Innovation in ritual and prayer, profound engagement in social action, leadership, scholarship, and a palpable love of Jewish life are hallmarks of Rabbi Elaine Zecher’s rabbinate. As the senior rabbi of Temple Israel of Boston, she leads the largest congregation in New England, forging close personal relationships within the congregation and the larger community.
Rabbi Zecher speaks passionately about social justice; she is a tireless worker in interfaith partnerships, and an advocate for progressive legislation and policy. She is noted as well for her personal warmth, deep humanity, quick wit, and humor. She is an engaging teacher who makes scholarship accessible and captivating.
Connect with Rabbi Elaine ZecherCommitted to developing creative liturgy and prayer, she was instrumental in developing new prayer books for Shabbat and weekdays, as well as the Machzor, which is used on the High Holy Days. Active in the national Reform Jewish movement, she served as Vice President for Leadership of the Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR).
Rabbi Zecher is a graduate of Brandeis University and she was ordained from Hebrew Union College Jewish Institute of Religion in 1988. She is married to Dr. David Eisenberg and has three adult children.
Rabbi Zecher’s Featured Sermons and Content
Learn with Rabbi Elaine Zecher
Modern Midrash: Come Back to Genesis with Rabbi Elaine Zecher
Date
November 14, 2024
Time
9:00 AM - 10:00 AM EDT
Come back to Genesis to re-meet and re-create the lives of the characters through Modern and ancient Midrash We are starting all over aga...
Modern Midrash: Come Back to Genesis with Rabbi Elaine Zecher
Date
December 5, 2024
Time
9:00 AM - 10:00 AM EDT
Come back to Genesis to re-meet and re-create the lives of the characters through Modern and ancient Midrash We are starting all over aga...
Modern Midrash: Come Back to Genesis with Rabbi Elaine Zecher
Date
January 9, 2025
Time
9:00 AM - 10:00 AM EDT
Come back to Genesis to re-meet and re-create the lives of the characters through Modern and ancient Midrash We are starting all over aga...
Rabbi Zecher Featured In The Jewish Women’s Archive’s “Nicki Newman Tanner Oral History” Collection
The Jewish Women’s Archive has collected and recorded hundreds of interviews with leaders, activists, and community members across the United States, documenting their encounters with major events and movements of the 20th and 21st centuries and the many ways that gender, class, place, and religious and ethnic identities have shaped women’s lives.
Rabbi Zecher Featured In The Jewish Women’s Archive’s “Women Rabbis” Collection
The Jewish Women’s Archive is celebrating the women who teach and guide us and has chosen a group of 25 trailblazing rabbis to highlight in the Women Rabbis collection on jwa.org. “The overall narrative in Women Rabbis is one of extraordinary perseverance, leadership, and creativity.”