Michael Strassfeld 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 of ...
. Strassfeld was rabbi of the
Society for the Advancement of Judaism
The Society for the Advancement of Judaism, also known as SAJ, is a synagogue and Jewish organization in New York City, on Manhattan's Upper West Side. Founded in 1922 by Rabbi Mordecai M. Kaplan, the founder of Reconstructionist Judaism, the syna ...
, a Manhattan synagogue. Before that he was the rabbi of Congregation Ansche Chesed.
Biography
Michael Strassfeld is a graduate of the
Maimonides School
Maimonides School (Hebrew: ישיבת רמב"ם ''Yeshivat Rambam'') is a coeducational, Modern Orthodox Judaism, Modern Orthodox, Jewish day school located in Brookline, Massachusetts. The school was founded in 1937 by Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik a ...
. He started college at
Yeshiva University
Yeshiva University is a private Orthodox Jewish university with four campuses in New York City.["About YU]
on the Yeshiva Universi ...
, but transferred to
Brandeis University
, mottoeng = "Truth even unto its innermost parts"
, established =
, type = Private research university
, accreditation = NECHE
, president = Ronald D. Liebowitz
, ...
and graduated in 1971. He holds an M.A. from Brandeis in Near Eastern and Judaic Studies, and completed his doctoral coursework in Jewish History at Brandeis but did not submit a thesis. He was ordained by the
Reconstructionist Rabbinical College
The Reconstructionist Rabbinical College (RRC) is a Jewish seminary in Wyncote, Pennsylvania. It is the only seminary affiliated with Reconstructionist Judaism. It is accredited by the Commission on Higher Education of the Middle States Associa ...
in 1991.
Strassfeld first received wide public attention as one of the authors of ''
The Jewish Catalog''. He was a leader of the
Chavurah movement and was the founding chairperson of the National Havurah Committee from 1979 to 1982.
The original version of ''Passover Haggadah: The Feast of Freedom'' was edited by Strassfeld. After publishing it for members of the
Rabbinical Assembly
The Rabbinical Assembly (RA) is the international association of Conservative rabbis. The RA was founded in 1901 to shape the ideology, programs, and practices of the Conservative movement. It publishes prayerbooks and books of Jewish interest, a ...
in their rabbinical journal, Rachel Anne Rabinowicz came on board next as editor of the project. She brought the work to its final form.
Strassfeld is married to Rabbi
Joy Levitt and he is father to sons Max, Noam, and Benjamin and stepdaughters Sara and Ruthie Friedlander, as well as being grandfather to Micah Strassfeld.
Publications
* ''The First Jewish Catalog''. A Do-It-Yourself Kit. Compiled and edited by Richard Siegel, Michael Strassfeld, and Sharon Strassfeld (1973).
* ''The Second Jewish Catalog''. Comp. and ed. by Michael Strassfeld and Sharon Strassfeld (1976).
* ''The Third Jewish Catalog''. Compiled and ed. by Sharon Strassfeld and Michael Strassfeld (1980).
* ''Shabbat Haggadah for Celebration and Study'' (1980).
* ''The Jewish holidays: a guide and commentary''. With
Arnold M. Eisen and Betsy Platkin Teutsch (Illustrations) (1985).
* ''A Night of Questions, a Passover Haggadah'' with Rabbi Joy Levitt (2000).
* ''A Book of Life: Embracing Judaism as a Spiritual Practice'', Schocken Books (2002).
References
External links
SAJ Society for the Advancement of Judaism - Rabbi Michael StrassfeldBeing Jewish(
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...
)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Strassfeld, Michael
American Reconstructionist rabbis
Brandeis University alumni
Living people
Maimonides School alumni
Year of birth missing (living people)