Rabbi Vernon H. Kurtz – Past President of MERCAZ USA (2002 - 2006)

Rabbi Vernon H. Kurtz came to the presidency of MERCAZ USA, the Zionist organization of the Conservative Movement, after having served as a Vice President for the past two years. The immediate past president of the Rabbinical Assembly, Rabbi Kurtz is the spiritual leader of North Suburban Synagogue Beth El in Highland Park, Illinois, an 1100 family Conservative congregation in the suburban Chicago area.

Born in Toronto, Canada, Rabbi Kurtz received his B.A. from York University in Toronto, his M.A. and Rabbinic Ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary of America and his Doctor of Ministry degree from Chicago Theological Seminary. The recipient of numerous rabbinic and communal awards, he is a member of the Rabbinical Assembly's Committee on Jewish Law and Standards and has served as Chairman of the Joint Placement Commission.

Rabbi Kurtz has also assumed important leadership positions in the areas of Jewish communal and interfaith activities. He has been President of the Chicago Board of Rabbis, Chairman of the United Jewish Appeal Rabbinic Cabinet and President of the Council of Religious Leaders of Metropolitan Chicago and is currently a member of the Board of the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago and the Renaissance and Renewal Pillar of the United Jewish Communities. Rabbi Kurtz has also served as Adjunct Assistant Professor of Rabbinic Literature at the Spertus Institute and Adjunct Lecturer in Jewish Studies at the Chicago Theological Seminary. Currently he is a monthly Torah commentator for the Chicago Jewish News.

A committed Zionist, Rabbi Kurtz has been a delegate representing the worldwide Conservative/ Masorti Movement at the World Zionist Organization's General Council (Vaad HaPoel) since 2000 and in 2002 was elected a delegate to the 34th World Zionist Congress. Together with his wife Bryna, he is the proud father of two daughters, Hadassa, who lives in Jerusalem after having made aliyah, and Shira, a student at the University of Pennsylvania.

MERCAZ USA is the Zionist voice of Conservative Judaism within the World Zionist Organization, the Jewish Agency for Israel, the American Zionist Movement and the Conference of Presidents for Major American Jewish Organizations. A grass-roots organization lobbying on behalf of Conservative/Masorti Judaism, MERCAZ is supported by individual and family memberships. MERCAZ USA works together with MERCAZ Olami, the international umbrella for Conservative Zionist affiliates with chapters in North and South America, Europe and Israel.

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