Celebrating the Cincinnati Ordination Class of 2026/5786

Four new Jewish rabbis were ordained on Saturday, May 9, 2026, in a ceremony that celebrated the culmination of hard work and dreams at Plum Street Temple in Cincinnati, where Rabbi Isaac M. Wise built the foundation of Reform Judaism in America.

Prior to the ordination ceremony, on Thursday, May 7, faculty, the Board of Governors, families, and guests, gathered to hear the ordinands present their Capstone projects and theses. Jamie Belle Starr presented her thesis, Dealing with Death: Jewish Perspectives on Facing Mortality, and Jonathan Benzion presented Addir-Bammarom: Metatron, Jewish Mysticism, and the Limits of my Maimonidean Monotheism, an examination of kabbalistic interpretations of monotheism.

Marisa Papell gave her capstone presentation: 1883 Revisited: the Kosher Trayfa Banquet, an homage to the famous Trayfa Banquet held on July 11, 1883 at the Highland House in Cincinnati in honor of the first graduating class of Hebrew Union College. The attendees were then treated to a modern interpretation of the original menu guided by the work of Papell, a culinary school graduate.

At Ordination, Rabbi Neil P.G. Hirsch '10, Senior Rabbi at Isaac M. Wise Temple, gave the invocation, following a procession that included 35 alumni gathered for the meaningful event.

President Andrew Rehfeld delivered the Presidential Charge, in which he acknowledged the "bittersweet day" and encouraged the ordinees to:

Carry the energy and commitment of this city and region that have forged and continue to strengthen American Jewish life and inspire your communities with your own unique vision and innovation. Invite people to begin again, wherever they are. View Full Remarks.

President Rehfeld then introduced the Ordination Speaker, Rabbi Meredith F. Kahan '13, Senior Rabbi at K.K. Bene Israel Rockdale Temple in Cincinnati. Rabbi Kahan gave a rousing sermon about the importance of "Cincinnati Torah."

The Torah of Cincinnati is innovative and rooted. It's creative and authentic. It cherishes tradition while recognizing the importance of transformation. … Our rituals are insistent that we always, always, begin again. Continue our learning, and find the strength to take up the next task.

The ordination ritual was conducted by Rabbi Richard Sarason '74, Ph.D., the Director of the Pines School of Graduate Studies, and Rabbi Edith E. Yakutis '23, the Rabbinic Program Manager on the Cincinnati campus. The four new rabbis are Jonathan Benzion, Mark Clayton Oppenheimer, Marisa Hillary Papell, and Jamie Belle Starr.

Congratulations were offered from many in the community. Edward J. Septimus, M.D., Member of the Hebrew Union Board of Governors and the Chair of the North America Board of Advisors, offered that:

Endings are never the end. When Moses stood on the edge of the Promised Land, he knew he would not cross into it. Yet our journey continued. Faith in Torah endures beyond place. You embody that faith. View Full Remarks.

Rabbi Rick Jacobs, President of the Union of Reform Judaism, gave his congratulations to the ordinees and declared that "we are counting on you."

Rabbi Lewis H. Kamrass, Senior Rabbi Emeritus of Isaac M. Wise Temple, offered a formal welcome to the Central Conference of American Rabbis, wishing each ordinee the

"enriched rabbinate that I have known within the CCAR, most especially, the rabbis from whom I learned so much, the colleagues I met who became treasured friends, and the abundant resources of liturgy and publishing that I enjoyed through the years." View Full Remarks.

Finally, Karen Sim, President of the Women of Reform Judaism, put faith in the ordinees on this "jubilant day" stating that "[y]ou are the stewards of our people and the guardians of our faith - we believe in you."

To close the ceremony, Rabbi Richard S. Sarason '74, Ph.D., offered a benediction.

We rejoice in you, my newest colleagues.  You are sorely needed in our tumultuous world.  Your task must be to inspire, to console, to teach, to lead, to accompany and above all to give hope: hope that sustains us through life's joys, trials and tribulations. View Full Remarks.