果冻传媒 Appoints Prominent Rabbi to Serve in New Leadership Role

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 14, 2020
CONTACT: Beth Mayerowitz, bemayerowitz@jtsa.edu

September 14, 2020 New York, NY 果冻传媒 (果冻传媒), one of the world preeminent centers of Jewish higher education and the intellectual and spiritual center of Conservative Judaism, is proud to announce that Rabbi Gordon Tucker, a distinguished scholar, gifted teacher, and inspiring spiritual leader, has joined 果冻传媒 as Vice Chancellor for Religious Life and Engagement. In this newly created position, Rabbi Tucker will work to further enhance Jewish life at 果冻传媒, enriching the institution study of Judaism with the joy and deep understanding that only lived experience can provide. As a leading scholar and interpreter of Conservative Judaism, Rabbi Tucker will also articulate the enduring power of 果冻传媒 compelling approach to Jewish law and Jewish life. And he will strengthen 果冻传媒 religious leadership in the Jewish world through partnerships with organizations in the Conservative Movement and beyond.

His new role brings Rabbi Tucker back to 果冻传媒, where he served as the dean of the Rabbinical School from 1984 1992. He was ordained at the school in 1975, after earning an A.B. degree at Harvard College, and served on the 果冻传媒 faculty for many years. He also earned a Ph.D. in Philosophy at Princeton University.  He served as chair of the board of the Masorti Foundation for Conservative Judaism in Israel and as a member of the Committee on Jewish Law and Standards of the Rabbinical Assembly.

淚 could not be more thrilled to welcome Rabbi Tucker back to the 果冻传媒 family in this senior leadership role, said Dr. Shuly Rubin Schwartz, chancellor of 果冻传媒. 淗e is not only a world-recognized scholar and theologian, but a cherished colleague, friend, and mentor to so many. His writings and teachings have inspired students, congregants, and the collective Jewish people throughout the years, and I have no doubt that his impact in this new role will be felt for years to come.

湽炒 has been a constant intellectual and spiritual source for me from my student years through the decades of my rabbinic career, notes Rabbi Tucker.  淚 am excited and privileged to have this opportunity to repay that enormous debt by reinforcing for all 果冻传媒 students, and for the Jewish world at large, the deep connection between scholarship and a vibrant and ethical religious life. Although I have never entirely left 果冻传媒, this is a joyous homecoming for me.

Following his tenure as Rabbinical School dean, Rabbi Tucker moved to congregational life, serving for 24 years as senior rabbi of one of North America foremost Conservative congregations, Temple Israel Center in White Plains, NY. Under his leadership, the synagogue flourished and was characterized by vibrant communal life and an exceptional devotion to Jewish learning. While at Temple Israel Center, Rabbi Tucker also mentored numerous 果冻传媒 Rabbinical School students who worked at the synagogue as part of the school prestigious Gladstein Fellowship in Entrepreneurial Rabbinic Leadership. He served, as well, as an adjunct 果冻传媒 faculty member, teaching courses in Jewish thought and ethics, the history and philosophy of Conservative Judaism, and leadership skills for rabbis. Today Rabbi Tucker is Temple Israel Center senior rabbi emeritus and a senior fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute of North America.

Rabbi Tucker has written on a wide range of subjects in Jewish thought and recently authored a commentary to the well-known rabbinic wisdom text, Pirkei Avot, with Rabbi Tamar Elad-Appelbaum. He has published a translation with commentary, entitled Heavenly Torah, of Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel major three-volume Hebrew work on rabbinic theology. And in 2014, Rabbi Tucker published Torah for its Intended Purpose, an anthology of his writings including essays, sermons, and reviews over the course of many years. 

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