Rabbi Richard Hirsh

Rabbi Richard Hirsh was the first full-time Rabbi at Darchei Noam, from 1981-1983. Since 1998, Rabbi Hirsh has been leading one of the High Holiday services each year at Darchei Noam.

He has recently concluded five years as an interim and associate rabbi at Philadelphia-area synagogues, and is currently directing a pilot program, “Men As Allies: Leading Equitable Workplaces” for Jewish Women International in Washington, D.C.

From 1998-2014, he was the Executive Director of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association, and was on the faculty of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College. Rabbi Hirsh was the editor of the journal The Reconstructionist from 1996-2006. Rabbi Hirsh has also served congregations in Chicago, New York, and New Jersey.

He was Executive Director of the Philadelphia Board of Rabbis and Jewish Chaplaincy Service (1988-1993) and was on the staff of the Philadelphia Jewish Community Relations Council (1987- 1988).

Rabbi Hirsh received his BA in Jewish Studies from Hofstra University (1975), his MA in religion with a specialization in the New Testament from Temple University (1981), and was graduated as a rabbi from the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College (1981).

Rabbi Hirsh was the chair of the “Reconstructionist Commission on the Role of the Rabbi” (1998-2001) and the author of its report, The Rabbi-Congregation Relationship: A Vision for the 21st Century. His commentaries are featured in A Night of Questions, the Reconstructionist Haggadah and the Reconstructionist High Holiday prayerbook used at Darchei Noam (look for the initials R.H !)

He is also the author of the chapters “The Journey of Mourning,” “Welcoming Children,” “Conversion” and “Jewish Divorce” in the book A Reconstructionist Guide to Jewish Practice III: Lifecycle. His articles appeared regularly in the magazines The Reconstructionist and Reconstructionism Today, as well as in many other Jewish and general publications.

For over a dozen years he has contributed commentary on the weekly Torah portion for the Philadelphia Jewish Exponent and the New Jersey Jewish News.

Rabbi Hirsh was co-chair of the Clergy Task Force on Domestic Violence of Jewish Women International from 2011-2013, and is currently on the editorial board of the magazine Sh’ma Now.

To view Rabbi Hirsh’s brief overview of Reconstructionist Judaism, go to: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhCUGg6AFgE