Talk Tomorrow on Transgender Issues in Judaism

The public is invited to a talk by Rabbi Elliot Kukla on the topic “Created Beings of Our Own: Transgender Issues in Judaism.” This event will take place tomorrow evening, Friday, June 24 during the 7:30pm Sabbath service in the East End Meeting House of the . There will be a question and answer session after the talk and an opportunity for further discussion at the reception following. All are welcome to this free and public talk.

Of the acronym "GLBT," standing for Gay, Lesbian, Bi-sexual and Transgender, the latter is the least familiar, the most mysterious. Transgender rights and education about transgender are truly the new frontier in gender diversity concerns. Reform Judaism has for many years been involved in GLBT issues and struggles for equality, including the movement to support legislature in Massachusetts for transgender equality.

Rabbi Kukla’s public talk at the Falmouth Jewish Congregation is part of an effort to help the community take further steps in increasing our understanding of transgender realities and struggles. As a transgender Reform rabbi, Kukla can open new pathways to understanding. Deeply connected to sacred texts, guided by his sensitivity to the power of healing, and motivated as an activist and educator by a striving for gender diversity and inclusion, Rabbi Kukla brings a unique perspective to an issue of concern to us all, regardless of faith background.

Rabbi Elliot Kukla is a staff rabbi at the Bay Area Jewish Healing Center in San Francisco. He trained in chaplaincy at the University of California at San Francisco (UCSF) Medical Center, specializing in mental health at Langley Porter Psychiatric Institute. Rabbi Kukla is also an activist, writer and educator. He has lectured and led workshops on diversity in sacred texts, spiritual care at the end of life and Jewish healing throughout Canada and the U.S. He is an active member of TransTorah (www.TransTorah.org) an organization that helps people of all genders to fully access and transform Jewish tradition, and helps Jewish communities to be welcoming sanctuaries for people of all genders.

Rabbi Kukla’s articles are published in numerous magazines and anthologized widely. He was ordained by Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in Los Angeles in 2006.  Before moving to San Francisco, Elliot served as the rabbi of the Danforth Jewish Circle in his hometown of Toronto, Canada.

The Falmouth Jewish Congregation is located at 7 Hatchville Road, East Falmouth and is accessible to individuals with disabilities. For further information, please call 508-540-0602 or visit the Falmouth Jewish Congregation’s website at www.falmouthjewish.org.