Rabbi Edwin Goldberg currently serves as the rabbi of Congregation Beth Shalom of The Woodlands, in the Houston area. He received rabbinic ordination and a doctorate in Hebrew Literature from the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion (in 1989 and 1994, respectively). He has authored several books, including: Midrash for Beginners, Heads and Tales: Stories of the Sages to Enlighten Our Minds, Swords and Plowshares: Jewish Views of War and Peace, Love Tales from the Talmud, Saying No and Letting Go: Jewish Wisdom on Making Room for What Matters Most. He served as the Coordinating Editor of the new Reform Jewish machzor, Mishkan HaNefesh. He also edited a companion commentary, Divrei Mishkan HaNefesh and has published many articles and sermons. Rabbi Goldberg has taught as an adjunct professor at the University of Miami in the department of Religious Studies and Judaic Studies. He is also a graduate of the Institute for Jewish Spirituality. Rabbi Janet Marder, a Los Angeles native, graduated from the University of California at Santa Cruz and was ordained in 1979 by the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New York. Following ordination, she pursued graduate studies in the Department of Comparative Literature at UCLA, specializing in Modern Hebrew and Yiddish. In 1983 she became the first ordained rabbi of Beth Chayim Chadashim, a Los Angeles synagogue with special outreach to lesbian and gay Jews. During her five years with that congregation, she founded NECHAMA, a Federation-funded program of AIDS education for the Jewish community. From 1988 to 1999 Rabbi Marder served the Union of American Hebrew Congregations, providing leadership and guidance to Reform synagogues in Southern California, Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada and Texas. In August, 1999 she became Senior Rabbi of Congregation Beth Am in Los Altos Hills, CA. She has a special interest in creating meaningful, joyous and participatory worship services, and in helping to make Beth Am a warm and welcoming community. Rabbi Marder’s articles have appeared in Reform Judaism magazine, the Reconstructionist, Sh’ma and several anthologies. She was part of the core editorial team for Mishkan HaNefesh: Machzor for the Days of Awe and contributed to Divrei Mishkan HaNefesh: A Guide to the CCAR Machzor. She is also co-editor of Mishkan HaLev: Prayers for S'lichot and the Month of Elul, a companion prayerbook to Mishkan HaNefesh. She has served as President of the Pacific Association of Reform Rabbis, the first woman and the first non-congregational rabbi to be elected to that office. In 2003, she became President of the Central Conference of American Rabbis, the national Reform rabbinic organization, the first woman to serve in that capacity in the CCAR’s 114-year history. Rabbi Marder is a Senior Rabbinic Fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem, having recently completed a three year course of study through the institute.She is married to a colleague, Rabbi Sheldon Marder of the Jewish Home in San Francisco, and they are the parents of two daughters, Betsy and Rachel. Rabbi Sheldon Marder earned a BA in English from SUNY at Stony Brook in 1971 and an MA in Hebrew Letters from the Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institution of Religion in New York in 1975. He was ordained by HUC-JIR in 1978 and received an Honorary Doctor of Divinity degree from HUC-JIR, Los Angeles, in 2003. In 2007, he completed a four-year curriculum of Jewish studies and graduated with the title of Senior Rabbinic Fellow from the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem, Israel. He is currently the Rabbi and Department Head of Jewish Life at the Jewish Home of San Francisco. Rabbi Marder is the co-editor, translator, writer, and commentator of Mishkan HaNefesh: Machzor for the Days of Awe, published by CCAR Press in 2015, as well as the co-editor of Mishkan HaLev: Prayers for S'lichot and the Month of Elul, a companion prayerbook to Mishkan HaNefesh. He is also the contributor to other publications, such as Divrei Mishkan HaNefesh: A Guide to the CCAR Machzor, published by CCAR Press in 2016; and CCAR Journal: The Reform Jewish Quarterly, Summer 2013 issue. Rabbi Marder developed several programs of note at the Jewish Home of San Francisco, such as the Art as Therapy program: a weekly art program in which short-term psychiatric patients reflect on great works of art; and Torah Talk: a gathering in which people with Alzheimer’s and related diseases explore Torah, poetry, and art for personal spiritual meaning. He was honored as Mentor of the Year by the Association of Jewish Aging Services in 2008. Rabbi Leon Morris is President of the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies, and the first Pardes alumnus to hold this position, having studied on the Pardes Year Program in 1995-96. Rabbi Morris is a product of the Reform movement. He served as the NFTY National President from 1986-87, worked at URJ Camp Harlam, and studied for the rabbinate at Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion where he was ordained in 1997. He was the founding director of the Skirball Center for Adult Jewish Learning in Manhattan (now the Streicker Center at Temple Emanu-El) and served in that position for a decade. He served as the rabbi of Temple Adas Israel in Sag Harbor, NY for 15 years. In the summer of 2014, Rabbi Morris made aliya to Israel with his wife and three children. He served as Vice President for North American programs in Israel at the Shalom Hartman Institute and was on the faculty of HUC in Jerusalem. He is one of four editors of the new Reform High Holy Day prayer book, Mishkan HaNefesh, and a frequent contributor to the American and Israeli press. For two decades, Rabbi Morris has devoted himself to fostering greater opportunities for learning in Reform contexts and rethinking the place of mitzvot in the lives of liberal Jews. Leon is a contributor to Jewish Theology in Our Time: A New Generation Explores the Foundations and Future of Jewish Belief (edited by Elliot Cosgrove, Jewish Lights, 2010) and to Platforms and Prayer Books: Theological and Liturgical Perspectives on Reform Judaism (edited by Dana Evan Kaplan, Rowman and Littlefield, 2002). Innovation in ritual and prayer, profound engagement in social action, leadership, scholarship, and a palpable love of Jewish