Miriam Berkowitz

Miriam C. Berkowitz is a Conservative rabbi, chaplain, educator and writer.

Born in Montreal, she graduated from Harvard University with a BA in International Relations and received ordination from the Schechter Institute of Jewish Studies, Jerusalem.

For three years she was Assistant Rabbi at Park Avenue Synagogue. She was then an adult educator in Boca Raton, Florida for Melton Graduates and the Hebrew College of Boston's Palm Beach satellite M.A. program. She currently lives in Jerusalem, Israel where she founded Kashouvot with Rabbi Valerie Stessin in 2010 to mentor and employ chaplains (spiritual caregivers) in Israel. Miriam directed Kashouvot until 2019 when she began teaching pastoral care for the University of Theology and Spirituality. She also mentors NY based Spiritual Care Association's affiliate chaplains worldwide, seeking to gain recognition for the field and improve standards of training and care. She recently joined the team at Keshet Educational Journeys which creates meaningful trips of Jewish interests in Israel, Europe and the rest of the Middle East.

She is the author of Taking the Plunge: A Practical and Spiritual Guide to the Mikveh, which offers a comprehensive discussion of contemporary issues and new mikveh uses along with traditional reasons for observance, details of how to prepare and what to expect, and how the laws developed. She has also written a number of articles on Judaism and Pastoral Care and several responsa for the Committee on Jewish Law and Standards. She is regarded as an expert on the Mikveh within Conservative Judaism and hopes to work with colleagues across the religious spectrum to build a community mikveh in Jerusalem.

Miriam also does bat and bar mitzvah ceremonies and weddings for Israelis and visitors in Israel. She offers scholar in residence lectures on spirituality, creating a bikur holim team, Jewish art, women in the Bible, transitions and midrash.