts weddings, funerals, baby naming and Brith Mitzvah ceremonies in the spirit of Secular Humanistic Judaism.

Rabbi Ayala Shanee was ordained by the IISHJ–Tmurah Israel in 2017. Since 2024, she has been the Vice Dean of the IISHJ – Tmurah Israel, after five years in charge of section of the programs and activities of IISHJ–Tmurah Israel. Shanee is active also in public affairs and is a member of the City Council of Givataim. She holds a BA in Psychology and Humanities and an MA from the Ruderman Program in Jewish Studies in Haifa University. She is also a mentor in personal and business development and a family counselor. She has been officiating at Jewish secular weddings since 2006. She also performs other Jewish life cycle ceremonies. Shanee lives with her female partner and their three sons.

Rabbi Joysa Winter was ordained by the IISHJ–North America in 2017. She holds an MA in Jewish Studies from the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College and a BA in journalism from the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Journalism. She is the author of Living Jewish Values: Be Your Best Self (2012), as well as hundreds of newspaper and magazine articles.

Rabbi Dr. Iris Yaniv was ordained by the IISHJ–Tmurah Israel in 2010. In 2018, she founded YAHEL-The Humanistic Liberal Judaism Community in Haifa, which she now leads. Yaniv holds a BA in Bible and Jewish History, an MA in Bible and a Teacher's Diploma from The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and a PhD in Education and Bible Teaching from Haifa University. She also holds, among others, a diploma from the program for senior school principals Gvanim: The Movement for Social Judaism and from the "Solutions" institute for couples' therapy. Yaniv teaches Judaism and Pedagogy and develops programs on identity and Jewish Culture with a special focus on the relevance today of Bible learning (Social Justice), at Oranim College. She also is an academic advisor in the Ministry of Education for the text books on Bible for secondary schools and other fields of Bible teaching. Yaniv lives with her female partner.

Thanks to Rabbi Karen Levy for providing substantive editing for this entry.