Rabbi Jonathan Berkun, who joined us on July 1, 2007, is a highly experienced and committed spiritual leader. Since his arrival one year ago, our congregation has grown. He has already added cohesiveness to our diverse membership while providing spiritual fulfillment and satisfaction to congregants of all ages.
Rabbi Berkun has helped to energize the Jewish community of Aventura, and has related well to children, teens, young adults, young families, seniors, and Holocaust survivors. He has initiated new synagogue services, programs, and celebrations that are relevant, inspiring and appealing to everyone in our community. Rabbi Berkun has already infused the community with renewed energy and life with his warmth, passion and compassion.
Rabbi Berkun received his rabbinic ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary of America in 2001. Originally from Pittsburgh, Rabbi Berkun completed his undergraduate degree in philosophy at Columbia College of Columbia University. Rabbi Berkun is a Senior Rabbinic Fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem, where he completed the Rabbinic Leadership Initiative, a three year program of study and training for leading rabbis of all denominations. Previously, Rabbi Berkun served as a rabbi of Congregation Shaarey Zedek in Southfield, Michigan.
Rabbi Berkun utilizes his guitar playing and vocal skills to enrich our popular "Friday Night Live" service. He can be found Monday mornings teaching Hebrew songs to the students of Tauber Academy, and on Sunday mornings teaching Jewish prayer to the students of the Religious School. Rabbi Berkun has led several missions to Israel for teenagers and families, including a special Holocaust study mission to Poland and Israel entitled, "From Darkness to Light," our congregation's first synagogue-wide mission to Israel in June 2008, and the "March of the Living."
Rabbi Berkun is a passionate advocate for social action. He has organized a Hurricane Katrina relief effort, Darfur activism, and a Super Bowl Sunday soup kitchen. Rabbi Berkun helped reinvigorate the presence of "MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger" in the Detroit community, and he participated in a national MAZON mission to Argentina with the U.S. Undersecretary of Agriculture.
Rabbi Berkun is the secretary for the Rabbinical Association of Greater Miami and the incoming co-chair of the Network's Education and Service Professionals Committee. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the North Dade Greater Miami Jewish Federation, the Board of Directors of the Network: The Under-40 Division of the Greater Miami Jewish Federation, the National Rabbinical Assembly Nominations Committee, the National Rabbinic Cabinet for Israel Bonds, and the Board of Trustees of Camp Ramah in Canada.
Rabbi Jonathan Berkun was officially installed as the Spiritual Leader of the Aventura Turnberry Jewish Center the weekend of February 2-3rd. Distinguished guest speakers included, Rabbi Alvin Berkun, International President, Rabbinical Assembly and Rabbi Emeritus, Tree of Life Congregation, Pittsburgh, PA; Dr. Arnold Eisen, Chancellor, The Jewish Theological Seminary of America; Rabbi Irwin Groner, Rabbi Emeritus, Congregation Shaarey Zedek, Southfield, MI; Jacob Solomon, Executive Vice President, Greater Miami Jewish Federation; and Harry Silverman, Executive Director, United Synagogue for Conservative Judaism, Southeast Region.
Rabbi Jonathan Berkun is married to Rabbi Lauren Berkun, who was also ordained at the Jewish Theological Seminary. A graduate of Princeton University, Rabbi Lauren Berkun was a Wexner Graduate Fellow, a CLAL Rabbinic intern, and a Senior Rabbinic Fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute. She currently serves as the Rabbinic Scholar for the Shalom Hartman Institute, teaching classes and leading seminars for lay leaders in South Florida and Detroit. They are raising two sons, Jeremy (age 4) and Jonah (age 3).