Traditional
Congregation
12437 Ladue Rd
Creve Coeur, MO 63141
(314) 576-5230
Meet Rabbi Seth D. Gordon
Shalom. Welcome to Traditional Congregation!
My family and I arrived here in the summer of 2007 from New York and found that Traditional Congregation exceeded whatever expectations we had. Traditional Congregation is unlike any other in the St Louis area (and elsewhere) and I invite you to visit us so that you can see for yourself; and of course, I hope you will speak with me personally.
I have been a pulpit rabbi for 37 years – five years in Annapolis, Maryland;15 in Bethpage, Long Island (New York); and now 17 years in St. Louis . My wife, Marian, and I, raised in New Jersey, are graduates of Rutgers University. I earned my first rabbinical degree in 1987 and my studies included several years in New York and Jerusalem.
In 1998 I earned a second s’michah (rabbinic ordination) from Rav David Weiss Halivni and the ITJ -- Institute of Traditional Judaism. (The ITJ is the academic institution of the UTJ -- Union of Traditional Judaism.) Our motto, an excellent expression of who we are and what we stand for, is “genuine faith with intellectual integrity.” We are faithful to God, Torah teachings, and the authority of halachah (Jewish law), and yet we engage with modern scholarship and modern society to better understand the requirements, meaning, and latitudes and limits of our religious tradition.
No single institution or movement has any ultimate claim upon me and my teaching; I am proud to have learned from Orthodox, Conservative and Reform rabbis, teachers and educators. However, I live and teach what might be best expressed as modern orthodoxy (small “o”). To better explain my orientation, my most significant religious model is RaMBaM (Maimonides), for his firm but limited approach to halachah, for his intellectual openness, and for his unwavering commitment to God and the Jewish people and to others (he was also a highly-regarded physician). I have served in mechitzah (separate seating) and mixed-seating congregations; Traditional has both mechitzah and mixed-seating sections. My five adult children attended modern orthodox day schools. I teach extensively at Traditional and throughout the community.
I have been on the Executive Board of the UTJ and ITJ, and have served on medical ethics committees. Additionally, I have worked with communities to promote cooperation among Jews and non-Jews – founding the Aleph-Bet Jewish Day School in Annapolis in 1989 (Orthodox-Conservative-Reform), and the African-American Jewish Coalition of Anne Arundel County (Annapolis 1988), guiding the Long Island Institute of Adult Jewish Studies, and working to bring rabbis of different outlooks to cooperate together in both Annapolis and Long Island.
Now in our 18th year in the Midwest, we are still excited by our congregation and by the opportunities that God has given us here. I hope you will visit us and will become involved religiously and communally. Our congregation, including my wife Marian (who serves as Traditional's Executive Director) and I, pledge that we will help you and your family fulfill to the best of your ability the role that God has for you. You will find Traditional Congregation to be a unique, warm, welcoming, and purposeful congregation. We look forward to meeting you.
Rabbi Seth D. Gordon
Zoom Classes with
Rabbi Gordon
Good & Evil -- Mondays, 9:00-10:15 AM
Jewish thought is different from philosophy. Both employ systematic thinking, but the foundation of philosophy is open inquiry by reason; the foundation of Jewish thought is the Torah.
We will begin historically -- first the Torah itself, then the rest of the TaNaCH, then Rabbinic thinking, then Medieval Jewish thinking, including Kabbalah, then Modern thinking, some of which is not Torah based.
We will explore:
1. What is good and what is evil?
2. Suffering, especially good people, and the prosperity of the wicked.
3. Where does suffering and evil come from?
4. Theodicy -- Defending God despite suffering and evil.
5. What is the human role in suffering and evil?
Parashat Ha-Shavu'a -- The weekly haftarah reading Wednesdays, 7:00-8:00 PM
Each week we will look at the weekly Parashah from both the traditional rabbinic and often midrashic points of view as well as from the point of view of modern historians. Although we would love you to join us for all classes, as classes are formed through sharing, you can join the lesson for that week's reading. Recommended: the New JPS translation, but feel free to use any translation.
Register here for Parashat Ha'Shavu'a
Mitzvah 613 - Thursdays,11:30 AM - 12:30 PM.
Bring your lunch!
More than a "good deed," as it is popularly known, mitzvah in a deeper and truer sense means, literally, command. I will provide the teachings from Sefer ha-Chinuch (likely 13th C; Barcelona; anonymous). This work numbers the mitzvot as they appear in the Torah, adding rabbinic teachings and the author's own insights. Recommended: Have a translation of the Torah with you.
Registration is required for the first class in any topic you wish to participate in. If you have any questions, contact Marian at tradcong@sbcglobal.net.
Shabbat Podcasts from Rabbi Gordon!
Shabbat shalom!
Rabbi Gordon's
Abbreviated Hallel for Rosh Chodesh
