Meet the Newest Rabbis Building Israel’s Reform Movement

We are honored to introduce the newest rabbis and honorees of the 2025 Rabbinic Ordination and Academic Convocation from Taube Family Campus in Jerusalem. Each brings a story of faith, courage, and dedication, transforming their personal journeys into spiritual leadership.

Watch the livestream here: Webinar Registration - Zoom

Rabbinic Ordination

Zehavit Kalif

Zehavit Kalif is an educator and Jewish cultural leader from Herzliya, dedicated to strengthening liberal Jewish identity and community in Israel. At 14, she recalls seeing her secular father reading the Talmud, a chance moment that opened the door to an entirely new world of Jewish learning. She serves as a Jewish-Israeli culture instructor for teachers through the Ministry of Education, leads continuing education courses, and has spent over two decades teaching and guiding Jewish learning. Kalif previously worked at Beit Hatfutsot (now ANU - Museum of the Jewish People) and later led the national community of culture and heritage coordinators. For many years, she organized weekly parasha classes at the Beit Daniel community and now leads an independent beit midrash in Givatayim's community garden. She holds a B.A. in Social Sciences and Humanities from the Open University, an M.A. in Humanities from the Kibbutzim Seminar, and a teaching certificate. Guided by Reform and feminist values, Kalif works to empower women and educators through Jewish learning. She lives in Givatayim with her partner and son.

Maayan Morag, Ph.D.

Maayan Morag is a scholar, educator, Jewish consultant, and leader from Rosh HaAyin, dedicated to advancing pluralistic Jewish learning and leadership in Israel. Raised in a secular Mizrahi family, she told her grandmother she was becoming a Reform rabbi, to which her grandmother replied, "I hate Reform Jews"-a moment that became a turning point for her family. She went on to receive a Ph.D. in Jewish Studies from Tel Aviv University, where her research focused on contemporary folklore and gender, and now works with municipalities through the Council for Hebrew Education to strengthen liberal Jewish education in public schools. Throughout her career, Dr. Morag has directed the Telem Pre-Army Leadership Program, taught Jewish thought in Israeli high schools, led batei midrash for all ages, and lectured at academic institutions. As part of her rabbinical training, she completed an internship with a Reform congregation in Connecticut, studied for a year at Hebrew Union College in New York, and continued her rabbinic development as one of Hebrew Union College's Golden Hanassi Fellows. She earned her B.A. and teaching certificate in Jewish philosophy and literature through the Ofakim program and her M.A., summa cum laude, at Tel Aviv University. Dr. Morag lives with her husband and their daughter.

Adi Segal

Adi Segal is a certified psychotherapist and clinical and educational psychologist with an M.A. in Neuropsychology from the University of Haifa and an M.A. in Clinical Psychology from Bar-Ilan University. Raised in a secular kibbutz of HaShomer HaTzair , she insisted on celebrating her Bat Mitzvah with a tallit despite family objections; an early expression of the spiritual independence that eventually led her to study for the rabbinate. She is completing her Ph.D. in Hermeneutic and Cultural Studies at Bar-Ilan, exploring mothers' narratives of stillbirth within the Israeli-Jewish context to influence therapeutic and social discourse. Segal has extensive clinical experience across public and private sectors and currently serves as chair of her city's Health Committee, promoting tolerance, solidarity, and resilience. Integrating psychoanalysis, feminist theory, and Jewish thought, she joined the Israeli Reform Rabbinical Program out of a deep connection to Jewish identity and a commitment to developing spiritual and therapeutic tools. As a feminist leader, she creates new rituals, leads prayers, facilitates spiritual guidance workshops, and accompanies individuals and families through life-cycle ceremonies. Segal lives in Kiryat Ono with her spouse and three children.

Shirley Zfat Davidai

Shirley Zfat Davidai is a teacher, scholar, and rabbi dedicated to expanding Jewish wisdom through an open and egalitarian lens. She has been serving as a student rabbi at the Kodesh VeHol community in Holon, where she leads educational programs in schools, kindergartens, and youth movements. Zfat Davidai teaches Talmud in liberal batei midrash forums, including at the Beit Samueli community in Ra'anana and the IMPJ Mechina, the Reform Movement's pre-military gap-year program. She holds a B.A. in the history of the Jewish people and Hebrew Literature from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, specializing in midrashic and aggadic literature, and an M.A. in law, cum laude. A published author, she co-wrote The Non-Secret Club - Women Telling Talmud and has a forthcoming book exploring the myth of "the Doe" in the Zohar. Zfat Davidai lives in Hod Hasharon with her spouse and three children.

Yael Schweid

Yael Schweid is a clinical psychologist, psychoanalyst, and Jewish leader dedicated to integrating psychology and Jewish thought. She maintains a private practice in Zur Hadassah and is a recognized clinical supervisor by the Israeli Ministry of Health. A member of the Israeli and European Psychoanalytic Societies, Schweid holds a BA in psychology and Jewish thought from Hebrew University, an M.A. in Clinical Psychology from Bar-Ilan University, and an M.A., summa cum laude, in Jewish Thought and History from the Schechter Institute of Jewish Studies. A longtime active member and leader of the Shir Chadash Congregation in Zur Hadassah, Schweid brings her deep commitment to Reform Jewish wisdom and practice to her rabbinic studies at Hebrew Union College where she was also a Golden Hanssi Fellow. Her journey represents a path of Zionist fulfillment and liberal Jewish leadership. Schweid is a mother of three young adults and shares her life with her partner, who is a rabbi and spiritual caregiver.

