Seth Farber
Encyclopedia
Seth Farber is a Modern Orthodox rabbi and historian in Israel, best known for his work helping Jews navigate the Israeli religious bureaucracy.
Farber grew up in Riverdale, Bronx
, New York
, and is a graduate of New York University
. He was ordained by the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary
of Yeshiva University
in 1991, received his Masters in Judaic Studies from Yeshiva University in 1995, and a PhD from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem in 2000.
He was a teacher at the Maimonides School
in Brookline, Massachusetts
before moving to Israel
.
Farber is widely-known as the founder and director of ITIM: The Jewish-Life Information Center
, an organization that aims to assist Israelis with the legal intricacies of personal status—marriage, divorce, conversion, and burial—which are administered by the Ministry of Religious Affairs in a manner that often leaves families bewildered, overwhelmed, and resentful. Farber is widely cited in the press on the politically-fraught issues of personal status among Jews in Israel.
The New York Times
called Farber a “pragmatic idealist” who believes that Orthodox Jews — including the rabbinate
— and non-Orthodox Jews need to learn to “to trust each other” sufficiently to work together on difficult issues of personal status.
Farber’s great-great-great-grandfather was the pre-eminent Central European Rabbi Moshe Sofer, better known as the Hatam Sofer.
Farber grew up in Riverdale, Bronx
Riverdale, Bronx
Riverdale is an affluent residential neighborhood in the northwest portion of the Bronx in New York City. Riverdale contains the northernmost point in New York City.-History:...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, and is a graduate of New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
. He was ordained by the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary
Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary
Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary , or Yeshivat Rabbeinu Yitzchak Elchanan, is the rabbinical seminary of Yeshiva University, located in Washington Heights, New York. It is named after Rabbi Yitzchak Elchanan Spektor, who died the year it was founded, 1896...
of Yeshiva University
Yeshiva University
Yeshiva University is a private university in New York City, with six campuses in New York and one in Israel. Founded in 1886, it is a research university ranked as 45th in the US among national universities by U.S. News & World Report in 2012...
in 1991, received his Masters in Judaic Studies from Yeshiva University in 1995, and a PhD from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem in 2000.
He was a teacher at the Maimonides School
Maimonides School
Maimonides School is a coeducational, Modern Orthodox, Jewish day school located in Brookline, Massachusetts. The school was founded in 1937 by Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik and his wife Tonya Soloveitchik...
in Brookline, Massachusetts
Brookline, Massachusetts
Brookline is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States, which borders on the cities of Boston and Newton. As of the 2010 census, the population of the town was 58,732.-Etymology:...
before moving to Israel
Aliyah
Aliyah is the immigration of Jews to the Land of Israel . It is a basic tenet of Zionist ideology. The opposite action, emigration from Israel, is referred to as yerida . The return to the Holy Land has been a Jewish aspiration since the Babylonian exile...
.
Farber is widely-known as the founder and director of ITIM: The Jewish-Life Information Center
ITIM: The Jewish-Life Information Center
ITIM: The Jewish-Life Information Center is an Israeli non-profit offering information and direction on Jewish lifecycle events such as birth, bar/bat mitzvah, marriage, divorce, death and burial, and conversion....
, an organization that aims to assist Israelis with the legal intricacies of personal status—marriage, divorce, conversion, and burial—which are administered by the Ministry of Religious Affairs in a manner that often leaves families bewildered, overwhelmed, and resentful. Farber is widely cited in the press on the politically-fraught issues of personal status among Jews in Israel.
The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
called Farber a “pragmatic idealist” who believes that Orthodox Jews — including the rabbinate
Chief Rabbinate of Israel
The Chief Rabbinate of Israel is recognized by law as the supreme halakhic and spiritual authority for the Jewish people in Israel. The Chief Rabbinate Council assists the two chief rabbis, who alternate in its presidency. It has legal and administrative authority to organize religious...
— and non-Orthodox Jews need to learn to “to trust each other” sufficiently to work together on difficult issues of personal status.
Farber’s great-great-great-grandfather was the pre-eminent Central European Rabbi Moshe Sofer, better known as the Hatam Sofer.