Aaron Leibowitz
American-born Israeli rabbi
Aaron Leibowitz | |
|---|---|
| Born | United States |
| Nationality | American-Israeli |
| Occupation(s) | Rabbi, Educator, Politician |
| Employer(s) | Jerusalem Municipality, Hashgacha Pratit |
| Known for | Founder of Yeshiva Sulam Yaakov, Councilor for the Yerushalmim party, Founder of Hashgacha Pratit |
| Notable work | Establishing independent kosher certification in Israel |
Aaron Leibowitz is an American-born Israeli rabbi, noted educator, [1] and local politician. In 2006 he founded and headed Yeshiva Sulam Yaakov. [1] In 2015 he became a councilor on the Jerusalem Municipality for the Yerushalmim party. [2] In 2012 he started Hashgacha Pratit, a kosher certification independent of the Israeli Chief Rabbinate. [3]
In 2018 he handed over the kosher certification to the larger organization, Tzohar, remaining CEO. The organization began officiating weddings outside of the Chief Rabbinate, despite this being illegal [3] in Israel.
He criticized the Chief Rabbinate as "racist" because of their views on who is a Jew, and their use of DNA testing to determine Jewish status.[4]
References
- ^ a b "Leadership". www.sulamyaakov.com. Retrieved 2018-01-24.
- ^ "Rising to the challenge". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. Retrieved 2018-01-24.
- ^ a b "Hiddush - Private kosher certification: Integrity or Fraud?". hiddush.org. Retrieved 2018-01-24.
- ^ "Chief Rabbinate admits using DNA tests to help determine Jewish status - Israel News - Jerusalem Post". www.jpost.com. Retrieved 2019-03-07.
