Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb is Executive Vice President, Emeritus of the Orthodox Union, following more than seven years as Executive Vice President. In that role, he combined the skills of pulpit rabbi, scholar, and clinical psychologist to provide extraordinary leadership to the organization and to Orthodox Judaism worldwide. Rabbi Weinreb received his rabbinic ordination in 1962 from the Rabbi Jacob Joseph Yeshiva in New York and served as spiritual leader of Congregation Shomrei Emunah in Baltimore for 13 years, building the congregation from 160 to more than 400 families before coming to the OU. In addition, he has a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Maryland and served as a psychotherapist for mental health organizations for many years while also maintaining a private practice. His positions included roles as school psychologist for Prince George’s County Public Schools in Maryland and as Chief Psychologist of the Potomac Foundation for Mental Health. As Executive Vice President, Rabbi Weinreb built the Orthodox Union to an unparalleled degree of esteem. He traveled widely, visiting communities and congregations across North America, in addition to his frequent trips to Europe and Israel. In these travels, he frequently served as scholar-in-residence, including some of his most enjoyable assignments, guiding NCSY summer touring groups. Now, with more time to write, Rabbi Weinreb has authored The Person in the Parsha: Discovering the Human Element in the Weekly Torah Portion, based on his popular weekly Person in the Parsha Torah commentary, in which he combines his background as a trained psychologist and a rabbinical scholar to provide insights into the parsha that would be available from no other source. For more than two decades, he has presented his annual Tisha B’Av shiur, webcast around the world on ou.org and reaching an audience of thousands. Many people use the new Koren Mesorat HaRav Kinot, the complete Tisha B’Av service, with an exquisite new English translation of the Kinot, the elegies of the fast day, by Rabbi Weinreb. Rabbi Weinreb is also the editor-in-chief of the new Koren Talmud Bavli, and has authored a commentary to Sefer Tehilim, called The Rohr Family Edition of Tehilim; also published by Koren. Rabbi Weinreb continues to travel extensively, and to write essays and commentaries for a wide variety of resources.
Rabbi Weinreb regrets an error he made in the Tisha B’Av 2011 presentation. He spoke of Eyal Noked, z”l, who died of a tragic illness, but was not the victim of terrorism. The victim of whom Rabbi Weinreb spoke should correctly be identified as Ben-Yosef Livnat, who was murdered while visiting Kever Yosef, Hy”d. There’s […]
The Holocaust was radically different than any tragedy before it. Does it warrant its own day of mourning or should it be mourned on Tisha B’Av?
Let’s Open Our Sefarim This Yom Yerushalayim Yom Yerushalayim Community Event with a shiur by Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb and introduction by Rabbi Josh Blass. Recorded at Kehillas Bais Yehudah, Wesley Hills, New York. There are 3 dimensions to Yerushalayim & human existence as a whole– space, time, and soul. Rabbi Weinreb examines […]
One dimension of the destruction of the Bet HaMikdash is the person-to-person dimension. Tisha B’Av represents discord between Jews. It is this dimension that we can fix today! Presented by Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb.
One of the themes of Tisha B’Av kinot is that the Torah was also taken away from us. No longer does Torah, nor the wisdom of the sages emanate from Zion. Presented by Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb as part of “Lamenting Our Loss: OU Tisha B’Av Video 5770”. Listen to the audio version here
“I am the Man Who has Known Affliction”: Chapter 3 of Eicha differs from the rest of the megillah in many ways; it is Jeremiah’s eyewitness account of the churban. It’s not a report, he was there! Recorded at Young Israel of Woodmere on Thursday, July 20, 2010 as a live webcast by the Orthodox Union. […]
“Evil, Our Enemy” – Tisha B’Av Kinot presented by Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb. Recorded as a live webcast on July 30, 2009 by the Orthodox Union at Young Israel of Woodmere in Woodmere, NY. In his introduction Rabbi Weinreb quotes the Maharal. He says that redemption cannot come from falsehood; only from pure unadulterated […]
Rabbi Weinreb redeems from anonymity heroes and victims of a variety of Jewish catastrophes including the Temple destructions, Pogroms of 1648-49, French Revolution and Napoleonic wars, and the Shoah. Focusing on various aspects of the soul with song, poetry and explanations of the Kinot, he also tells stories of very “soulful” men and women from […]
The Tragedy of Failed Leadership: Every leader, however great, has had an area of failure. Sometimes the fault was theirs; sometimes the nation’s. Tisha Bav Kinot with introductions and explanations presented by Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb. Recorded at OU World Headquarters NY, NY 2007 as a live webcast by the Orthodox Union.
Based on a verse in Isaiah chapter 40, the Midrash says that the Jewish people sinned double, suffered double, and are comforted double. What is the significance of the double motif? Recorded at Congregation Rinat Yisrael of Teaneck, NJ on Thursday, August 3, 2006 as a live webcast by the Orthodox Union.
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Orthodox Union