Religionשלמה ריסקין

Shlomo Riskin

Shlomo Riskin is an Orthodox rabbi who was the founding rabbi of Lincoln Square Synagogue in New York and the chief rabbi of Efrat, and who founded the Ohr Torah Stone institutions.

born 1940Founding Ohr Torah StoneChief rabbi of EfratWomen advocates in rabbinical courtsActivism for Soviet Jewry

Born: 28 May 1940, Brooklyn
Occupation: rabbi
Education: New York University, Yeshiva University, Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary
Founded: Day to Praise (2015), Ulpenat Neṿeh Ḥanah (1984), Ohr Torah Stone (1983), Beren-Amiel institute (1998)

Shlomo Riskin was born in 1940 in Brooklyn

Shlomo Riskin was born on May 28, 1940, in Brooklyn, New York. He studied at Yeshiva University and graduated in 1960, receiving rabbinic ordination under Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik. He earned a master's degree in Jewish history in 1963 and a Ph.D. from New York University in 1982.

From 1963 to 1977 he taught Tanakh and Talmud at Yeshiva University. He was the founding rabbi of Lincoln Square Synagogue in Manhattan and served there until 1983. He was active in the movement for Soviet Jewry, chaired Student Struggle for Soviet Jewry, and traveled to the USSR in 1970.

In 1983 he moved to Efrat with his family and families from his congregation, and served as its chief rabbi until 2020. He founded the Ohr Torah Stone network of schools, colleges and rabbinical programs. In 1991 he won a High Court case that allowed women to serve as advocates in rabbinical courts.

In 2015 the Chief Rabbinate Council extended his term in Efrat after some members criticized his liberal views. That year he launched the Day to Praise initiative with Christian partners. He received the Bonei Zion Prize in 2018 and later stepped down as president of Ohr Torah Stone. He is married to Vicky and they have 4 children.