May 19, 2023 | 28 Iyar 5783
Candlelighting 8:15 p.m. | Havdalah 9:22 p.m. | Vol. 66, No. 20 | pittsburghjewishchronicle.org
NOTEWORTHY LOCAL Brad looks back onre nus LendaOrsini volorei ciendi non Oct. 27, 2018
Reflections of the former director of Et odictiumqui andae amusam Jewish community security quistium si de net voloritat LOCAL LOCAL Honoring Israel’s wounded veterans Ovit, ommodi remos ero
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A new generation of Jewish Volunteers, spiritual leaders take their turn Jewish proat Pittsburgh’s bimahs fessionals and mental health providers hailed as synagogue shooting trial enters fourth week Rabbi Daniel Fellman and Cantor David Reinwald lead services at Temple Sinai
Photo by John Schiller
By David Rullo | Staff Writer
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enerational change is taking place within many of Pittsburgh’s congregations. Several rabbis who shepherded the community for the last three decades recently retired and took with them some of the priorities of the 20th century. A new generation of rabbis and cantors is now leading these congregations. Their pulpits reflect the contemporary challenges and opportunities in the Pittsburgh Jewish community.
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While assimilation and interfaith marriage were often the clarion call that 20th-century Jewish spiritual leaders addressed, the 21st century is cueing other concerns, like shrinking affiliation and how to fully embrace the diversity reflected in the pews. “Demographics have shifted pretty quickly,” Temple Sinai Rabbi Daniel Fellman noted. “Where the last generation got to ride a wave of growth, this generation is confronting contraction.” Fellman joined the Squirrel Hill Reform congregation in 2021, succeeding Rabbi Jamie Gibson, who led Temple Sinai for more than 30 years. Fellman sees a need to identify core values and prioritize which ones should be preserved as
the Jewish community looks to the future. “That becomes the driving force,” he said. “There’s a lot of opportunity for creative thinking and looking at new ways of doing things. We must recognize that the path that got us here isn’t the one we can take forward.” Rabbi Aaron Meyer was hired in 2019 to replace Rabbi Mark Mahler at Temple Emanuel of South Hills, who retired after nearly four decades with the congregation. Meyer became the senior rabbi less than a year before COVID-19 forced the temporary closure of all Jewish institutions in the city. He said that assimilation should no longer be a concern. “I think that there is no question that assimilation is part of the Jewish experience, and we would do well to quit arguing about whether it has happened, but to begin embracing the ways it is not only good for Jews who practice Judaism but, I would argue, good for Judaism itself,” Meyer said. “I think the next generation of Jewish spiritual leaders would be well advised to strike a better balance between serving Jewish tradition and serving the Jews who practice it.” Rabbi Mark Goodman was hired last year as the associate rabbi at Congregation Beth Shalom and has worked for the Conservative Please see New Generation, page 10
Michele Rosenthal, left, stands beside Maggie Feinstein during a May 12 press conference. Photo by Adam Reinherz By Adam Reinherz | Staff Writer
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ith the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting trial entering its fourth week, Michele Rosenthal, whose brothers Cecil and David Rosenthal were among 11 worshippers killed on Oct. 27, 2018, wanted to thank those supporting the survivors and families of victims. During a May 12 media briefing at the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, Rosenthal praised volunteers, Jewish professionals and neighbors. Rather than focusing on the “emotionally overwhelming” magnitude of the trial, she said she wanted to highlight the “solidarity and kindness that I have felt, not only from my friends, but even from complete strangers.” Please see Trial, page 10
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