Lee Bycel

Lee Bycel is an American Reform rabbi, rabbinic educator and social activist. He served as dean of the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion[1] in Los Angeles for 15 years,[2] as western regional executive director of American Jewish World Service,[3] and, in 2017, retired from Congregation Beth Shalom of the Napa Valley.[2][4] He is an adjunct professor of Jewish Studies & Social Justice with the Swig Program in Jewish Studies and Social Justice at the University of San Francisco. [5]

Rabbi Lee Bycel

Early life and education

Bycel grew up in Huntington Park, California. Bycel spent his 1977 honeymoon with his wife Judy in the Soviet Union opposing discrimination against Soviet Jews .[3] They now have two "adult" sons and three grandchildren.[6]

Bycel received a B.A. in Philosophy from the University of California at Berkeley, was ordained as a rabbi at the Hebrew Union College, and received a doctorate from the Claremont School of Theology.[5]

Humanitarian work and activism

Bycel has done humanitarian work in Chad and Darfur.[5] With the International Medical Corps, he has led relief trips to Kenya, Rwanda and Sudan,[3] and has also done relief work in Haiti and Ethiopia.[5] Bycel traveled extensively to mobilize support for the people of Darfur.[7]

He served as president of the Human Rights Commission of Los Angeles County.[8]

Honors

He has received the Humanitarian Award of the National Conference for Community and Justice.[9]

On November 7, 2014, he received an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters decree from Hebrew Union College - Jewish Institute of Religion.[6] The degree was presented by chancellor David Ellenson of the college, at the dedication of the new synagogue building for Congregation Beth Shalom of the Napa Valley, and that congregation's 60th anniversary celebration.

Congregational work

Executive and board service

Bycel has served on the board of MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger and as president of the Brandeis-Bardin Institute.[11] He served as executive director of the Redford Center,[12] founded by Robert Redford “to collaborate in cultivating creative, action-based solutions to some of today’s most compelling civic, environmental and social challenges.” [13][14] Along with Redford and Teri Heyman, he was an executive producer of the documentary film Watershed: Exploring a New Water Ethic for the New West, about western water issues.[15]

He is a senior moderator at the Aspen Institute,[5][9] and operates a consulting business called CedarStreet Leadership.[5]

On April 10, 2014, President Barack Obama announced his intention to nominate Bycel as a member of the United States Holocaust Memorial Council.[16] He now serves on the council's Committee of Conscience.[6]

References
  1. Pearl, Lesley (November 24, 1995). "Why be Jewish? Jews and non-Jews seeking answers". Northern California Jewish Bulletin. San Francisco. Retrieved February 28, 2014.
  2. "Congregation Beth Shalom welcomes Rabbi Lee Bycel as new Rabbinic Leader". Napa Valley Register. March 2, 2012. Retrieved February 28, 2014.
  3. Palevsky, Stacey (June 22, 2007). "Activist rabbi returns to Bay Area with AJWS". Jweekly. San Francisco. Retrieved February 28, 2014.
  4. Pine, Dan (March 22, 2012). "Napa synagogue picks rabbi with passion for social issues". Jweekly. San Francisco. Retrieved February 28, 2014.
  5. "Lee Bycel: Adjunct Professor". Jewish Studies & Social Justice. University of San Francisco. Archived from the original on 2014-03-01. Retrieved February 28, 2014.
  6. Rabbi Bycel receives honorary doctorate, Napa Valley Register, November 6, 2014
  7. Forgey, Pat (October 7, 2006). "Rabbi speaks out on African genocide". Juneau Empire. Retrieved February 28, 2014.
  8. "County Offers Hot Line for Reporting Conflict Situations". Los Angeles Times. October 13, 1995. Retrieved March 1, 2014.
  9. "Seminar Moderator Lee T. Bycel". Seminars. Aspen Institute. 2014. Archived from the original on 2009-07-26. Retrieved February 28, 2014.
  10. "Get to Know Us". Anshe Chesed Fairmount Temple. 2014. Retrieved March 1, 2014.
  11. "Mazon Pledges Funds to Sudan". The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles. September 16, 2004. Retrieved February 28, 2014.
  12. Quinn, Michelle (February 10, 2010). "Redford Honors Activism at Berkeley Center". New York Times. Retrieved March 2, 2014.
  13. Palevsky, Stacey (April 30, 2009). "Local rabbi joins Robert Redford's newest initiative". Jweekly. San Francisco. Retrieved February 28, 2014.
  14. "Credo: Redford Center director Lee Bycel". San Francisco Examiner. December 6, 2009. Retrieved February 28, 2014.
  15. "WATERSHED: EXPLORING A NEW WATER ETHIC FOR THE NEW WEST (USA, 2012, 50 min.)". Environmental Film Festival in the Nation's Capital. 2014. Retrieved February 28, 2014.
  16. White House Press Secretary (April 10, 2014). "President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts". Office of the Press Secretary. White House.
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