Rabbi Leah R. Berkowitz

A woman with glasses and straight brown hair stands smiling in front of a bookcase holding a book titled "Maybe It Happened This Way"

Leah Rachel Berkowitz (she/her) is a rabbi, educator, and author based in Philadelphia, PA. She currently serves as the senior Jewish educator for Hillel at Temple University and teaches for the Union for Reform Judaism, the Jewish Learning Collaborative, and Laasok.org. Each summer, she serves on the faculty at URJ 6 Points Creative Arts Academy. She is a Jewish Studio Project Facilitator, a Rukin Rabbinic Fellow at 18 Doors (formerly Interfaith Family), and a past president of the Women’s Rabbinic Network. 

She contributed to "The Sacred Calling: Four Decades of Women in the Rabbinate" (winner of the 2016 National Jewish Book Award) and several CCAR prayer books. Leah is the author of three children's books: "The World Needs Beautiful Things," "Queen Vashti's Comfy Pants," and "The Moving Box Sukkah," as well as the middle-grade midrash collection "Maybe It Happened This Way: Bible Stories Reimagined " with co-author Erica Wovsaniker. You can find her on social media @rabbilrb or online at leahrachelberkowitz.com.

an image of a man standing on top of a mountain with the sun setting in the background

The Ones Who Cross Over

Rabbi Leah R. Berkowitz
Our people are called by many names throughout the Tanach, but my personal favorite is one of the earliest: ivri, which means “Hebrew.”
an image of a woman wearing a pink winter hat with a pin on it that says "Do Justice Love Mercy March Proudly" with a white RAC logo

Showing Your Work: The Legacy of the Daughters of Zelophechad

Rabbi Leah R. Berkowitz
There are few biblical passages that speak to the feminist and the progressive Jew in me as much as the story of the daughters of Zelophechad. Five women—Mahlah, Noa, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah—come before the all-male leadership of the Israelites and demand the right to inherit their father’s portion of the Promised Land.
an image of a donkey sticking its head out a window in a barn

What Did Balaam Really See?

Rabbi Leah R. Berkowitz
This week, we read the story of Balaam, a sorcerer hired by the Moabite king to curse the Israelites. This tale contains several puzzling elements: a talking donkey, an angel with a fiery sword, and a non-Israelite sorcerer who becomes God’s mouthpiece.
an image of a group of kids dancing at URJ Six Points Creative Arts Academy on Shabbat

Korach’s Song

Rabbi Leah R. Berkowitz
Each Shabbat at the URJ Six Points Creative Arts Academy, a group of campers, staff, and faculty come together to perform “Jewsical,” an original song about the week’s Torah portion. Most weeks, the musical arrangement is just as significant as the words.
an image of a grasshopper on a leaf

"Patience, Grasshopper"

Rabbi Leah R. Berkowitz
“Patience, grasshopper.” My dad said this so often when I was growing up, I didn’t realize it was a quote from a 1970s television show, “Kung Fu,” until I was in my thirties. From what I can gather, these words served as a warning from master to student: think things through, have faith in the process, and wait for the right moment. I always think of these words when we reach this week’s Torah portion.

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