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Do IT this week: Layering
By Colette M. Jenkins
Beacon Journal religion writer
POSTED: 03:26 p.m. EDT, Jul 10, 2009
The focal point for the new rabbi at Temple Israel is caring for people.
''The most important thing in my rabbinate is going to be pastoral care,'' said Rabbi Robert Feinberg, who officially began his tenure as the 13th rabbi of the reform congregation on July 1. ''Mine will be a rabbinate of presence, being there for people and being present in the community, fulfilling my responsibility to preach, teach, counsel and organize.''
Feinberg, 55, and his wife, Myra, came to Temple Israel from Congregation B'nai Torah in Highland Park, Ill., where he had served since 2004 as an assistant rabbi. His duties at the Illinois synagogue included teaching a Torah study group and adult education classes on Israel and Zionism. He also provided support to several committees and groups at B'nai Torah and provided pastoral care to members in hospitals and rehabilitation centers.
Before his service at B'nai Torah, Feinberg spent 20 years in the U.S. Navy chaplaincy. His assignments included the U.S. Sixth Fleet in Naples, Italy; a synagogue in Okinawa, Japan; the U.S. Naval Academy; and Great Lakes Naval Training Center. He was the founding rabbi of the first liberal synagogue in the former Soviet Union, Congregation Hineini in Moscow.
Feinberg is a member of the Central Conference of American Rabbis and has served as the organization's liaison to the Chaplaincy Commission of the Jewish Welfare Board.
In Illinois, he was a representative of the Chicago Area Reform Rabbis to the Jewish Community Relations Council. He also provided rabbinical support at the Great Lakes Naval Base as a member of the Steering Committee of the Jewish Community Centers of Chicago and was chaplain for the Highland Park Police Department.
Feinberg said that in addition to reaching out to the membership at Temple Israel, he plans to be active in the Jewish and general communities.
''I am very much interested in furthering the interfaith role that has been so important to the legacy of Temple Israel,'' Feinberg said. ''This is a congregational community with a rich history, and I am looking forward to being a part of its heritage. This is a wonderful opportunity for me.''
Feinberg was selected from a pool of about 30 candidates to replace Rabbi David Lipper, whose contract was not renewed by the local congregation. Temple Israel President Arthur Krakauer said that Feinberg's personality is the perfect fit for the congregation.
''He is a man of compassion who cares about others even more than himself,'' Krakauer said. ''He has a lot of skills and experience with interfaith and community activities. Perhaps his greatest strength is his pastoral care — he has already demonstrated that by going out and visiting those who are sick during his two brief visits to the area before relocating here.''
Feinberg, who was ordained in 1982, earned degrees from Yale University, Temple University and the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College.
The Riverdale, N.Y., native said his first order of business is to learn about his congregation and the community.
''It will take some time for me to get to know the congregational community and the general community, but I like what I've seen so far,'' Feinberg said. ''I am looking forward to helping the community advance and reach its goals.''
The focal point for the new rabbi at Temple Israel is caring for people.
''The most important thing in my rabbinate is going to be pastoral care,'' said Rabbi Robert Feinberg, who officially began his tenure as the 13th rabbi of the reform congregation on July 1. ''Mine will be a rabbinate of presence, being there for people and being present in the community, fulfilling my responsibility to preach, teach, counsel and organize.''
Feinberg, 55, and his wife, Myra, came to Temple Israel from Congregation B'nai Torah in Highland Park, Ill., where he had served since 2004 as an assistant rabbi. His duties at the Illinois synagogue included teaching a Torah study group and adult education classes on Israel and Zionism. He also provided support to several committees and groups at B'nai Torah and provided pastoral care to members in hospitals and rehabilitation centers.
Before his service at B'nai Torah, Feinberg spent 20 years in the U.S. Navy chaplaincy. His assignments included the U.S. Sixth Fleet in Naples, Italy; a synagogue in Okinawa, Japan; the U.S. Naval Academy; and Great Lakes Naval Training Center. He was the founding rabbi of the first liberal synagogue in the former Soviet Union, Congregation Hineini in Moscow.
Feinberg is a member of the Central Conference of American Rabbis and has served as the organization's liaison to the Chaplaincy Commission of the Jewish Welfare Board.
In Illinois, he was a representative of the Chicago Area Reform Rabbis to the Jewish Community Relations Council. He also provided rabbinical support at the Great Lakes Naval Base as a member of the Steering Committee of the Jewish Community Centers of Chicago and was chaplain for the Highland Park Police Department.
Feinberg said that in addition to reaching out to the membership at Temple Israel, he plans to be active in the Jewish and general communities.
''I am very much interested in furthering the interfaith role that has been so important to the legacy of Temple Israel,'' Feinberg said. ''This is a congregational community with a rich history, and I am looking forward to being a part of its heritage. This is a wonderful opportunity for me.''
Feinberg was selected from a pool of about 30 candidates to replace Rabbi David Lipper, whose contract was not renewed by the local congregation. Temple Israel President Arthur Krakauer said that Feinberg's personality is the perfect fit for the congregation.
''He is a man of compassion who cares about others even more than himself,'' Krakauer said. ''He has a lot of skills and experience with interfaith and community activities. Perhaps his greatest strength is his pastoral care — he has already demonstrated that by going out and visiting those who are sick during his two brief visits to the area before relocating here.''
Feinberg, who was ordained in 1982, earned degrees from Yale University, Temple University and the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College.
The Riverdale, N.Y., native said his first order of business is to learn about his congregation and the community.
''It will take some time for me to get to know the congregational community and the general community, but I like what I've seen so far,'' Feinberg said. ''I am looking forward to helping the community advance and reach its goals.''
