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Rabbi Dennis
C. Sasso
Dr. Dennis C. Sasso
has been the Rabbi of Congregation Beth-El Zedeck,
Indianapolis, Indiana since 1977. He is a native of the
Republic of Panama, and a descendant of Sephardic
(Spanish-Portuguese Jewish) families who settled in the
Caribbean during the 17th century.
Rabbi Sasso earned his
Bachelor of Arts degree at the Department of Near Eastern and
Judaic Studies of Brandeis University. He holds a Master of
Arts in Religion from Temple University, Philadelphia, and was
ordained as Rabbi by the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College
in Philadelphia. Rabbi Sasso has also studied at the Hebrew
University of Jerusalem and did his doctoral studies at Temple
University and at Christian Theological Seminary in
Indianapolis, Indiana, from where he obtained his Doctor of
Ministry degree. Rabbi Sasso is also the recipient of Doctor
of Divinity degrees, Honoris Causa, from the
Reconstructionist Rabbinical College (1999) and Christian
Theological Seminary (2000).
Rabbi Sasso is a
member of various scholarly and academic societies, and he has
served on numerous interfaith, civic and community boards and
agencies. Rabbi Sasso is Chairman of the Indianapolis Board of
Rabbis and Past-President of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical
Association. He is a Past-President of the Indiana
Interreligious Commission on Human Equality and was
Co-Chairman of the Race Relations Leadership Network of the
Greater Indianapolis Progress Committee. Rabbi Sasso also
served as Co-Chairman of the Citizens Complaint Working Group,
a committee appointed by the Mayor to review and make
recommendations to upgrade the Ordinance that regulates the
Civilian Police Review Process. He presently serves on the
Board of Directors of the Hispanic Center as well as of the
Jewish Federation of Greater Indianapolis.
Rabbi Sasso writes a
monthly column entitled "Focus on Faith" in the Op-Ed page of
the Sunday edition of The Indianapolis Star. He is a
member of the Publications Committee of the Rabbinical
Assembly and of the Advisory Board of The
Reconstructionist, a Journal of Contemporary Jewish
Thought and Practice.
Rabbi Sasso has
lectured nationally and abroad and has published scholarly and
popular articles on Caribbean Jewry, Reconstructionist
Judaism, the Jewish family, the life cycle, spirituality and
liturgy. He was decorated as a "Sagamore of the Wabash", a
distinguished citizen award presented by the Governor of the
State of Indiana. Rabbi Sasso is the recipient of the
"Community Service Award" from the NAACP and the "Fostering
Life" Award of the Indianapolis Chapter of Links in
recognition of his leadership in Interfaith and Interracial
relations.
Rabbi Dennis Sasso and
his wife, Rabbi Sandy Eisenberg Sasso, who also serves as
Rabbi of Congregation Beth-El Zedeck, are the first husband
and wife rabbinical couple in Jewish history. They are the
recipients of an award for the "Enrichment of Judaism, the
Family and the Rabbinate" from the B'nai B'rith Women's
Organization. The Sasso's are parents of David and Debora.
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