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Alvin Kass, 87, Chief Chaplain of the New York City Police Department
Rabbi Alvin Kass, 87, the Chief Chaplain of the New York City Police Department, is the longest serving chaplain in the history of the NYPD. In his 57 years as a chaplain, he has counseled law enforcement officers of all faiths and won the right for Jewish police officers to observe various tenets of their religion, including not working on the Sabbath and major Jewish holidays. He is also spiritual director of the Shomrim Society, the organization of Jewish Police Officers. In April, he received New York University’s Eugene J. Keogh Award for Distinguished Public Service. Kass lives in Manhattan.
For the full list of this year’s “36ers” — which honors leaders, entrepreneurs and changemakers who are making a difference in New York’s Jewish community — click here.
How does one become a police chaplain?
I began my career as a chaplain in the U.S. Air Force, following my schooling at Columbia University where I received a BA and MA, a PHD from NYU and rabbinic ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary of America. I also hold a Doctor of Divinity degree from JTS. I am currently adjunct professor of philosophy at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice. I am the rabbi emeritus of the East Midwood Jewish Center in Brooklyn, where I served as senior rabbi for 36 years. My first pulpit in NY was at the Astoria Center of Israel in Long Island City.
Tell us about one of your proudest accomplishments.
I was among the first to respond after 9/11 and comforted the families of the 23 police officers who lost their lives on that occasion. I also conducted High Holy Day services at LaGuardia Airport for emergency workers who had come from all over the country to assist after the terrorist attacks.
Who is your New York Jewish hero?
Rabbi Robert Gordis, the late professor emeritus of bible and philosophy at JTS.
What’s a fun/surprising fact about you?
I am an avid jogger and swimmer.
How does your Jewish identity or experience influence your work?
I feel that one of my principal responsibilities is to strive for Jewish unity as well as the unity of all peoples. The bible says that all humanity began with a single person. That means all human beings are brothers and sisters. The main responsibility for a spiritual leader is to bring all people closer together, including those of your own faith. I feel particularly proud that the Shomrim Society embraces Jews of all backgrounds and points of view. The organization is a paragon of the unity that ought to bind all Jews together.
Was there a formative Jewish experience that influenced your life path?
The summers I spent as a teenager at Camp Ramah filled me with the drive to impart the beauty and profundity of Judaism to all people.
Do you have a favorite inspiring quote?
“If you only know one religion, you don’t know any.” — Ari Goldman
What is your favorite place to eat Jewish food in New York?
Jerusalem Steak House in Brooklyn
What is your favorite book about New York?
“The Chief” by Albert Seedman
In one sentence, what was your best experience as a Jewish New Yorker?
Joining in the Shomrim Society’s distribution of food packages to poor Jews on the Lower East Side
What are three spots in NYC that all Jewish New Yorkers should visit?
1. The Museum of Jewish Heritage
2. Jewish Children’s Museum
3. Center for Jewish History
Anything else you’d like us and our readers to know about you?
I am a proud father of three and grandfather of three. Until her death in 2017, I was married for 54 years to Miryom Kass, who taught music and mathematics at the Rabbi Harry Halpern Day School in Brooklyn. Additionally, I am an avid Yankees fan.
How can people follow you online?
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The post Alvin Kass, 87, Chief Chaplain of the New York City Police Department appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Lindsey Graham urges Israel not to strike Iranian oil depots even as he says he helped make war happen
(JTA) — Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina has called on Israel to rein in its attacks on Iranian oil infrastructure, marking a rare note of caution from a Republican lawmaker who has said he helped push the United States to join Israel in waging war against Iran.
In a post on X on Sunday, Graham praised Israel for its role in the war before adding that “there will be a day soon that the Iranian people will be in charge of their own fate, not the murderous ayatollah’s regime.”
“In that regard, please be cautious about what targets you select,” continued Graham. “Our goal is to liberate the Iranian people in a fashion that does not cripple their chance to start a new and better life when this regime collapses. The oil economy of Iran will be essential to that endeavor.”
Graham’s post linked to an Axios article that reported that the United States was alarmed by Israeli strikes over the weekend that targeted 30 Iranian fuel depots. On Monday, U.S. gas prices rose to their highest levels since 2024.