Dganit Timor Jenshil

Dganit Timor Jenshil is the Chief Operating Officer and Director of Outreach at Hebrew Union College's Taube Family Campus in Jerusalem. Raised in the heart of the national-religious community, she was told as a teenager that she could not be a Bnei Akiva youth leader unless she wore a skirt, a moment that sparked her personal quest for spiritual belonging. Timor Jenshil has over twenty years of experience in the field of informal Jewish education and has worked with various organizations in Israel. She worked as an educator and director of several different Jewish organizations and settings. For seven years she was the Israel Director of Otzma, a Federation program for college graduates, and following that she served as the Director of North America Programs of Israel Experience. She has a degree in criminology and political science and a MA in Jewish Education from The Jewish Theological Seminary. Timor Jenshil is married and has three children. She sees her rabbinic journey as a natural extension to her career, enhancing her experience and mission as a Jewish educator.

Doctor of Humane Letters, Honoris causa

Justice (Ret.) Esther Hayut

Former President of The Supreme Court of Israel

Esther (Esti) Hayut, née Avni, was born on October 16, 1953. She served as President of the Supreme Court of Israel from 2017 until reaching the age of 70, President Hayut was born in the Shubaki Maabara to Holocaust survivor parents: her father was a survivor of Auschwitz, and her mother survived the Transnistria Ghetto. Her parents divorced when she was about a year and a half old, and her father immigrated to England. Hayut was raised as an only child in the home of her grandparents in the Neve Amal neighbourhood of Herzliya. She attended the A. D. Gordon Elementary School and the municipal high school in Herzliya.

At age 17, she moved with her mother (who had remarried) to Eilat, where she completed her high school studies at the city's comprehensive school. In 1971, she enlisted in the Israel Defence Forces and served in the Central Command Entertainment Troupe, alongside Dorit Reuveni, Eli Gorenstein, Uzi Hitman, and Ronit Ofir.

Read the rest of her bio here.

Doctor of Divinity, Honoris causa

Rabbi Maayan Turner '00

Rabbi Ma'ayan Turner '00 is a Reform rabbi, educator, and activist dedicated to equality, peace, and human rights. Born and raised in New Zealand, she discovered her Jewish and Zionist identity through Habonim-Dror and later began her rabbinical studies at Hebrew Union College, where she chose to remain in Jerusalem and join the Israeli Rabbinic Program. An active member of Kehilat Kol HaNeshama, she developed expertise in Torah cantillation, led its Bar and Bat Mitzvah program, and co-edited the congregation's siddur. She founded and continues to lead Kehilat HaDror, while teaching and supporting both communities. Beyond congregational life, Rabbi Turner's rabbinic calling has guided her civil and human rights work, including leadership roles with Rabbis for Human Rights, where she twice served as chairperson, and her ongoing work with the NGO, Bimkom - Planning and Human Rights. Her life's work reflects her commitment to justice, pluralism, and the divine image in every person.

Rabbi Dan Prath '00

Rabbi Dan Prath '00 discovered liberal and pluralistic Judaism while studying at UC Berkeley in the 1990s, where he began teaching in Jewish Education and later served as a school principal in San Jose, CA, and Evanston, IL. After returning to Israel, he entered rabbinical training at Hebrew Union College, led educational content development and teacher training for the Israeli Reform movement, and served as associate rabbi at Beit Daniel. Following ordination, he became rabbi of the Leo Baeck Education Center and Ohel Avraham congregation in Haifa. Rabbi Prath later founded Tzur Shalem, a pre-army program for at-risk youth, and a philanthropic foundation advancing technological education in the Galilee, serving as its first CEO. He also led Taasiyeda, Israel's largest education-and-technology NGO, and served as Haifa's Director of Culture. Now part of Beit Daniel's rabbinical team, he directs Yahaduta, a coalition for Jewish renewal, and recently authored a youth novel, Guardians of the Haggadah.

Doctor of Music, Honoris causa

Cantor David Bentley '00

Bio: Cantor David Bentley '00, a native of Melbourne, Australia, was the first Australian to be ordained as a cantor. Initially trained in economics and opera, his spiritual path led him to combine music and Jewish leadership. Following ordination, he served as Cantor and Religious School Director at Congregation B'nai Tikvah in Walnut Creek, CA, alongside Rabbi Raphael Asher '77, and as a trustee of the American Conference of Cantors' pension plan. In 2004, Cantor Bentley returned to Australia to lead Temple Shalom Gold Coast in Queensland, where he later became Cantor Emeritus and an honorary life member upon his retirement in 2021. In 2024, he was called out of retirement to serve as spiritual leader for the High Holy Days at Etz Chayim Progressive Synagogue in Melbourne. Now living in Israel, David enjoys time with family, reading, watching film and tv, and exploring the world.

All photos of our ordinees were taken by photographer Yonit Schiller.