Rabbi builds
her temple
Meet The Rabbinical Seminary International Rabbis
Rabbi Barbara Aiello

    Aug. 27, 2005

    By Mary Fox
    Post-Tribune correspondent

    VALPARAISO, INDIANA — As builders work on an addition to Temple Israel, Rabbi Shoshana
    Feferman looks forward to what she calls a “wonderful future” for the congregation.

    “Really, I’m very pleased with this congregation,” said Feferman, telling of the expansion of the building
    and services at 1405 Evans Ave.

    In 2002, when Feferman came to the temple as its lay leader, services were conducted monthly. With
    her as the rabbi, services are conducted twice a month.

    Also, a goal for confirmation classes to visit Israel has been set, six classrooms are being added and
    the social hall is being enlarged.

    “This temple is growing, and it’s very vibrant and very active,” she said. “It’s really wonderful to see the
    kids coming with such enthusiasm and leading services.”

    Feferman, 53, was ordained June 30 after completing long-distance studies at Rabbinical Seminary
    International in New York City. Previously, she had done para-rabbinical studies at Hebrew Union
    College in Cincinnati. While there, she was one of the few students who had a congregation. Still, as a
    lay leader, Feferman could not officiate at marriages or convert.

    Sue Kobak, president of Temple Israel, said Feferman has impressed the congregation.

    “She is insightful, sympathetic and knowledgeable and has provided us with a great moral and spiritual
    force,” Kobak said.

    While Feferman served as their spiritual leader, members of the congregation helped find a seminary
    through which she could complete her studies long distance.

    “It was a very efficient way of working for her and for us, so she would not have to be uprooted,” Kobak
    said.

    Feferman’s interest in pursuing the rabbinate came as no surprise to her five siblings in Israel. Before
    their father died, he gave his prayer shawl and prayer book to Feferman, the youngest in the family.

    “He knew I always studied, and he knew I was more observant than my brothers and sisters,” she said.
    “When I told my siblings three years ago what I was doing, nobody was surprised.”

    Feferman said the desire to become a rabbi was hidden inside her for years.

    “I came from a very traditional background,” she said. “My whole life was immersed in Judaism, Torah
    studies and teaching it to generations. I had students from 4 to 84.

    “I always enjoyed studying for the sake of studying. Inside me, I always wanted to pursue studying the
    rabbinate.”

    Before coming to Temple Israel, Feferman was a lay leader for 17 years at Temple Beth-El in South
    Bend. She still is principal of the temple’s Hebrew School, which meets two afternoons a week.

    Feferman lives in Mishawaka with her husband, Bob, a teacher at the Montessori Academy. The
    couple, married 29 years, met in Israel after Bob went there to serve in the army. Shoshana, a soldier
    for seven years, was already in the military.

    They married in Israel and later returned to the South Bend area to be closer to Bob’s family. Their
    son, Dan, has moved to Israel and is waiting to be drafted. Their daughter, Efrat Feferman-Lasher, is
    studying public administration in graduate school in Tucson, Ariz.

    As rabbi at Temple Israel, Feferman is looking forward to spending more time in the community. While
    in Valparaiso on Tuesdays, she plans to meet other clergy and visit hospitals and schools. She
    welcomes teaching others about Judaism.

    “The more people understand about other religions, the more they appreciate and respect them,” she
    said. “Judaism is a wonderful religion which promotes peace, social justice and values. We need
    people to see that.”

    Feferman expects continued expansion of services.

    “Little by little, we’re growing,” she said. “The response is very positive. When there is such response,
    there is demand for more.”
Rabbi Shoshana Feferman
listens as Amanda Whitman,
13, of Chesterton reads a
passage during her bat mitzvah
preparation at Temple Israel in
Valparaiso. Feferman came to
Temple Israel in 2002 as lay
leader.
MICHAEL MCARDLE/POST TRIBUNE