Rachel Barenblat
Encyclopedia
Rachel Barenblat, the "Velveteen Rabbi," is an American poet and blog
ger who was ordained as a rabbi
in January, 2011.
Born in San Antonio, Texas
in 1975 to Marvin and Liana Barenblat, Rachel moved to New England in 1992 to attend Williams College
in Williamstown, Massachusetts
. She holds a BA in religion and a Masters of Fine Arts in writing and literature from the Bennington Writing Seminars, as well as rabbinic ordination from ALEPH: the Alliance for Jewish Renewal
.
Barenblat co-founded Inkberry, a literary arts non-profit organization, with Sandy Ryan and Emily Banner. From 1999-2002 she was a contributing editor at Pif Magazine and since 2006 she has been a contributing editor at Zeek magazine, a Jewish journal of thought and culture. She serves on the board of directors of the Organization for Transformative Works
.
Barenblat is author of four poetry chapbooks: the skies here (Pecan Grove Press
, 1995), What Stays (Bennington Writing Seminars Alumni Chapbook Series, 2002), chaplainbook (Laupe House Press, 2006), and the self-published Through, a collection of miscarriage
poems (2009.) Her first full-length collection of poems, 70 Faces -- a collection of poems which arise out of a full year's cycle of weekly Torah
portions -- was published by Montreal-based Phoenicia Publishing in 2011.
70 faces has received generally positive reviews:
although the Forward reviewer argued that the book's fatal flaw is "its failure to live up to the claims the author makes for it."
From 2005 to 2010, Barenblat was a student in the ALEPH rabbinic program; she was ordained a rabbi in early 2011. Her blog, Velveteen Rabbi, was named one of the top 25 blogs in Time.com's First Annual Blog Index in spring of 2008. She has guest-blogged at Jewess, Kesher Talk, Sojourner, and the Best American Poetry Blog, and she spent a year writing weekly Torah
commentaries for Radical Torah.
With Thurman Hart, Barenblat co-founded the first Progressive Faith Blog Con, a gathering for bloggers of progressive faith which took place in Montclair, New Jersey
in 2006.
Her Velveteen Rabbi's Haggadah for Pesach, a free and open-source haggadah which combines traditional texts with poetry and creative interpretations, is used worldwide. As of 2011, the most recent edition is version 7.1 and can be downloaded here.
Barenblat lives in Lanesboro, Massachusetts, with her husband Ethan Zuckerman
and their son. As of 2011, she serves as the rabbi for Congregation Beth Israel
in North Adams, MA.
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
ger who was ordained as a rabbi
Rabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
in January, 2011.
Born in San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
in 1975 to Marvin and Liana Barenblat, Rachel moved to New England in 1992 to attend Williams College
Williams College
Williams College is a private liberal arts college located in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. It was established in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim Williams. Originally a men's college, Williams became co-educational in 1970. Fraternities were also phased out during this...
in Williamstown, Massachusetts
Williamstown, Massachusetts
Williamstown is a town in Berkshire County, in the northwest corner of Massachusetts. It shares a border with Vermont to the north and New York to the west. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 7,754 at the 2010 census...
. She holds a BA in religion and a Masters of Fine Arts in writing and literature from the Bennington Writing Seminars, as well as rabbinic ordination from ALEPH: the Alliance for Jewish Renewal
Jewish Renewal
Jewish Renewal , is a recent movement in Judaism which endeavors to reinvigorate modern Judaism with mystical, Hasidic, musical and meditative practices...
.
Barenblat co-founded Inkberry, a literary arts non-profit organization, with Sandy Ryan and Emily Banner. From 1999-2002 she was a contributing editor at Pif Magazine and since 2006 she has been a contributing editor at Zeek magazine, a Jewish journal of thought and culture. She serves on the board of directors of the Organization for Transformative Works
Organization for Transformative Works
The Organization For Transformative Works is a non-profit organization that advocates for the transformative and legitimate nature of fan labor activities, including fan fiction, fan vids, anime music videos, and real person fiction...
