“Rabbi Herzfeld is Orthodox, but he opened his shul’s door, heart and
mind. He suggested I lead the Kabbalat Shabbat at his shul and say
Kaddish for my mother. My children, who aren’t comfortable with
Orthodoxy after attending Orthodox public schools during a sabbatical in
Jerusalem, stood with me. After the service Rabbi Herzfeld said, ‘I
want you to know that I do not believe women should lead worship with
men present. But one of us had to be uncomfortable. Why should it be you
and not me?’ He can’t repair my broken brain, but Rabbi Herzfeld
brought healing to my broken heart.”
Rabbi Akiva Herzfeld
The Forward has a list of America’s most inspiring rabbis. On it is Rabbi Akiva Herzfeld who heads
Shaarey Tphiloh in Portland, Maine.
Herzfeld’s brother Shmuel is a congregational rabbi in Washington, DC and gets frequent press coverage.
Another brother, Baruch, had the free bicycle loan shop in Williamsburg and is often quoted by the press in stories about Satmar hasidim.
But Akiva Herzfeld rarely (if ever) gets national press attention – until now.
Akiva Herzfeld, who is affiliated with Yeshivat Chovevei Torah, made the Forward’s list because he allowed a woman to lead Kabbalat Shabbat services in his synagogue on her mother’s yartzeit.
That woman is a Reform rabbi with a traumatic brain injury received from a fall on ice. She is no longer able to work as a rabbi, and she can no longer drive. Her former synagogue, the only Reform synagogue in town, is 15 miles from her home – too far to walk. Herzfeld’s synagogue is much closer.
But would he let her say kaddish? She decided to find out.
“Rabbi Herzfeld is Orthodox, but he opened his shul’s door, heart and mind. He suggested I lead the Kabbalat Shabbat at his shul and say Kaddish for my mother. My children, who aren’t comfortable with Orthodoxy after attending Orthodox public schools during a sabbatical in Jerusalem, stood with me. After the service Rabbi Herzfeld said, ‘I want you to know that I do not believe women should lead worship with men present. But one of us had to be uncomfortable. Why should it be you and not me?’ He can’t repair my broken brain, but Rabbi Herzfeld brought healing to my broken heart.”