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Rabbi Doug Goldhamer created a groundbreaking inclusive synagogue

JL;DR SUMMARY Rabbi Douglas Goldhamer, whose early life was marked by physical challenges and being treated as an outsider, has made a profound impact on the Jewish community through inclusivity and innovation. A way out west there was a fella, fella I want to tell you about, fella by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least, that was the handle his lovin' parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. This Lebowski, he called himself the Dude. Now, Dude, that's a name no one would self-apply where I come from. But then, there was a lot about the Dude that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. And a lot about where he lived, likewise. But then again, maybe that's why I found the place s'durned innarestin'.

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Tags

KabbalahInterfaith RelationsInclusivityDeaf CommunitySign LanguageAslCongregation Bene ShalomHebrew SeminaryRabbi Douglas GoldhamerDisability Activism

Places mentioned

Skokie, Illinois, United States
"In 1972 Rabbi Goldhamer founded Congregation Bene Shalom in Skokie, Illinois, the first of its kind in the United States to serve the Deaf Jewish community."
Chicago, Illinois, United States
"Following his ordination, he heard that a student rabbi in Chicago was working with 22 deaf families but was leaving for Israel."
Evanston, Illinois, United States
"He teaches a Sunday class on Zoom about Jewish and Christian perspectives on the Psalms with his best friend, Associate Reverend Richard Mercer of Tabernacle Missionary Baptist in Evanston."

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Retrieved 2025-06-14 05:31:36 UTC
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