Charna

M.A. Comparative Religious Studies, Naropa University
Rabbinic Ordination, Jewish Renewal’s Aleph Ordination Program
 
My grandfather used to say, “The future of the world rests at the tip of the tongue.” That inspired me to imagine a world balanced by right speech and respectful treatment of one another. As an undergraduate, I studied psychology and communication theory to learn both how the mind works and how communication patterns bridge the intra-psychic and interpersonal. Bringing this foundation into body/mind engagement, I immersed myself in the healing arts by being mentored by medicine women, clergy, and master teachers in the development of human potential.
 
Working in massage and bodywork for 20 years, I also studied at the Hakomi Institute, the Matrix Leadership Institute, and the Right Use of Power™ Institute. Starting in 2000, I began studying religious and spiritual life. On receiving a master’s degree from Naropa University in comparative religious studies, I enrolled in the Aleph Rabbinic School. Bringing a deeply ecumenical approach to religion, I am looking for how our sacred texts can assist us in ethical decision-making in and for our complicated world.