In 2015, I began my rabbinate at Temple Beth-El in San Antonio, Texas. Since that time, I have developed into an inclusive, compassionate, and resourceful rabbi. I have a deep passion and enthusiasm for education for all ages, with a specific soft spot for working with teens and young adults. Likewise, I am committed to expanding the Jewish community with a welcoming attitude and a listening ear.
My journey to the rabbinate started long before I was ordained by Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in Cincinnati in May 2015. I grew up in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, which wasn’t a very Jewish area. This allowed me to discover my love of teaching others about Judaism. I was an active youth at Beth Tikvah Congregation, and it was even suggested at my Bat Mitzvah rehearsal that I think about becoming a rabbi! In Illinois, I was involved in my Temple Youth Group and was on the NFTY-Chicago Area Region’s regional board as Membership Vice President and then President. I found a community at both the synagogue and at URJ’s Olin-Sang-Ruby Union Institute in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin.
For my undergraduate career, I attended the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, where I received a BA in Hebrew, Sociology, and Jewish Studies, with a minor in Leadership. I was also inducted into Phi Beta Kappa. While there, I was involved at Hillel and in my Jewish sorority, Alpha Epsilon Phi. I held jobs at Hillel, in the Admissions Department for the University, and was a TA for Modern Hebrew courses.
Less than 2 months after graduation from the University of Minnesota, I moved to Israel for my first year of Rabbinic school. While there, I participated in the Israeli Movement for Progressive Judaism’s Riding4Reform bike trip from Modi’in to Masada, as well as the World Union for Progressive Judaism’s Former Soviet Union Pesach Project, which aided FSU communities in their Passover celebrations. For both of those, I raised thousands of dollars from my family, friends, and community back in the States.
Once in Cincinnati for school, I served as the student rabbi at Congregation Ahavath Sholom in Bluefield, West Virginia, for two years for my first student pulpit. I then became the rabbinic fellow and intern at Hillel at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, for two years. During my years as a rabbinic student, I staffed a NFTY in Israel trip and worked at URJ’s Henry S. Jacobs Camp in Utica, Mississippi, which expanded my work with high school students and allowed me to get to know Reform teens from all over the country. I also completed two units of Clinical Pastoral Education, focusing on my work at Hillel at Miami University and as a chaplain intern at The Jewish Hospital in Cincinnati.
Although this list dates 2002-2015, it will give you a fuller picture of my capabilities, experiences, and involvement before being ordained as a Rabbi.
Rabbi Marina Yergin 