.
Barenblat is author of four poetry chapbooks: the skies here (Pecan Grove Press
Pecan Grove Press
Pecan Grove Press publishes primarily poetry books and chapbooks. Though sponsored by the Department of English and The Academic Library of St. Mary's University in San Antonio, Texas, the press is self-supporting. Founded in 1988 by St. Mary's faculty member, Karen Navarte, Pecan Grove Press has...
, 1995), What Stays (Bennington Writing Seminars Alumni Chapbook Series, 2002), chaplainbook (Laupe House Press, 2006), and the self-published Through, a collection of miscarriage
Miscarriage
Miscarriage or spontaneous abortion is the spontaneous end of a pregnancy at a stage where the embryo or fetus is incapable of surviving independently, generally defined in humans at prior to 20 weeks of gestation...
poems (2009.) Her first full-length collection of poems, 70 Faces -- a collection of poems which arise out of a full year's cycle of weekly Torah
Torah
Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...
portions -- was published by Montreal-based Phoenicia Publishing in 2011.
70 faces has received generally positive reviews:
- "[The poems in 70 Faces] take time to think about daily things -- a bottle of milk, talismans on a desk -- and ongoing things -- the names of animals, the urge to make -- and lifelong things -- a baby born in danger, a difficult reunion at a funeral. // They chronicle the round of the year and the quiet, continual effort to walk forward, to think about work and family and the light on the ridge lines."
- "Reb Rachel engages head-on with a question that nags — what is the downside to this whole taking over Canaan business? There is nothing heavy-handed or polemical here. She could be talking about the ancient Israelites, the modern Israelites, or any of us caught in the situation of getting the better of someone else. In my humble, really good poetry tackles big questions in such a way as to leave the reader with more questions, shaking our collective heads heads in wonder. The good stuff – and here I'm quoting another poem from the book - builds a structure to house what you long for."
although the Forward reviewer argued that the book's fatal flaw is "its failure to live up to the claims the author makes for it."
From 2005 to 2010, Barenblat was a student in the ALEPH rabbinic program; she was ordained a rabbi in early 2011. Her blog, Velveteen Rabbi, was named one of the top 25 blogs in Time.com's First Annual Blog Index in spring of 2008. She has guest-blogged at Jewess, Kesher Talk, Sojourner, and the Best American Poetry Blog, and she spent a year writing weekly Torah
Torah
Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...
commentaries for Radical Torah.
With Thurman Hart, Barenblat co-founded the first Progressive Faith Blog Con, a gathering for bloggers of progressive faith which took place in Montclair, New Jersey
Montclair, New Jersey
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 38,977 people, 15,020 households, and 9,687 families residing in the township. The population density was 6,183.6 people per square mile . There were 15,531 housing units at an average density of 2,464.0 per square mile...
in 2006.
Her Velveteen Rabbi's Haggadah for Pesach, a free and open-source haggadah which combines traditional texts with poetry and creative interpretations, is used worldwide. As of 2011, the most recent edition is version 7.1 and can be downloaded here.
Barenblat lives in Lanesboro, Massachusetts, with her husband Ethan Zuckerman
Ethan Zuckerman
Ethan Zuckerman is the director of the MIT Center for Civic Media, officially starting in September 2011.Zuckerman was one of the first staff members of Tripod.com, one of the first successful "dot com" enterprises, and later founder of Geekcorps and Global Voices Online...
and their son. As of 2011, she serves as the rabbi for Congregation Beth Israel
Congregation Beth Israel (North Adams, Massachusetts)
Congregation Beth Israel is a Jewish congregation located at 53 Lois Street in North Adams, Massachusetts. The congregation was founded in the early 1890s as House of Israel by Eastern European Jews recently immigrated to the United States...
in North Adams, MA.