Rabbi Dr. Kenneth Brander | |
---|---|
Personal | |
Born | 18 April 1962 |
Religion | Judaism |
Alma mater | Yeshiva College |
Jewish leader | |
Predecessor | Rabbi Shlomo Riskin |
Position | President and Rosh HaYeshiva |
Organisation | Ohr Torah Stone |
Semikhah | Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary |
Kenneth Brander (Hebrew: כתריאל ברנדר; born April 18, 1962)[1] is an American rabbi who is president and Rosh HaYeshiva of the Ohr Torah Stone network of institutions.[2][3] He is a member of the Jewish Federations of North America’s Rabbinic Cabinet Round Table.
Brander is a 1984 alumnus of Yeshiva College and received his ordination from the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary where he was a student of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik.[4] He studied at Florida Atlantic University, obtaining a PhD in general philosophy and comparative literature. His dissertation was titled "The Temple in Jerusalem Idealized and the Historic-Synagogue-Institution: A Study in Synagogue Purposes in an American Context."[5]
From 1990 to 1991, Brander was the acting rabbi of New York's Lincoln Square Synagogue, after serving for four years as its assistant rabbi.[6] He served as the senior rabbi of the Boca Raton Synagogue for 14 years (1991–2005).[2][6] From 2005 to 2018, he served as vice president of Yeshiva University.[5] In 2018, he assumed the position of President and Rosh HaYeshiva of Ohr Torah Stone.[2][7]
In 2018, he moved from the United States to Israel with his family.[2][8][9] He has five children.[5]