The warning from Graham, an ally of President Donald Trump and staunch supporter of Israel, comes days after the Republican hawk told the Wall Street Journal that he had played a key role in urging Trump to strike Iran.
Prior to the joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran, Graham made several trips to Israel where he met with members of the Mossad, Israel’s intelligence agency, as well as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu whom he said he coached on how to lobby Trump to strike Iran.
“They’ll tell me things our own government won’t tell me,” Graham told the newspaper.
On Monday, Graham also directed his criticism at Saudi Arabia’s decision to stay on the sidelines of the campaign against Iran.
“It is my understanding the Kingdom refuses to use their capable military as a part of an effort to end the barbaric and terrorist Iranian regime who has terrorized the region and killed 7 Americans,” wrote Graham in a post on X Monday. “Question – why should America do a defense agreement with a country like the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia that is unwilling to join a fight of mutual interest?”
The post Lindsey Graham urges Israel not to strike Iranian oil depots even as he says he helped make war happen appeared first on The Forward.
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Belgian officials investigating synagogue explosion as possible act of terrorism
(JTA) — Belgian officials are investigating an explosion in front of a synagogue in Liège early Monday as a possible act of terrorism.
The explosion, which took place at 4 a.m., damaged the door of the historic neo-Romanesque synagogue and blew out the windows of multiple buildings across the street. No injuries were reported.
A range of Belgian politicians, including the prime minister and the mayor of Liège, characterized the explosion as act of antisemitism.
“Antisemitism is an attack on our values and our society, and we must fight it unequivocally,” Prime Minister Bart de Wever said in a statement. “We stand in solidarity with the Jewish community in Liege and across the country.”
The explosion comes amid a surge of concern about possible attacks by agents associated with the Iranian regime, against which the United States and Israel launched a war last week. Iran has a long record of supporting attacks on Jewish targets abroad, including two bombings in the 1990s in Argentina that killed more than 100 people at the Israeli embassy and a Jewish community center. Now, with Iran being pummeled at home, watchdogs are warning that it might lash out through its Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force, responsible for attacks abroad.
Azerbaijan said Friday that it had foiled multiple terror attacks planned by Iranian agents on Jewish sites. In London, four men were arrested last week for allegedly spying on the Jewish community for Iran, with the intent of planning attacks against the community. And a string of shootings at synagogues in Toronto has ignited concern in Canada, too.
Iranian agents have taken aim at non-Jewish targets, too. On Friday, a Pakistani man who prosecutors said had been directed by Iran’s IRGC was convicted of plotting to assassinate President Donald Trump.
The attack in Liège, in the primarily French-speaking Wallonia province, comes amid a range of recent developments that have unsettled Belgian Jews, who number approximately 30,000. They include antisemitic carnival caricatures in the city of Aalst; a ban on ritual slaughter preventing the local production of kosher meat; and an ongoing row between U.S. and Belgian officials over Jewish circumcision practices. The attack also follows a 2014 shooting in which a gunman associated with the Islamic State, a rival to Iran’s Islamic Republic, shot four people to death at the Jewish Museum in Brussels.
A spokesperson for the Liège police described the effects to the area as “only material damage” to the 1899 building. Rabbi Joshua Nejman told local media that he was hoping that security footage would reveal the perpetrator.
“I’m going to try to calm my heart, because it is beating faster and faster this morning,” said Nejman, who said he had been at the synagogue for 25 years.
“Liege is home to a very small but vibrant Jewish community where I personally grew up,” Eitan Bergman, vice president of the Coordinating Committee of Jewish Organisations in Belgium, told Reuters. “Today, the feelings among our community members are a mixture of sadness, worry and profound shock.”
Liege’s mayor, Willy Demeyer, praised the synagogue community to RBTF, Belgium’s French-language national broadcaster. He added, “We cannot allow foreign conflicts to be imported into our city.”
The post Belgian officials investigating synagogue explosion as possible act of terrorism appeared first on The Forward.
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The Top 100 People Positively Influencing Jewish Life, 2025
In honor of The Algemeiner‘s 12th annual gala, we are proud to present our “J100” list — 100 individuals who have positively influenced Jewish life over the past year.