Rabbi Alex Lazarus-Klein is the founding rabbi of Congregation Shir Shalom in Buffalo, New York. He is the author of three collections of poetry, Looking Out an Airplane Window, Poetry Written While Walking Dogs, and Wildflowers & Fireflies.
Dr. Alan Levenson holds the Schusterman / Josey Chair of Jewish History at the University of Oklahoma, where he was named Regents’ Professor in 2024. He has published The Making of the Modern Jewish Bible( Rowman & Littlefield, 2011); The Wiley- Blackwell History of Jews and Judaism, General Editor( 2012); Joseph: Portraits Through the Ages( JPS / University of Nebraska( 2016); Maurice Samuel: Life and Letters of a Secular Jewish Contrarian( Alabama University Press, 2022) and Jews and Judaism. Facts and Fictions( Bloomsbury / ABC-CLIO, 2025). He writes for a variety of academic and popular audiences and took his favorite sabbatical at AJR.
William Liss-Levinson, Ph. D., is the Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Academy for Jewish Religion. The author of In Search of Theological Modesty: Biblical Lessons( Resource Publications, 2015), he retired in 2020 after a 45- year career in healthcare and is a full-time volunteer with several not-for-profit organizations.
Rabbi Janet Madden, PhD is a writer, spiritual director, ritualist and teacher of Torah. An herbalist, handquilter and ordained animal chaplain, she lives in gratitude with her spouse, dog, cat and flock of backyard chickens.
Rabbi-Cantor Michael McCloskey is Rav-Hazzan at Temple Emeth in Chestnut Hill, MA and proudly teaches at the Academy for Jewish Religion, Yonkers NY. An inspiring educator and musician, his writing has been published by AJS Perspectives, Exploring Judaism, and Masorti: The New Journal of Conservative Judaism.
Rabbi Ben Newman is a Westchester-based Jewish-Buddhist teacher, musician, and author of The Vibrating Silence and The 10 Pathways. His work weaves Hasidic insight, Kabbalah, and mindfulness into down-to-earth storytelling that invites communal healing. He coleads Pleasantville Community Synagogue with his wife, Rabbi Shoshana Leis.
Shalom Orzach is an acclaimed public speaker on contemporary Israel who brings extensive knowledge, humor and passion. He regularly writes articles on Israel and Jewish education in The Times of Israel and eJewishPhilanthropy. For the anniversary of October 7th, his book Telling Times, a weekly exploration of the Torah Portion in the context of its modern-day echoes, was published.
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