Mimi Feigelson
Reb Mimi Feigelson teaches the tradition of her Hasidic forbears through the lens of her own experience as the first Orthodox woman rabbi. Feigelson made Aliyah to Israel at age eight with her family and began studying at age sixteen with Shlomo Carlebach, a rabbi known for his translation of ecstatic Hasidic Judaism into terms that welcomed Jews of all backgrounds. Feigelson continued her studies with him while earning a BA in history from Hebrew University in Jerusalem. After her ordination by Carlebach in 1994, she began teaching within the Jewish community but kept her rabbinic credentials quiet to avoid upsetting the Orthodox community where she lived and worked. In 2001 she began serving as spiritual director and teaching rabbinic literature and Hasidic thought at the Ziegler School of the American Jewish University in Los Angeles. It was there that she formally took the title of “Reb,” which signaled her position as a link in the chain of the Hasidic rabbis who preceded her. In 2017 she became spiritual director and senior lecturer in rabbinics and Hassidic thought at the Schechter Rabbinical Seminary in Jerusalem. Feigelson also travels widely, working with spiritual communities in India, Israel, and America.
Reb Mimis teaching is so interesting. She has a wealth of
knowledge. P.S. love her teaching.