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Rabbis ordained for first time in 70 years

June 3, 2009 15:11

By

sharronlivingston

1 min read

For the first time in seven decades, two Orthodox rabbis were ordained in Germany.

The ceremony, which was broadcast live on television, is seen as further evidence of the return of Jewish life to Germany – and in particular, of Orthodoxy, which has revived at a far slower pace than the other denominations.

The new rabbis, Zsolt Balla, 30, and Avraham Radbill, 25, were both born behind the former "Iron Curtain" and emigrated to Germany as part of the post-unification influx of former Soviet Jews. Both were introduced to Jewish studies through Lauder foundation programs.

Radbill will take up a position in Cologne . Balla will lead outreach programs for the Lauder Yeshurun in Berlin and work as a "weekend rabbi" in Leipzig . He was unaware that he was Jewish until he was nine-years-old, but his mother told him the truth after he asked about attending a Christian Bible school in his native Budapest .