Dina Brawer (born Dina Elmaleh) is an Open Orthodox woman rabbi and the founder of the Jewish Orthodox Feminist Alliance division in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

(JOFA UK). Brawer received her rabbinical ordination at

Yeshivat Maharat Yeshivat Maharat is a Jewish educational institution in The Bronx, New York, which is the first Orthodox-affiliated yeshiva in North America to ordain women. The word ''Maharat'' () is a Hebrew acronym for phrase ''manhiga hilkhatit rukhanit Tora ...

in the United States and is the first Orthodox woman rabbi to serve in the UK. Brawer's work at JOFA UK focuses on women's rights in Orthodox Judaism and the religious education of adult women in Orthodox communities in the UK.

Background

Brawer was born and raised in

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

to a

Chabad Chabad, also known as Lubavitch, Habad and Chabad-Lubavitch (; ; ), is a dynasty in Hasidic Judaism. Belonging to the Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) branch of Orthodox Judaism, it is one of the world's best-known Hasidic movements, as well as one of ...

Hasidic Hasidism () or Hasidic Judaism is a religious movement within Judaism that arose in the 18th century as a spiritual revival movement in contemporary Western Ukraine before spreading rapidly throughout Eastern Europe. Today, most of those aff ...

family. After migrating to the United Kingdom, Brawer's education included a B.A. in Hebrew and Jewish Studies from the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

, an M.A. in Education and Psychology from the Institute of Education, London. In 2013, Brawer established and led JOFA UK to advocate for expanding the religious roles of women in Britain's Orthodox communities. Subsequently, Brawer joined Yeshivat Maharat and received her ordination in 2018. Brawer is not formally affiliated with the Chabad Hasidic community but has described her education and training in Chabad as fundamental to her approach to Judaism. Brawer is married to Rabbi Dr. Naftali Brawer who was born in Boston but raised in Canada. Brawer and her husband co-founded of the Mishkan community in London which is described as a "transdenominational, pop-up Jewish community". After years of service in Britain's Jewish community, the Brawers relocated to the United States.

Women's Torah study

While living in the UK, Brawer produced the #YourTorah podcast, which is described as a journey through the 63 tractates of the

Mishnah The Mishnah or the Mishna (; , from the verb ''šānā'', "to study and review", also "secondary") is the first written collection of the Jewish oral traditions that are known as the Oral Torah. Having been collected in the 3rd century CE, it is ...

, taught entirely by women. The run time for each episode is 18 minutes.

Recognition

Dina Brawer was listed among Britain's 100 most influential Jewish community activists in 2016.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Brawer, Dina British Modern Orthodox rabbis Rabbis from London British women's rights activists Religious leaders from Milan Orthodox women rabbis Orthodox Jewish feminists Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Chabad-Lubavitch (Hasidic dynasty) Open Orthodox Jews British Ashkenazi Jews Alumni of the University of London Alumni of University College London

Background

Women's Torah study

Recognition

See also

References

External links