life are hallmarks of Rabbi Elaine Zecher’s rabbinate. As the senior rabbi of Temple Israel of Boston, she leads the largest congregation in New England, forging close personal relationships within the congregation and the larger community. Rabbi Zecher is outspoken on matters of justice and liberty, a tireless worker in interfaith partnerships, and an advocate of progressive legislation and policy. She is noted as well for personal warmth, deep humanity, quick wit, and humor. She is an engaging teacher who makes scholarship accessible and engaging. Active as well in the national Reform Jewish Movement, she was instrumental in developing new prayer books for Shabbat and weekdays, as well as the machzor, which is used on the High Holy Days. Additionally, she served as Vice President for Leadership of the Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR). A graduate of Brandeis University, she was ordained from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in 1988. She is married to Dr. David Eisenberg and has three adult children. Cantor Evan Kent, a 1988 graduate of the Hebrew Union College School of Sacred Music, has served Temple Isaiah since his graduation. Before attending HUC-JIR, Evan received his BA from the Manhattan School of Music and an MA in Public Administration from the City University of New York. He is currently pursuing a Doctoral degree in music education research. Evan has concertized extensively throughout the United States, Canada, and Israel. He has sung as a tenor soloist with the Los Angeles Jewish Symphony on numerous occasions and was proud to appear in the North American premiere of Shostakovich’s “From Yiddish Folk Poetry” with the orchestra. He has also appeared as a soloist with the Los Angeles Zimriyah Chorale, the Kol Echad Chorale and Orchestra, the Novakowsky Chorale, and the Los Angeles Music Center Opera. His one-man show, “Love Affair: A Jewish Musical Journey,” has been seen throughout the United States at synagogues and conventions and workshops. Evan has been involved in inter-cultural affairs through the production of choral festivals, multi-cultural workshops, and clinics. He is currently on the faculty of Hebrew Union College and is the cantor for the school’s synagogue. Cantor Kent is married to Rabbi Donald Goor, his life-partner of more than twenty years, and made aliyah in 2013. In 2008, Rabbi Peter Berg became the fifth senior rabbi to serve Hebrew Benevolent Congregation (The Temple) in Atlanta, GA, since 1895. Prior to coming to The Temple, he served as rabbi of Temple Beth Or in Washington Township, New Jersey, and as the associate rabbi of Temple Emanu-El in Dallas, Texas. Over the years, Rabbi Berg has spent a great deal of time working with advocacy groups on issues such as separation of church and state, the death penalty, civil rights, religious freedom, welfare reform, gun safety, hate crimes, and the environment. He has served on numerous communal and advisory boards, including: American Jewish Congress, Drug Enforcement Agency, Mental Health Association, Dallas for Children, Westwood Area Clergy Association, New York Service for the Handicapped, American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), Faith Alliance of Metro Atlanta (FAMA), American Jewish Committee, and Jewish Family and Career Services (JFCS). Rabbi Berg currently serves on the Board of the Anti-Defamation League, Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta, URJ Camp Coleman Clergy Advisory Board, Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Students (GEEARS), and OUTCRY: Faith Voices Against Gun Violence. He is vice-president of the Atlanta Rabbinical Association and a chaplain for the Georgia State Patrol. He was a member of the editorial committee for Mishkan HaNefesh, the new machzor of the Reform Movement, published in 2015 by CCAR Press. A native of Ocean Township, New Jersey, Rabbi Berg holds a degree in Education and Human Development, with a focus in human services, counseling, and Judaic Studies, from George Washington University in Washington, D.C. He earned his MA in Hebrew Literature and his rabbinic ordination from Hebrew Union College–Jewish Institute of Religion in New York and Jerusalem, where he was a Steinhardt Fellow. Rabbi Berg also holds a certificate in Chemical Dependency and Spiritual Counseling and is a trained Disaster, Fire, and Police Chaplain. Rabbi Berg lives in Atlanta with his wife Karen and their three children. Rabbi Hara Person is the Chief Executive of Central Conference of American Rabbis. Previously, she was the CCAR's Chief Strategy Officer. In that capacity, she oversaw the Communications Department and served as Publisher of CCAR Press, and worked with leadership on overall organizational strategy. Rabbi Person was ordained in 1998 from Hebrew Union College–Jewish Institute of Religion, after graduating summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Amherst College (1986) and receiving an MA in Fine Arts from New York University’s International Center of Photography (1992). She served as Educator at the Brooklyn Heights Synagogue from 1990-1996, and was the Adjunct Rabbi there from 1998-2019. Since 1998, Rabbi Person has been the High Holy Day Rabbi of Congregation B'nai Olam, Fire Island Pines, NY. Before coming to the CCAR, Rabbi Person was the Editor-in-Chief of URJ Books and Music, where she was responsible for the revision of The Torah: A Modern Commentary(2005) and the publication of many significant projects, including the Aleph Isn't Tough adult Hebrew series and Mitkadem: Hebrew for Youth as well as several award-winning children's books. While at URJ, she was also the Managing Editor of The Torah: Women's commentary, named the National Jewish Book Award Book of the Year in 2008. Rabbi Person is also the co-author of Stories of Heaven and Earth: Bible Heroes in Contemporary Children's Literature and as well as co-editor of That You May Live Long: Caring for Your Aging Parents, Caring for Yourself, and Editor of The Mitzvah Healing. Her essays and poems have been published in various anthologies and journals, including Bridges: A Jewish Feminist Journal, upstreet, Encyclopedia of Jewish American Popular Culture, Women and Judaism, The Continuum Encyclopedia of Children's Literature, and The Women's Haftarah Commentary. Rabbi Person lives in Brooklyn, NY, and is the mother of two young adults.
