Rabbis Matt Soffer and Geri Newburge Discuss High Holiday Plans, Issues for Mid-Career Rabbis

On this episode of the Seekers of Meaning Podcast and TV Show, two mid-career rabbis discuss their plans for observing the High Holy Days with their congregations and issues affecting their rabbinates. The guests are Rabbi Geri Newburge, rabbi at Main Line Reform Temple/Beth Elohim, in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania, and Rabbi Matt Soffer, senior rabbi at Judea Reform Congregation, Durham, North Carolina.

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You can also listen to this conversation as an audio podcast in the player below, or wherever you get your podcasts.

About the Guests

Rabbi Geri Newburge was ordained as a rabbi in May 2003 from the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion (Cincinnati). She is a member of the Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR). Rabbi Newburge is currently a rabbi at Main Line Reform Temple.  Previously, she served as the Associate Rabbi at Temple Emanuel in Cherry Hill from 2003 to 2013. ​As a rabbi, she is highly involved with creating connections with congregants, innovating liturgy, social action, youth and religious school programming.  Rabbi Newburge grew up in South Florida and graduated from the University of Miami with a B.A. in Religious Studies in 1994; then, in 1995, she moved to California to pursue a M.A. in Religion at the Claremont School of Theology, receiving her degree in May 1997.  Rabbi Newburge is married to Rabbi Eric Goldberg, Rabbi Educator at Congregation Shir Ami in Newtown, PA, and they are proud of their son, Jay.

Rabbi Matthew V. Soffer lives in Durham with his wife and two children. Rabbi Soffer was ordained as a graduate of the New York Campus of the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. He served at Temple Israel of Boston since 2009, beginning as a rabbinic intern and finishing as Senior Associate Rabbi. As a Student Rabbi, he served at Main Line Reform Temple and Congregation Beth Elohim, both in New York. His work has included portfolios in Social Jusice and in outreach to and engagement of Jews in their 20s and 30s. Among his honors are the Religious Action Center’s 50 Faces of Justice, Newsweek/Daily Beast’s 10 Rabbi’s to Watch, and NFTY President’s Award. His publications include “Global Swarming: Can We Become Worthy of Creation,” CCAR Press, 2017; several commentaries and essays on My Jewish Learning, on Reform Judaism.org, and in The Times of Israel. His work also includes music composition and performance, comedy, and community organizing. The topic of his Rabbinic Thesis, “Listening for Laughter: Sensing Humor in the Babylonian Talmud,” is a wonderful window on his character and style. You can follow him on Twitter @MattSoffer and listen to his podcast, Pulpit on the Commons.