Rabbi Kluwgant at the helm
The Organisation of Rabbis of Australasia has held its national conference this week in Melbourne, Australia.
ORA Executive Rabbis; Goodhardt, Ingram, Goldstein, Gurevitch, Glasman, Lewin, Feldman, Gutnick, Kluwgant, Ulman Photo: Paul Topol
More than 70 of ORA’s 115 members attended the conference over the two days, where a range of topics were discussed and deliberated.
Key agenda items included a national halachic organ donation policy, a national registry for religious marriages, the one Shabbat Project and a child protection policy initiative.
Key note speakers at the conference dinner included Mr Joe Tucci Director of the Australian Childhood foundation and Mr Ian Neil SC who spoke on the topic of the interface between secular law and Jewish law. Mr Mr Romy Leibler, President COSA and Dr Danny Lamm, President ZFA both addressed the conference dinner which was also attended by Mr David Southwick MP.
Outgoing President, Rabbi Moshe Gutnick spoke of ORA’s role in a number of key areas including tackling child sexual abuse and also in particular presenting the voice of Judaism to government. He congratulated the incoming president and handed the baton over to Rabbi Meir Shlomo Kluwgant who was elected unopposed as the new President of the organisation.
This post is the most senior rabbinic post in Australia, and Rabbi Gutnick commented that Rabbi Kluwgant is full of drive and enthusiasm and is well placed to lead the organisation into the future. His enormous success in previously leading the Rabbinical Council of Victoria augur well for future success at the Organisation of Rabbis of Australasia.
Rabbi Kluwgant outlined his vision and plans for the organisation which were shared by his colleagues on the newly formed executive.
Topics scheduled for discussion include child protection policies, organ donation, ORA’s relationship with The Executive Council of Australian Jewry, cremation v burial, accredited mohalim and Kashrut agencies.
ORA has committed to back the Sydney Beth Din and the Kashrut Authority.
The new executive team comprises:
President Rabbi Meir Shlomo Kluwgant
Senior Vice President Rabbi Yoram Ulman
Vice President Rabbi Yaakov Glasman
Vice President Rabbi Paul Lewin
Immediate Past President Rabbi Moshe D Gutnick Secretary Rabbi Chaim Ingram
Treasurer Rabbi Ian Goodhardt
Committee Member Rabbi Shmuel Feldman (ACT) Committee Member Rabbi Menachem Mendel Goldstein (NZ) Committee Member Rabbi Nir Gurevich (QLD)
Rebbitzin and their guests
Rabbis and their guests
All pix Paul Topol
With their outgoing President also serving as a dayan on the Sydney Beth Din and the Rabbinic head of the Kashrut Authority, was there ever a realistic possibility ORA wouldn’t “back the Sydney Beth Din and the Kashrut Authority”?
now it is evident that ORA is not representative of the communities .When from the ACT they get a self appointed rabbi that can’t get a minyan of his flock more the six times a year
if you have a smicha and live in the NT .do you get a seat in the committee?