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24

American female rabbi – and colonel – serves in Iraq, Afghanistan


From “Sisters in Battle: Maccabees of A Different Nature“:

Rabbi Bonnie Koppell is the first female rabbi commissioned to the U.S. Army, which she has served since she began at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in 1978. In 2005 she was promoted to the rank of colonel, again the first female rabbi to achieve that rank. Most recently, Rabbi Koppel was appointed Command Chaplain of the 63rd Regional Support Command.

In her three decades of service to the army Koppel has received many awards, including two Meritorious Service and two Army Commendation medals. In addition to her other life as a pulpit rabbi and mother, Koppel has served two tours of duty in Iraq and two more in Afghanistan. On the subject of the role of chaplains in war, Koppel wrote:

Chaplains are noncombatants – we do not carry weapons, we are not trained to fight. We are there to minister to the religious needs of the troops and, as such, we are an essential part of the military force. No one likes war, no one wants war. No one prays for peace with more fervor than the soldier who stands ready to lay down his or her life for our country.

Yet, I am not a pacifist; I believe that there are times when war is justified. War is always a horrible tragedy, but it is not necessarily immoral. I am proud to consider among my many identities as wife, as mother, as rabbi, as teacher, as friend, yet another – as an American soldier. God forbid the need should arise, our Jewish soldiers deserve to have rabbis who are trained and ready to deploy alongside them, to be there to offer all the support they will need. I am proud to be among those who stand ready to go with them.

With the start of Chanuka just a couple of weeks away, the entire article is worth reading.

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By Jill Miller Zimon at 11:37 am November 24th, 2009 in Gender, Jewish, Judaism, Military, leadership, war 

Comments

One Response to “American female rabbi – and colonel – serves in Iraq, Afghanistan”

  1. 1 Roland Hansen on December 13th, 2009 12:03 pm

    As an aside, I met Bonnie Koppel a few years ago when I was checking out shuls in thee Greater Phoenix area where I have a winter home.

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