About Rabbi Rosalind Glazer
Founder & Chief Rabbi of Joyful Jerusalem Lifecycles & Destination Celebrations, I conduct soulful, egalitarian bar-bat mitzvahs in Israel and officiate at weddings and other lifecycle ceremonies around the globe.
My greatest passion is working with young people as they learn about Torah & mitzvot, find inspiration in their heritage and take pride in their Judaism. I help students find their voice and express their unique vision of a better world. I celebrate as they identify the gifts they bring and wish to share in this life. This joyful and inspiring project is the one to which I have dedicated myself at Joyful Jerusalem!
I am the creator of the Sacred Hebrew Chant & Drum Experience TM and was a co-founder of VOCOLOT an internationally acclaimed ensemble with whom I performed for a decade and recorded 3 CDs. In addition to recording a 4th CD with singer-songwriter Naomi Hannah I’ve composed a collection of original chants and niggunim.
Prior to making aliyah in 2012, I was senior rabbi of Congregation Beth Israel Judea, in San Francisco and I continue to serve in the US as both High Holiday Rabbi and Musical Liturgist at USCJ affiliated Sof Ma’arav in Honolulu, Hawaii. I teach Judaism individually to students and families and also offer spiritual & pastoral counseling. An alumna of the Institute for Jewish Spirituality and trained in a variety of body-mind healing disciplines, I was certified as a Jewish meditation instructor at Chochmat Halev in 1998.
In my spare time I cook vegetarian food, hang out with my five sabra nieces & nephews, hike, swim, make beaded jewelry and sing around the table after a great Shabbat meal, with a pop-up vocal ensemble or Kibbutz Revadim band, or perform new country & contemporary roots music.
Early career 
After completing my rabbinic training I became the spiritual leader of USCJ Temple Beth Shalom in Brigantine, New Jersey, a small island just North of Atlantic City, NJ. During that time I also taught adults at Reconstructionist Congregation Mishkan Shalom in Philadelphia. In prior years I served as Cantorial Soloist and Coordinator of the Bar & Bat Mitzvah Experimentation Program at Kehilla Community Synagogue .
As an undergraduate I studied voice at Humboldt State University in Arcata, California. During rabbinical school I was the student-intern at the Kolot Center for Jewish Women and Gender Studies and a chaplain-in-training at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. My student pulpit was at URJ Temple B’nai Israel in Laconia, New Hampshire. I received a Master’s degree in Hebrew letters and I was ordained at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in 2003 and hold a BA in Human Movement Studies from San Francisco State University with a minor in Holistic Health. Trained at the ReSource School of massage therapy and former member of the Bay Area Body Therapy Guild, I worked as a therapeutic bodyworker for a decade and served as a work-scholar at the Esalen Institute in Big Sur, California.
Professional Activities
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- Rabbinic Vice Chair (former), International Association of Rabbis for Women of the Wall
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- Member, Rabbis for Human Rights Israel (former) and RHR-North America (former)
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- Member, Hevraya, Institute for Jewish Spirituality (current)
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- Member, Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association (current)
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- Member, OHALAH, Rabbis for Jewish Renewal (current)
- Member, MARAM, the Israeli Council of Progressive Rabbis (current)
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Co-Chair (former), Year of Civil Discourse Task Force, NORCAL Board of Rabbis
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- Rabbinic Advisory Committee Member (former), Shalom Bayit Jewish Response to Domestic Violence
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- Rabbinic Advisory Council Member (former), Progressive Jewish Alliance
- Rabbis Circle Member, Year of Civil Discourse (former), San Francisco JCRC, Jewish Community Relations Council
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Founding Member, Women Clergy Network, San Francisco Interfaith Council
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- Founding Member, Rabbis for Respectful Dialogue
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- Steering Committee Member (former), Friends of Women of the Wall – Bay Area
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- Member, Clergy Advisory Council (former), CLUE, Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice
- Member, Synagogue Transformation and Renewal (STAR), PEER Alumni Association for Professional Excellence in the Executive Rabbinate
Rabbi Rosalind Glazer at Robinson’s Arch and with colleagues at the Western Wall.