Rabbi Sheila Peltz Weinberg served as a congregational rabbi for seventeen years and is well known as a teacher of mindfulness meditation to rabbis, Jewish professionals and lay people as a co-founder of the Institute for Jewish Spirituality. She's the author of several books , including Surprisingly Happy, God loves the Stranger and Let Us All Breathe Together, and has published widely on such topics as feminism, spiritual direction, parenting, social justice and mindfulness from a Jewish perspective.
Raised in New York by storekeeper parents, Sheila's story is that of a spiritual seeker growing up in the '50s and '60s. Sheila shares how her journey took her from the Peace Corps, to living in Israel, to attending rabbinical school, to serving as a pulpit rabbi and ultimately to co-founding the Institute of Jewish Spirituality. Not one to shy away from the rawness of life, Sheila opens up about her battle with addiction, her path to sobriety, and the priceless joy of finding her spiritual home.
"I really didn't have an external idea of success. I wasn't like an ambitious child or I don't think I've ever been ambitious or that I've even longed for (something). To me, success is only about values. It's only about holding up what is wholesome, what is loving, what is just, and healing the places of brokenness. That's the only thing I can think of as any success that I would want to participate in."- Rabbi Sheila Peltz Weinberg
Key takeaways:
- Hold onto your dreams, even when they are delayed. Sheila described a deep knowing that she was meant to become a rabbi. However, as a single mom, she needed to work and took a job working for Hillel on a college campus instead. Though it took six years from the time she decided to become a rabbi until she actually enrolled in rabbinical school, she eventually did it while continuing her work with Hillel part-time.
- When you need help, reach out and seek the help. Sheila had begun drinking to cope with the stress in her life. She recognized that her relationship with alcohol had gotten out of control. It had kept her together for a while until it stopped working. She started to go to AA meetings and found that an unexpected benefit was a completely renewed sense of spiritual life on a profound level.
- Be open to guidance from the universe. Sheila's friends from her women's circle told her about an opening for a rabbi in Amherst, Massachusetts. The head of the search committee of that synagogue pointed out to her that the Jewish community of Amherst is midway between two of the premier spiritual centers, Kripalu and Insight Meditation. To any other candidate, this information would have meant nothing. To Sheila, this information was fantastic and was the beginning of her journey to the next stage of her life, integrating Buddhist philosophy with Jewish practice.
About the guest:
Rabbi Sheila Peltz Weinberg served as a congregational rabbi for seventeen years. She has worked in the fields of Jewish community relations, Jewish education and Hillel. She has published widely on such topics as feminism, spiritual direction, parenting, social justice and mindfulness from a Jewish perspective and has contributed commentaries to Kol HaNeshama, the Reconstructionist prayer book.
Rabbi Weinberg has taught mindfulness meditation and yoga to rabbis, Jewish professionals and lay people in the context of the Institute for Jewish Spirituality. She serves as a spiritual director to a variety of Jewish clergy including students and faculty at HUC-JIR in New York. She is creator and co-leader of the Jewish Mindfulness Teacher Training Program. She is married to Maynard Seider and they have three married children and six grandchildren.
Know her more at: https://www.sheilapeltzweinberg.com/
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