Joshua Heller
Senior Rabbi
Rabbi Joshua Z. Heller has served as a rabbi of Congregation B’nai Torah since July 2004, and with the congregation’s growth, became the Senior Rabbi in 2009. He is known for his skills as an inspiring preacher and teacher, his sense of humor (including “high holiday sermon bingo”) and his dedication to Jews in need.
In addition to serving as spiritual leader for our congregation, Rabbi Heller is acknowledged as a leader in the Rabbinic Community. He has served as President of the Atlanta Rabbinical Association, Founding President of MACOM, the Metro Atlanta Community Mikvah, and has served on the boards of the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta and Jewish Family and Career Services. Within the Rabbinical Assembly of the Conservative Movement, he has served on the Executive Committee as Vice President of its Southeast Region, co-chaired the Atlanta convention, and has served on the Rabbinic Cabinet of the Jewish Theological Seminary,
Rabbi Heller has also developed a reputation as an expert in Jewish law and practice. He is member of the Committee on Jewish Law and Standards of the Rabbinical Assembly and serves as chair of its rights and rituals sub-committee. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he wrote key guidance on streaming and remote services. He is one of the lead editors on the new Conservative Clergy manual, currently in preparation. In addition, he consults with communities around the country on topics related to construction and maintenance of Mikvaot and Eruvin. Though he does not have a steady enough hand to be a mohel, he is one of the instructors for the Conservative Movement's "Brit Kodesh" mohel training program.
Rabbi Heller grew up in New Jersey, and graduated Magna Cum Laude from Harvard with a degree in Computer Science. He published original research in the Journal for Computational Neuroscience, but then turned down offers from Silicon Valley to become a ninth generation rabbi, and the third generation in his family to be ordained at the Jewish Theological Seminary (JTS).
Before coming to Atlanta, Rabbi Heller served as Director of Distance Learning and Educational Technology at JTS, bringing Jewish learning to over 20,000 people each week on levels ranging from casual adult learning to Masters’ level courses, and he helped develop online resources. Rabbi Heller supervised a number of initiatives within JTS to apply technology in training rabbis, cantors and other Jewish educators and professionals. During the period after 9/11, he also served as the rabbi of the Downtown Synagogue- one of the synagogues closest to the site of the World Trade Center.
Rabbi Heller and his wife, Wendy, have 2 sons and a daughter. In his spare time, Rabbi Heller enjoys spending time with family, playing word and math games and is a fan of pop culture and science fiction.
CONTACT
Rabbi Heller: 404-257-0537 or rabbi@bnaitorah.org
Hillel Konigsburg
Rabbi & Director of Lifelong Learning
Hillel Konigsburg grew up in Hollywood, Florida. His father is a Conservative Rabbi, and his mother is a Jewish Educator. Therefore, it wasn’t a stretch that Hillel attended a Jewish Day School K-12, as well as many USY and Ramah programs. Wanting to continue his Jewish Education, Hillel decided to go to Albert A. List College, the joint undergraduate program between JTS and Columbia University. Hillel received his BA in Sociology from Columbia and a BA in Jewish History from JTS. During his sociology classes at List, Hillel recognized how his Jewish experience had been shaped by sociological questions about religion and ritual and decided to attend Rabbinical School at JTS while working towards a MA in Jewish Education. The guiding questions of Hillel’s rabbinate are “What turns people on and off from Judaism?” and “How can Jewish leaders teach Judaism in ways that are appropriate for the modern experience?”
Generally, Hillel enjoys making people smile and learn new things. Along with his wife, he likes jogging, hiking, museums, playing board games and solving puzzles. Additionally, Hillel is an avid Sci-Fi and Fantasy fan. Other favorite topics of discussion are Jewish education and the role of Judaism in people’s lives. In addition to discussing education at large, Hillel likes to discuss sociology and astronomy.
Hillel and his wife, feel lucky to be a part of this supportive and caring community. Along with their children, they enjoy praying, celebrating and rolling toy cars on the floor together with the B’nai Torah congregation.
CONTACT
Rabbi Konigsburg: 404-257-0537 or rabbik@bnaitorah.org
Elizabeth Breit
Rabbi for Engagement
Rabbi Elizabeth Breit is an enthusiastic and thoughtful student and teacher of torah. She is passionate about helping people build confidence in themselves and a sense of empowerment and belonging in community.
Before coming to B’nai Torah, she was the solo Rabbi of Eitz Chaim, a small shul in Monroe, NY and a rabbinic fellow at the Yale Hillel. Before entering her career as a rabbi, she worked as a chaplain for several years in a variety of contexts – hospital, homeless shelter, and prison system – as well as a mediator in small claims court in South Boston and lower school teacher in Brooklyn. She also worked for years leading active travel trip around the world, guiding hundreds of people hiking or biking around Europe, Central America, and Israel. Each role grew her love of languages, stories, and people.
In the summers she has created and run outdoor adventure trips and mountain bike programming for Ramah Outdoor Adventure in Colorado and Camp Solomon Schechter in Washington state. Elizabeth was ordained by the Jewish Theological Seminary in 2022 and has a Masters of Divinity in Judaism from Harvard Divinity School and a BA in Religious Studies from Yale.
CONTACT
Rabbi Breit: 404-257-0537 or rabbibreit@bnaitorah.org