Cincinnati Ordination 2025 Honors the Sacred Leadership Forged in Tumultuous Times
June 5, 2025
CINCINNATI, OH – On May 31st, Hebrew Union College’s 2025 graduation and ordination season came to an end. Cincinnati Ordination takes place annually at Plum Street Temple, where Rabbi Isaac M. Wise built the foundation of Reform Judaism in America.
In his opening remarks, President Andrew Rehfeld, Ph.D. imbued his message with reminders of the many gifts each of the 2025 ordinands have gained in spite of the difficulties endured the past five years: “You have been formed at a time of historic challenge and disruption for Hebrew Union College, for this community in which you have lived, for the Jewish people, and our entire world. Go forth from here, drawing deeply from our tradition, to find the sacred in what is unseen, strengthening the Jewish people and bringing peace and justice to our world.”
Prior to the welcome, Rabbi Neil P.G. Hirsch ’10, Senior Rabbi Successor, Isaac M. Wise Temple, gave the Invocation, and Cantor David Berger ’07, Cincinnati Tefillah Coordinator; Adjunct Instructor, Debbie Friedman School of Sacred Music; and KAM Isaiah Israel Congregation of Chicago led the Worship Service.
Rabbi Liz P.G. Hirsch ’15, CEO, Women of Reform Judaism gave a heartfelt Ordination Sermon, focusing on one’s origin and destination and how that might inform the ordinand’s future career paths: “We know where we came from, and we know how we got here. We stood for something. That all people should be equal – with equal involvement in religious life. That being a person of faith should also mean being a person of substance. That we should stand up for our values and speak about theology.”
Rabbi Dvora Weisberg ’11, Ph.D., Director, Rabbinical School, read the Kavanah, emphasizing the importance of unity when stepping into a role of leadership: “As rabbis, you will be tasked with creating and recreating…Just as God invites us to be God’s partners in the work of creation, you will invite others to join you in your work, bringing multiple voices and ideas to the table; a collaborative approach to creation will strengthen your community.”
The three ordained rabbis were: Rachael Maxine Houser, Karen Elana Martin, and Rocki Shaloha Schy-Brunson.
On behalf of the Board of Governors and North American Board of Advisors, Edward J. Septimus, M.D. shared words of congratulations to the ordinands: “You all have successfully navigated these challenges while furthering your education, deepening your values, and finding new sources of strength and resilience. I know you will bring your wisdom, character, and creativity wherever you go.
Rabbi Gary P. Zola ’82, Ph.D. ’91, Executive Director Emeritus, The Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives; and Edwin M. Ackerman Family Distinguished Professor Emeritus of The American Jewish Experience and Reform Jewish History, gave the Benediction, closing out the ceremony.
View the entire ordination ceremony here.