First woman rabbi to speak at Temple Beth Shalom

Florida. Rabbi Sally Priesand, the first woman to be ordained as a rabbi in the United States, in 1972, will speak at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 7, at Temple Beth Shalom, 13 Roosevelt Avenue, Florida, as part of the Scholar in Residence Series. After offering a Havdalah service, Rabbi Preisand will talk about Rabbi Regina Jonas, the first woman rabbi ordained in Germany, in 1935. Rabbi Jonas taught in Berlin as well as in the Theresiendstadt concentration camp-ghetto. She was known to only a few because her papers were hidden away until after the fall of the Berlin Wall. Rabbi Preisand’s talk will be followed by a dessert reception and Q&A. She will talk about her life as part of the Levine Speaker Family Series at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 8, at Temple Sinai, Middletown. Both programs are sponsored by Jewish Federation of Greater Orange County. For more information visit jewishorangeny.org.