Rabbi Jeremy Barras

Jeremy Barras was ordained at Hebrew Union College–Jewish Institute of Religion in Cincinnati in 2002, where his rabbinical thesis traced the transformation from Temple and sacrifice to synagogue and prayer in late Second Commonwealth and early rabbinic literature. He holds a Master of Arts in Hebrew Letters from HUC-JIR, a Master's in Administrative Education with a specialization in Jewish Education from Xavier University, and a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations, with a minor in Religious Studies, from Connecticut College.

He began his rabbinate as an intern at The Valley Temple and a chaplain intern at Jewish Hospital, both in Cincinnati, before serving as Associate Rabbi at Temple Beth El in Charlotte, North Carolina from 2002 to 2007. In 2007 he became Rabbi of Temple Beth El in Fort Myers, Florida, where over eight years he grew the congregation from 195 to 330 households and helped turn an annual $100,000 deficit into a surplus. He introduced new family worship experiences, expanded Torah study and adult education, grew the religious school from 80 to 125 students, and co-founded the Lee County Interfaith Council.

Since 2015, he has served as Senior Rabbi of Temple Beth Am in Pinecrest, Florida, where the congregation has grown from 1,135 to 1,650 families. There he designed Beth Am University to redefine adult Jewish learning, and created Unbiased, engaging the congregation in interfaith work and countering antisemitism. The congregation recently celebrated ten years of his leadership with a gala, "Born to Lead."

At each pulpit, Rabbi Barras has been a builder — of programs, of institutions, and of coalitions. He is a longtime advocate for Israel, having led twelve trips there between 2002 and 2014, and serves on the National Council and in the Senate Club of AIPAC and on the National Board of ARZA, the Association of Reform Zionists of America. In the wake of October 7th, he founded Be'et Hazot, a coalition of 55 of the country's leading rabbis coordinating American Jewish leadership, which has met with the Israeli Ambassador to the United States and the Israeli Foreign Minister. He is a board member of the Central Conference of American Rabbis, currently serving as Vice President of Organizational Relationships, and was recently appointed President of the Rabbinic Association of Greater Miami, a role that also seats him on the board of the Greater Miami Jewish Federation. In August 2026, he convened the Historic Black Pastor and Rabbi Summit in Atlanta. He also teaches as an Adjunct Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Miami.

His civic involvement includes service on the board of the Harry Chapin Food Bank, where he is a past Executive Committee member, and as a founding member of Clergy vs. Alzheimer's and an advisory board member of the Dubin Alzheimer's Resource Center. His work has been recognized with the Association of Reform Zionists of America's Roland Gittelsohn Award, the Hebrew Union College Ferdinand Isserman Prize, and the Cele Singer Award for Outstanding Teaching.

He is the author of A Reason to Rise (Xlibris, 2023) and is at work on a second book, A Light in the Sandstorm. A new podcast featuring rabbis and other leaders of the American Jewish community launches in fall 2026.

Rabbi Barras lives in Pinecrest with his wife, Jodi Gant Barras, and their two children. He is a lifelong tennis player, competing collegiately at Connecticut College, and reads and writes in his spare time.