Daniel S. Brenner was born and raised in Charlotte, North Carolina. He received a B.A. in Philosophy from the University of Wisconsin, studied in Jerusalem at the Pardes Institute for Jewish Studies, and earned both an M.A. and rabbinic title from the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College. Brenner furthered his studies with the Modern Orthodox theologian Rabbi Yitz Greenberg and went on to serve on the faculty of CLAL- The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership from 1998 – 2003.
At CLAL he authored works on medical ethics with Joseph Fins MD (Chief of the Division of Medical Ethics at Weill Cornell Medical College) and Rabbi Tsvi Blanchard (Embracing Life and Facing Death, A Jewish Guide to Palliative Care, 2002) on spirituality with Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, and on a variety of Jewish topics for periodicals including The Forward, Spirituality & Health, Beliefnet, and The Jewish Week.
In 2003, Brenner became the first Rabbi to direct a center of learning at Auburn Theological Seminary, a historic Presbyterian seminary on Manhattan’s Upper West side. At Auburn, Brenner spearheaded the creation of the nation’s first doctoral level program for clergy who work in the context of religious diversity, developed a program for religious leaders with Columbia University’s Center for the Study of Science and Religion, and created a religious diversity curricula for Face to Face/Faith to Faith, Auburn’s international youth leadership program. Brenner was also at the epicenter of an effort to stop anti-Israel divestment in the Presbyterian Church (USA) and his efforts in this debate garnered him a Simon Rockower Award for Excellence in Jewish Journalism.
In 2007, Brenner became the vice president, education of the Birthright Israel Foundation and the founding executive director of Birthright Israel NEXT, an organization dedicated to engaging young adults in Jewish community life. Under his guidance, Birthrigh
ms that reached over 50,000 young Jewish adults each year. As part of this effort, Brenner launched Next Shabbat, a grassroots program that has sponsored over 20,000 home-hospitality events. In 2009, he was named by Newsweek Magazine as one of America’s fifty most influential rabbis.t Israel NEXT grew to become a national organization with progra
In 2011, Brenner left Birthright Israel to join the Jewish educational organization Moving Traditions. In this capacity, Brenner is currently advancing a national mentorship program for teen boys, pioneering work in family education around the rite of passage of b’nai mitzvah, and training leaders of Jewish schools, camps, and youth groups.
In addition to being a Jewish educator, Brenner has led an active creative life as a writer, poet, musician, and dance innovator. Brenner developed a series of touring Chassidic folktales for Theatre Ariel, created a one-man-show about rabbinical school called “Faster, Rabbi, Drill! Drill!”, and has had two productions of his work in New York theaters (Vital Theatre and the All Out Arts Festival NYC.) His essays and his commentaries have appeared in the New York Times, Jerusalem Post, KtB, Huffington Post, Iconia and NPR’s Infinite Mind. His band has been featured in The Forward, and his touring cultural performance Klezmer Aerobics, was a select pick of the cultural arts section of the New York Times.
Wikipedia entry: Daniel Brenner
Profiles of Rabbi Daniel Brenner
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New York Jewish Week