Tuesday, April 16, 2024 | 8 Nisan 5784

To the Beloved Beth Emet Community,

This year marks 14 years during which I have been privileged to serve as senior rabbi at our congregation and 24 years in which I have been a rabbi at Beth Emet. My years at Beth Emet have been extraordinary, but I have many other interests I wish to explore. Therefore, as I recently informed our lay leadership, I have decided to retire from Beth Emet at the end of June 2026. As is customary for long-serving senior rabbis, I am making this announcement two years in advance so that the congregation can think about what it needs for its future and conduct a search for a new rabbi.

When the position of associate rabbi at Beth Emet became available in late 1999, I applied immediately because I had long admired Beth Emet for its intellectual rigor, spiritual creativity, and commitment to tikkun olam. That was one of the best decisions I have ever made. I have come to know amazing people at our congregation, worked with gifted professionals and developed a deep love for the Beth Emet community. Together we have wrestled with Jewish tradition, reveled in its wisdom and rituals, and brought its teachings to bear on our lives. Beth Emet is where I raised my children and where my entire extended family found a Jewish home. 

I am honored that you have shared important moments in your lives with me, and I am grateful for the myriad ways in which you have challenged me, taught me, and inspired me to think deeply, lead with humility, and work with you to build a dynamic and caring community. I cannot imagine a more fulfilling rabbinate. 

I want to thank the Board of Trustees and our president, Lee Weintraub, for their support for my retirement decision and for their caring and thoughtful stewardship of this wonderful congregation. 

This is not goodbye. I will continue in my role as senior rabbi and be fully engaged in all aspects of congregational life for the next two years. I look forward to many more meaningful moments together and to helping in whatever ways I can to ensure the vitality of our spiritual home long into the future.

L’shalom,

Rabbi Andrea London

Dear Friends,

Speaking on behalf of the Board, we are very grateful for Rabbi London’s spiritual and ethical leadership and respect her decision to begin the next chapter of her life, in June of 2026. Last night the Board of Trustees voted unanimously to authorize a contract renewal consistent with that timeline.

Rabbi London is only the third Senior Rabbi in the nearly 75-year history of Beth Emet. She has ably and compassionately carried on the strong leadership tradition set by Rabbi Polish z”l and Rabbi Knobel z”l of blessed memory.

Rabbi London has had a tremendous impact on our congregation and the community at large so it would not do justice to try to enumerate that impact here. We will have ample opportunity to recognize and celebrate her over the next two years.

Over the coming months, the Board and I will begin assessing the needs of our congregation today and into the future. We will then recruit a search committee to identify candidates to serve as the fourth senior rabbi of our wonderful and beloved congregation. We will have much to discuss as we move forward and will provide regular updates.

I want to assure you that this timeline permits ample time to support this important transition. Rabbi London will continue her tenure as full-time senior rabbi and will be completely engaged in all aspects of congregational life through the end of June 2026. The Board will continue its regular work alongside the Klei Kodesh.  



For now, on behalf of the Board of Trustees, I want to thank Rabbi London for her leadership in supporting this important transition.

May we move from strength to strength. 

Lee Weintraub, President of the Board of Trustees

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