Rabbi Jordan Goldson traces his faith journey back to Long Island, where his family built a suburban Jewish life after the war. Friday nights meant synagogue, community, and late dinners with friends at the local diners that shaped a sense of belonging. And when he was at Tulane University, far from home, he found himself drawn into the student organization Hillel, organizing Shabbat dinners, building a campus community, and unexpectedly found himself being nudged toward the rabbinate.
What began as curiosity about Jewish texts turned into rabbinical studies, first in Israel and then in Los Angeles and New York, culminating in his ordination in 1987. From his first pulpit in Calgary, through congregations in Arizona, Baton Rouge, New Jersey, and now Easton, his career has been marked by growth, resilience, and a deep commitment to community. Along the way he’s taught, counseled, and led through times of promise and times of struggle, always returning to the heart of what drew him in as a young man: the joy of creating and sustaining Jewish life.
Rabbi Goldson stopped by the Spy Studio a few weeks ago to chat about the challenge and opportunities in attracting younger people to Temple B’nai in an era of remarkable technology and the temple’s celebration of 75 years of service to the Mid-Shore. The Rabbi also talks about how a community processes the current tragedy in Gaza and growing anti-semitism. His answer begins with a 3,000 year old history of resilience and hope.
This video is approximately six minutes in length. For more information about Temple B’nai Israel please go here.
The Rt. Rev. Joel Marcus Johnson, Anglican Bishop of The Chesapeake, Ret'd. says
What an inspired interview with Rabbi Jordan Goldson. His sense of continuity and desire to work with our multi-faceted religious community continues the work of his emeritus predecessor, the congregation, and community at large. His very mention of the Hebrew expression, “tikkun olam,” to repair the world, may it characterize his work among us – as it happens in many steps, great and small, to repair and to bring us all together, in our broken world. … This said, Rabbi Goldson leads a dynamic Jewish community unseen in rural America, in which synagogues often are hidden within their towns, given safety from old traditions of Antisemitism. Rather, Temple B’nai Israel has chosen visibility in its relationship with the larger community, and in its shared hope in the same God of its friends and colleagues in faith. … As a longtime religious leader here, and a friend of Temple B’nai Israel, I hope the leadership will host a community-wide welcoming party for Rabbi Goldson and his family. I send my love, academic collegiality, and friendship. Shalom, +Joel