Brad Hirschfield (born 1963)Adam Phillips

, ''

Voice of America Voice of America (VOA or VoA) is an international broadcasting network funded by the federal government of the United States that by law has editorial independence from the government. It is the largest and oldest of the American internation ...

'', December 10, 2009. is a

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 t ...

, author, and president of the National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership (CLAL). Hirschfield was ranked three years in a row in ''

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly news magazine based in New York City. Founded as a weekly print magazine in 1933, it was widely distributed during the 20th century and has had many notable editors-in-chief. It is currently co-owned by Dev P ...

'' as one of America's "50 Most Influential Rabbis""50 Influential Rabbis"
''

'', April 30, 2009. and recognized as a leading “Preacher & Teacher” by Beliefnet.com.

Biography

Hirschfield received his rabbinical ordination from the Institute of Traditional Judaism.Johanna Ginsberg
"A rabbi’s journey to tolerance"
, ''New Jersey Jewish News'', January 31, 2008. He received his M.A. and M. Phil from the Jewish Theological Seminary, a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

institution, and his B.A. from the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

. He self-identifies as an Orthodox rabbi.Brad Hirschfield official website
(accessed June 17, 2010)."Clal Faculty: Rabbi Brad Hirschfield
, National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership website, February 27, 2010 (accessed June 17, 2010). Hirschfield was raised in a secular Jewish home but began to pursue a more traditionally observant life as a teenager thus becoming a

baal teshuva In Judaism, a ''ba'al teshuvah'' (; for a woman, , or ; plural, , , 'owner of return God or his way]') is a Jew who adopts some form of traditional religious observance after having previously followed a Jewish secularism, secular lifestyle or ...

. He moved to Israel and became involved with a settler group near

Hebron Hebron (; , or ; , ) is a Palestinian city in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Hebron is capital of the Hebron Governorate, the largest Governorates of Palestine, governorate in the West Bank. With a population of 201,063 in ...

. Becoming disenchanted with this approach, he returned to the United States, where he met and worked for Orthodox rabbi and CLAL founder Irving Greenberg. He went on to pursue his own rabbinical studies, and became a proponent of interfaith dialogue and pluralist attitudes.Amy Klein
"Ex-JDL member urges faith without fanaticism"
''

Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles ''The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles'', known simply as the ''Jewish Journal'', is an independent, nonprofit community weekly newspaper serving the Jewish community of greater Los Angeles, published by the nonprofit TRIBE Media Corp. It ...

'', February 28, 2008. Hirschfield is the current president of Clal - The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership, which describes itself as "A leadership training institute, think tank and resource center committed to religious pluralism and the healthier use of religion in American public life." in 2002 Hirschfield was featured on ABC's ''

Nightline ''Nightline'' (or ''ABC News Nightline'') is ABC News (United States), ABC News' Late night television in the United States, late-night television news program broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC in the United States with a franchis ...

UpClose'', and PBS's ''Frontline: Faith and Doubt at Ground Zero'' In 2009 he was interviewed on the

National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...

program '' Tell Me More'', and in 2010 for the

Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is Australia’s principal public service broadcaster. It is funded primarily by grants from the federal government and is administered by a government-appointed board of directors. The ABC is ...

's ''The Spirit of Things'' hosted by

Rachael Kohn Rachael Kohn (born 1953) is a Canadian-born Australian author and broadcaster who from July 1992 to December 2018 produced and presented programs on religion and spirituality for ABC Radio National, including ''The Religion Report'', ''Religio ...

Works

Hirschfield is the editor of ''Remember for Life: Holocaust Survivors’ Stories of Faith and Hope'' and a co-author of ''Embracing Life & Facing Death: A Jewish Guide to Palliative Care''. In 2008 he published ''You Don’t Have To Be Wrong For Me To Be Right: Finding Faith Without Fanaticism'', described by a reviewer in ''

The Christian Century ''The Christian Century'' is a Christian magazine based in Chicago, Illinois. Considered the flagship magazine of US mainline Protestantism, the monthly reports on religious news; comments on theological, moral, and cultural issues; and reviews ...

'' as "a breathtaking treatise on the perils of rigid religious behavior". Hirschfield conceived and hosted two series for Bridges TV, an American Muslim television network: ''Building Bridges: Abrahamic Perspectives on the World Today'' (three seasons) and ''American Pilgrimage''. With his CLAL co-president Irwin Kula he co-hosts a weekly radio show called ''Hirschfield and Kula'' on KXL in

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

. Hirschfield writes a column, "For God’s Sake," for ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

''’s ''On Faith'' section. He writes the "Windows and Doors" blog for

Beliefnet Beliefnet is a Christian lifestyle website featuring editorial content related to the topics of inspiration, spirituality, health, wellness, love and family, news, and entertainment. History Launched in 1999 by Steven Waldman and Robert Nylen, ...

, where he is featured as a "Preacher and Teacher." He is a regular commentator on ethical issues for

truTV TruTV (stylized as truTV) is an American basic cable Television channel, channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The channel primarily broadcasts reruns of Television comedy, comedy, Reality television, docusoaps and reality shows, with a rec ...

. He was featured, along with students and professors from the

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma, United States. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two territories became the ...

religious studies program, in a documentary entitled, ''Freaks Like Me'', on the subject of religion in the age of terrorism.

Public positions

Hirschfield has expressed concern on the lifting of the excommunication of bishop Richard Williamson, a member of the

Society of Saint Pius X The Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX; ("Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X"), FSSPX) is a canonically irregular traditionalist Catholic priestly fraternity founded in 1970 by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre. Lefebvre was a leading traditionalis ...

.Pope Benedict: Panderer or Creative Community Builder?
/ref>

References

External links

The Wisdom DailyHirschfield and Kula Intelligent Talk Radio website"For God's Sake" Blog
at ''

''
Articles by Brad Hirschfield
on the Berman Jewish Policy Archive @ NYU Wagner
"Windows & Doors" Blog
at

CLAL website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hirschfield, Brad American Orthodox rabbis Baalei teshuva University of Chicago alumni Jewish Theological Seminary of America alumni Living people 1963 births 20th-century Jewish theologians 21st-century Jewish theologians American Jewish theologians 20th-century American rabbis 21st-century American rabbis Union for Traditional Judaism