René Gutman
Encyclopedia
René Gutman is Chief Rabbi of Strasbourg
Strasbourg
Strasbourg is the capital and principal city of the Alsace region in eastern France and is the official seat of the European Parliament. Located close to the border with Germany, it is the capital of the Bas-Rhin département. The city and the region of Alsace are historically German-speaking,...

 since year 1987.

Biography

René Gutman grows up in the town of Rouen
Rouen
Rouen , in northern France on the River Seine, is the capital of the Haute-Normandie region and the historic capital city of Normandy. Once one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe , it was the seat of the Exchequer of Normandy in the Middle Ages...

, where his father Alexandre Gutman was the local 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...

. He spent several years in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...

, dedicating himself to religious studies, at the Yeshiva
Yeshiva
Yeshiva is a Jewish educational institution that focuses on the study of traditional religious texts, primarily the Talmud and Torah study. Study is usually done through daily shiurim and in study pairs called chavrutas...

 of Tifra'h ישיבת תושיה, in the Negev
Negev
The Negev is a desert and semidesert region of southern Israel. The Arabs, including the native Bedouin population of the region, refer to the desert as al-Naqab. The origin of the word Neghebh is from the Hebrew root denoting 'dry'...

, and after then in 'Hebron' (Slabodka yeshiva
Slabodka yeshiva
Hebron Yeshiva, also known as Yeshivas Hevron, or Knesses Yisroel, and originally as Slabodka Yeshiva, is known colloquially as the "mother of yeshivas" and was devoted to high=level study of the Talmud. The yeshiva was located in the Lithuanian town of Slabodka, adjacent to Kovno , now...

) in Jerusalem.

He learns rabbinic studies at the French Jewish Seminar in Paris, and meanwhile he starts his academic studies in the university. He graduated Rabbi in 1977, by winning the Grand Rabbin Lieber grant (1974) and the André Weil grant, three consecutive years. During this period he joins the religious youth movement Yeshouroun under the direction of Henri and Liliane Ackermann
Liliane Ackermann
Liliane Aimée Ackermann was a French Jewish Community pioneer, leader, writer, and lecturer.-Biography:Liliane Ackermann was born on September 3, 1938, in Strasbourg, France, the daughter of Lucien Weil and Béatrice Haas.During World War II, her family took refuge in Voiron, Isère...

, among several future leaders of the French rabbinate. He has been successively rabbi of the city of Reims
Reims
Reims , a city in the Champagne-Ardenne region of France, lies east-northeast of Paris. Founded by the Gauls, it became a major city during the period of the Roman Empire....

, Besançon
Besançon
Besançon , is the capital and principal city of the Franche-Comté region in eastern France. It had a population of about 237,000 inhabitants in the metropolitan area in 2008...

, then Chief Rabbi of Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...

 and finally in the Jewish community of Strasbourg
Strasbourg
Strasbourg is the capital and principal city of the Alsace region in eastern France and is the official seat of the European Parliament. Located close to the border with Germany, it is the capital of the Bas-Rhin département. The city and the region of Alsace are historically German-speaking,...

 and Lower Rhine
Lower Rhine
The Lower Rhine flows from Bonn, Germany, to the North Sea at Hoek van Holland, Netherlands.Almost immediately after entering the Netherlands, the Rhine splits into many branches. The main branch is called the Waal which flows from Nijmegen to meet the river Meuse; after which it is called Merwede...

, as successor to Rabbi Max Warschawski.

René Gutman holds a Ph.D. (magna cum laude) in Religious Studies at the Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes
École pratique des hautes études
The École pratique des hautes études is a Grand Établissement in Paris, France. It is counted among France's most prestigious research and higher education institutions....

 (Sorbonne University) where he attended the seminar of Rabbi Charles Touati on the Talmudic and Rabbinic Judaism. Former member of the National Ethics Council on AIDS, Permanent Representative of the Conference of European Rabbis at the Council of Europe
Council of Europe
The Council of Europe is an international organisation promoting co-operation between all countries of Europe in the areas of legal standards, human rights, democratic development, the rule of law and cultural co-operation...

, he also participates in inter-religious dialogue. He also acts for dialogue beyond the Monotheistic Religions and met with religious representatives from the Far East (Religions for Peace, "Hommes de Parole", 2007 Kyoto Conference ).

The French Government appointed him Knight in the Légion d'Honneur in 1999 then Officer in 2008, in 2005 he has been appointed officer of the Ordre national du Mérite
Ordre National du Mérite
The Ordre national du Mérite is an Order of State awarded by the President of the French Republic. It was founded on 3 December 1963 by President Charles de Gaulle...

.
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