Rabbi Elaine Zecher

Elaine Zecher is the Senior Rabbi of Temple Israel of Boston, the largest Reform Jewish congregation in New England, which she joined as its first woman rabbi in 1990.  Rabbi Zecher focuses on building relationships that celebrate and transcend differences as a way to endeavor to engender understanding.  She is committed to fostering a broad sense of community as the most certain path to establishing connections among individuals and diverse groups. Fostering “allyship” is a hallmark, both of her thinking and her approach.  Within the congregational community, Rabbi Zecher emphasizes inreach, encouraging the development of meaningful connections.

Active in social justice initiatives throughout the city, Rabbi Zecher is a tireless worker in interfaith partnerships with other clergy and religious institutions.  She has reached out to our elected leaders, building ties based on shared priorities and concerns.  Rabbi Zecher believes in the values of compassion and caretaking of our fellow citizens, encouraging civic participation across generational lines. 

Rabbi Zecher is known as an innovator in many areas, including creative approaches to prayer and liturgy, which have added new dimensions to communal worship. She was instrumental in developing new prayer books for the Reform movement and has served as Vice President for Leadership of the national organization, the Central Conference of American Rabbis. She has also held many leadership positions in other Jewish communal organizations. A graduate of Brandeis University, Rabbi Zecher was ordained by the Hebrew Union College Jewish Institute of Religion.  She is married to Dr. David Eisenberg and has three adult children.