By Lea Kahn, Staff Writer
For Rabbi Benjamin Adler, the "ah-ha" moment — when he realized that he wanted to become more deeply involved in Judaism — occurred during his stay at a Jewish summer camp.
At Camp Ramah in California, Rabbi Adler said, it was the first time he really "connected" with Jewish tradition. The campers lived Judaism every minute of the day, from prayers in the morning to prayers before and after meals.
"It was a transformative experience for me. We spoke Hebrew. We were immersed in Judaism. It really inspired me. It got me thinking (about) and more engaged in Judaism," said Rabbi Adler, who grew up in San Antonio, Texas. His family settled in Texas about 100 years ago.
But it did not occur to him that some day, he would become a rabbi. And yet it was the camp experience that started him down the path to becoming a religious leader and — ultimately — to the pulpit at Adath Israel Congregation in Lawrence.
Rabbi Adler assumed his duties as the rabbi at Adath Israel Congregation last month, succeeding Rabbi Daniel Grossman. The former rabbi retired after 25 years as the spiritual leader at the Lawrenceville Road congregation, and is staying on as rabbi emeritus.
So based on his experiences at Camp Ramah, the teen-aged Benjamin Adler decided he wanted to go to college near a larger Jewish community than the small one in San Antonio, or even Dallas and Houston. That’s why he enrolled at Columbia University in New York City.
"I wanted more options (to explore being Jewish). I really took advantage of those options. It was great to be able to explore different ways of being Jewish," Rabbi Adler said, recalling his days at Columbia.
Upon graduation, Rabbi Adler worked at B’Nai Jeshurun congregation in New York City. He was not yet a rabbi, but said he felt as though he was part of the community. It occurred to him that maybe he could do what the rabbi was doing — taking traditions and making them relevant to contemporary life.
But it was only after working for two Internet companies in New York City that he decided that he wanted to become a rabbi. The jobs at the Internet companies "were okay, but they did not fill me up," he said. And that’s when he decided to enroll at the Jewish Theological Seminary and obtain ordination.
"I wanted to make my passion my profession," Rabbi Adler said. "It was a good decision. I love being a rabbi. It’s never the same thing every day. It’s working with people and it also involves using my intellect and knowledge in engaging Jewish text and tradition."
Rabbi Adler readily admits that he has always been a person who loves to learn — even as a child. Rabbinical school is a six-year commitment of study, but one that he willingly took on. A rabbi has to be a scholar and must be able to keep up with the knowledge of Jewish text, he said.
"The other aspect is, it’s a calling. It’s a desire to work with Jewish people and to perpetuate our tradition, to do good things in the world. To mobilize the community to do good things in the world is one of the best things in the world," he said.
Rabbi Adler said one of the things he enjoys doing is focusing on interfaith work. At his previous congregation at White Meadow Temple in northern New Jersey, he helped to build interfaith relationships — including working with the Muslim community to help forge a better understanding of each other.
At Adath Israel Congregation, he said, he wants to understand the community’s story and use it to help shape the future. He favors working in a partnership and taking a collaborative approach. It’s about building relationships with the community to find out where the congregation would like to go, he added.
Adath Israel Congregation has many great things in its favor, he said. It is in a good location and it has a long history. It is embedded in the community and there are people with "a lot of energy" who can build a strong, vibrant synagogue, he said, adding that "this makes (Adath Israel) very attractive to me."
"I felt an immediate connection to the community. It is hard to put it into words. Being in the community for a visit (during the rabbi selection process), I felt this was the place where I can be a leader and make an impact," he said.
"If you can have a leader (rabbi) for 25 years, that’s a good thing. The congregation wants continuity. Lawrence Township is a great place to live. My wife and I are excited to be here. We want to be here a long time," he said.

