Rabbi Sherre Hirsch

Born in Dayton, Ohio and raised in Southern California, Rabbi Sherre Hirsch was a high school cheerleader and an accomplished college tennis player headed to medical school when, driven by a desire to deepen her understanding of her faith, she began studying at the Jewish Theological Seminary.

After a detour through Asia, where she studied eastern philosophy, Rabbi Hirsch was ordained in 1998. She spent the next 8 years as the first woman rabbi at Sinai Temple in Los Angeles, the largest Conservative synagogue in the western U.S. During her tenure at Sinai that Rabbi Hirsch first stepped out from behind the formal podium to move among the congregation, building a more personal relationship with her audience.

Since 2006 she has been sharing her intimate and friendly with people in all kinds of “pulpits,” from The Today Show to a small Baptist church in Alabama. She has served as regular guest on Naomi’s New Morning, The Tyra Banks Show and PBS’ Thirty Good Minutes. Widely known as the relationship rabbi, she is the go-to person for outlets as diverse as ABC News, Joan Hamburg, and Telepictures. Rabbi Hirsch also serves as the spiritual life consultant and lecturer for the Canyon Ranch Companies in Arizona and Massachusetts.

Her first book, We Plan, God Laughs: What to Do When Life Hits You Over the Head (Doubleday), was published in April 2008. The book reflects a theme in Hirsch’s own life and she expertly guides readers through a spiritual and introspective journey toward reaching their divine potential. Her second book will be published by Random House in Spring 2012.

Rabbi Hirsch spends her free time practicing yoga, baking brownies, and playing freeze dance with her husband and four children.