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ABOUT US

CHAPLINES ARCHIVE

BECOME A CHAPLAIN

JWB IN THE NEWS

Military Chaplaincy Scholarship (PDF)

JWB PHOTO ARCHIVE

Learn more about our chaplains in the field. Each month, we will feature a different chaplain serving our Jewish men and women in the U.S. Armed Forces.

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Chaplines Spring 2007
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Contact

Rabbi Harold L. Robinson
director, JWB Jewish Chaplains Council
212-786-5119
send an e-mail

Rabbi Barry R. Baron
deputy director, JWB Jewish Chaplains Council
212-786-5137
send an e-mail

Two Military Leaders Recognized at JCC Association Biennial

7/7/08 New York , NY , July 7, 2008 – JCC Association presented two distinguished military leaders with prestigious honors at the recent 2008 JCC Association Biennial, a gathering of Jewish Community Center volunteer leadership from across North America, held in Miami in May. Rabbi Philip Silverstein was named the 2008 Frank L. Weil Award winner for distinguished contributions to the welfare of Jewish armed services personnel, and Ronald D. Silverman , Major General, 3 rd Medical Command, U.S. Army, was awarded the JCCs of North America Jewish Military Leadership Award , for exemplifying authentic devotion to Jewish life and identity, combined with an extremely high level of military accomplishment. >> go to complete story

JWB Chaplains Council and Jewish Publication Society Team Up to Release New Pocket-Sized Hebrew Bible for the Troops, with Support from the Everett Foundation

1/1/08 There are no atheists in foxholes, the saying goes, and thanks to a generous donation by the Everett Foundation, Jews who serve in the military will soon have their own pocket-sized editions of the Tanakh , the complete Hebrew Bible, to carry with them into battle. JWB Jewish Chaplains Council, an affiliate of JCC Association here, and the Philadelphia-based Jewish Publication Society are the joint publishers of this new edition, scheduled for shipment this spring to chaplains on all overseas and domestic bases. The aim is to have one in the hands of every Jew in the military in time for Shavuot, the spring harvest festival that celebrates God's giving of the Torah to Moses on Mount Sinai. >> go to complete story

Faith amid conflict

Two years ago, Andrew Shulman's designated location on Shabbat mornings was the auditorium of the Orthodox Congregation Beth Israel in Malden, a suburb of Boston. Shoulders covered by a tallit, Shulman followed the service in the siddur, lending his deep, ebullient voice in prayer and song. Before services ended and everybody left for lunch, Shulman would stand up before the congregation and discuss the schedule for the following week. This was among his responsibilities as the synagogue's program director. >> go to complete story
Richard Tenorio, THE JERUSALEM POST
April 24, 2008

Jewish Military Chaplains Wanted

Who will bring God to the troops and the troops to God? That is the role of a military chaplain, especially during wartime.
     
Noncombatants, chaplains enter the service as officers, usually first lieutenants. They are trained to respond to a variety of situations and serve all over the world, ministering to a diverse group of people.  Being a rabbi in the U.S. Armed Forces is one of the most interesting and stimulating ministries imaginable. “My years as a chaplain in the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps at the start of the Vietnam War were foundational to the fulfillment I derived throughout my rabbinate,” said Rabbi William Lebeau of the Jewish Theological Seminary. 

The JWB Jewish Chaplains Council is a living example of the richness and vitality of Jewish pluralism. It brings together the various streams of religious Jewry, while respecting their diversity. The overall record of co-operation between all Jewish Chaplains in strengthening the identity of all Jews they serve, regardless of orientation, is one of the Council's proudest achievements.

The Council energetically recruits rabbis through visits to various seminaries, attendance at rabbinical conferences, and notices in professional newsletters. Follow-up support is provided through a continuing pastoral relationship with rabbis in the field.

The military Jewish chaplaincy offers a unique challenge to the young rabbi who aspires to serve "K'lal Yisrael" in a special environment: the Armed Forces of the United States. Jews who volunteer for the military represent the entire spectrum of Jewish identity, from the most assimilated to the most traditionally observant. Since they often find themselves isolated from contact with Jewish communities because of the global mission of the service of which they are a part, the presence of a rabbi in uniform can make all the difference between their developing patterns of personal Jewish commitment or the abandonment of their heritage.
     
For more information, contact Rabbi Harold L. Robinson, director, JWB Jewish Chaplains Council, 212-786-5119 or send an e-mail