Rabbi John Simon Levi (born 1934) is an Australian Progressive rabbi and author. Upon ordination in 1960, he began serving Melbourne's Temple Beth Israel. He became senior rabbi of the congregation from 1974 until 1997, when he became rabbi emeritus.Rabbi John Levi: A true icon of Australian Jewry
''The Jerusalem Post''. 25 March 2021 He is also the founder of Melbourne's King David School.

Background

Levi has deep family roots in Australia stretching back to the mid 1800s, which include

Nathaniel Levi Nathaniel Levi (20 January 1830–1908) was a Jewish-Australian politician and businessman. Biography Levi was born in Liverpool, England on 20 January 1830. He left England in December 1852, and arrived at Hobson's Bay on 27 April 1854 on t ...

, the first state Jewish MP. He attended

Melbourne Grammar School Melbourne Grammar School is an Australian private school, private Anglican Church of Australia, Anglican Day school, day and boarding school. It comprises a co-educational preparatory school from Prep to Year 6 and a middle school and senior s ...

and graduated from the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...

with a double major in Philosophy and Semitic studies. He then spent time living on a

kibbutz A kibbutz ( / , ; : kibbutzim / ) is an intentional community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. The first kibbutz, established in 1910, was Degania Alef, Degania. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economi ...

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

before relocating to the United States to study at

Hebrew Union College Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and remained in regular use as a first language until ...

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

.Profile
Leo Baeck Centre for Progressive Judaism. October 2021 As a student rabbi, he was the first rabbi to serve

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

's fledgling Reform congregation, Beth Shalom.The Story of Beth Shalom
Retrieved on 4 December 2023 He also served

West London Synagogue The West London Synagogue, abbreviated WLS, and fully the West London Synagogue of British Jews () is a Reform Judaism, Reform Judaism, Jewish congregation and synagogue, located near Marble Arch, at 34 Upper Berkeley Street, in the City of Wes ...

in London, as well as congregations in

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

and

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

. Levi became the first Australian born rabbi when he was ordained in 1960. and joined the staff of Temple Beth Israel. He was senior rabbi there from 1974 to 1997 when he became Rabbi Emeritus. He was named as Rabbi Emeritus of Temple Beth Israel in 1997

Doctor of Laws A Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) is a doctoral degree in legal studies. The abbreviation LL.D. stands for ''Legum Doctor'', with the double “L” in the abbreviation referring to the early practice in the University of Cambridge to teach both canon law ...

(''

honoris causa An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...

'') of

Monash University Monash University () is a public university, public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. Named after World War I general Sir John Monash, it was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the ...

. Levi helped found the

Australian Council of Christians and Jews Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Aus ...

in 1985. He was also a vice president of the

World Union for Progressive Judaism The World Union for Progressive Judaism (WUPJ) is the international umbrella organization for the various branches of Reform Judaism, Reform, Liberal and Progressive Judaism, as well as the separate Reconstructionist Judaism. The WUPJ is based i ...

from 1974 to 1998. Levi was created a

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...

(AM) in the 1981 Queen's Birthday Honours. In the

2021 Australia Day Honours The 2021 Australia Day Honours are appointments Australian honours system, to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by Australian citizens. The list was announced on 26 January 2021 by the Governor General of Australia, Da ...

, Levi was awarded the highest level of honour, the

Companion of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...

(AC). He was given the award for "eminent service to Judaism through seminal roles with religious, community and historical organisations, to the advancement of interfaith understanding, tolerance and collaboration, and to education".

Bibliography

Levi has written about 20 books, including * *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Levi, John 20th-century Australian rabbis 21st-century Australian rabbis Living people Australian biographers Clergy from Melbourne Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion alumni University of Melbourne alumni Companions of the Order of Australia Members of the Order of Australia 1934 births People educated at Melbourne Grammar School