A native of West Orange, New Jersey, Rabbi Chaim Strauchler received his ordination from Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary of Yeshiva University. Before joining Shaarei Shomayim in August 2008, Rabbi Strauchler served as rabbi at Beit Chaverim Synagogue in Westport, Connecticut from 2005 to 2008. He trained under Rabbi Jonathan Rosenblatt at the Riverdale (NY) Jewish Center, from 2003 to 2005. Rabbi Strauchler believes the role of a rabbi is to care for people. This entails being there for them in their time of need, to shepherd them through the ups and downs of life, and at the same time to inspire them to be a catalyst for personal spiritual growth. He sees the shul as a centre for addressing larger communal issues, as well as a place that cares for Jews in Toronto, Israel and elsewhere, as well as for the non-Jewish community.

In university, Rabbi Strauchler was a pre-med science student before switching to English literature and rabbinical studies. Committed to Modern Orthodoxy, Rabbi Strauchler believes that the term ‘Modern Orthodox’ is useful in the sense that it reflects the basic problem of every Jew: Modernity is something that is ever present in our lives and brings many advantages. It also brings many challenges. In the modern age, people can choose. They can choose to be Jewish, they can choose not to live as a Jew. That did not exist before the modern era. At the same time, ‘modern Orthodox’ and ‘Orthodox’ are labels imposed upon individuals by others; fundamentally, we are Jews. Rabbi Strauchler stresses the importance of being able to see past the labels, towards the right and towards the left, to be able to look at a person for what they are, as opposed to the external dress they may have on at that moment.

Rabbi Strauchler earned a diploma in theology and a master’s in religious studies from Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar. He also holds a master’s degree in Biblical studies from Bernard Revel Graduate School, and is a Wexner Graduate Fellowship alumnus. He publishes scholarly articles on the Bible and the Talmud in addition to publishing his own poetry.

Rabbi Strauchler is married to Avital. They have five children: Tehilla, Adir, Atara, Zvi and Freda.

 

 

 

 

 Mordechai Tokarsky was born in St. Petersburg, Russia and immigrated to America in 1981. Determined to do something meaningful with his life, he made a decision to become a Jewish Educator and was ordained as one of the first Russian-speaking Rabbis educated in America.

 After the fall of the iron curtain, he served for two years as a Director of a new Jewish High School which opened in Kishinev, Moldava. Upon his return to America in 1997, he was appointed as the Rabbi of the Young Israel of Jackson Heights.  In 1999, Mordechai took a leap of faith, abandoning the standard career path in the Rabbinate to establish a new community serving the needs of fellow Russian American Jews who felt disenfranchised and uninspired by the local Jewish community in Brooklyn. The result was Shaarei Emunah; the first community to be founded by Russian American Jewish university students and young professionals. Shaarei was first and foremost a home; a place where Jewish life could be experienced in a non-judgmental, warm environment, with innovative programming designed by members of the community, catering to the unique needs of their own peers.  

 In 2003, the operation moved to the Jewish Center of Brighton Beach, in the very heart of Brooklyn’s Russian American Jewish community. Mordechai became the Rabbi of the Jewish Center with Shaarei Emunah serving as the outreach arm. As the organization grew, more Jewish educators were hired and programming expanded to include Israel trips and leadership development fellowships.

 In 2006, building upon the success of the Shaarei Emunah model, Mordechai helped found RAJE (Russian American Jewish Experience). RAJE uses a systematic approach to communal transformation, focusing on the college students and young professionals at a formative stage in their lives, when most important decisions regarding Jewish affiliation are made. The RAJE Leadership Fellowship program and Israel trip provide hundreds of students each semester with 250 hours of transformative, deep level Jewish educational engagement - more than any other program of its type in North America. With over 11% of all Russian Jews in the NY area having completed the RAJE program, the UJA Jewish communal study has reported an unprecedented 25% decline in intermarriage for Russian Jews in the New York area. RAJE alumni are now involved in a multitude of Jewish organizations, as well as building a strong community of their own. With these impressive results, RAJE represents a rare bright spot in finding solutions to ensure the Jewish future of the millennial generation.