Rabbis of LA | Rabbi Aaronson’s Path to Tarzana

Some people find the place they want to live early in life and rarely stray far from home. Rabbi Joshua Aaronson’s career took a more circuitous route. Currently the rabbi of Temple Judea in Tarzana, Rabbi Aaronson has led congregations across the United States and around the world. Now in his early 60s, Rabbi Aaronson has been more in control of his career than many rabbis, going where he wanted when he wanted, not merely because there was an opening.

The Philadelphia native studied at the University of Michigan and Hebrew Union College in New York. His first job was at Temple Beth Zion in Buffalo, New York, where he met his wife, Debbie. A stint as senior rabbi at Fairmount Temple in Cleveland, Ohio, came next. After his time there, Rabbi Aaronson went looking for a new challenge. 

“We were a lot younger and we had very young kids,” he told the Journal.  “So my wife and I thought  I have this career where I can go any place I want. We said ‘if we are going to do it, let’s do it now and see what it is like living overseas.’ We looked at a few different opportunities.”

That opportunity was in Perth, Australia. Why Perth? “From my wife’s point of view,” the rabbi said with a chuckle, “they spoke English.” 

“We never had been to Australia,” Rabbi Aaronson said. “It seemed like a cool thing. It wasn’t all that thought out. You are young — I was in my late 30s — you have young kids, and you figure, what’s the worst that can happen? – if it doesn’t work out.”  And for the rabbi, Perth, “is Gan Eden. Gorgeous. The people are wonderful, as are Australians in general. The community was warm and welcoming. An amazing place to see how some other Jews live.” It was a new cultural experience. “People were extremely warm, welcoming,” the rabbi said. “It is beautiful. We also got to drink a lot of wine.”

There were some surprises. The Reform rabbi discovered that Reform/Progressive Judaism overseas is more conservative than Reform Judaism in the United States.  “That was a pretty big adjustment,” Aaronson said. 

“In Australia, I believe, and almost every non-American Progressive congregation, rabbis are forbidden to do interfaith marriages — regardless of what your preference may be.” That created challenges for Rabbi Aaronson, since his congregation had a sizable number of interfaith marriages.  He did not officiate at interfaith marriages in the early part of his career,  but “Australia made me reevaluate that,” he said. “When I returned and served in Park City, Utah, I did officiate at interfaith marriages, and I continue to do that.” 

After 11 years in Australia, the Aaronsons decided it was time to pack their bags and return to the United States, as he became the first permanent rabbi at Temple Har Shalom in Park City, Utah. 

What made Park City, located some 40 miles east of Salt Lake City and home to the Sundance Film Festival, so attractive was its modest size and newness. The seven-year-old  congregation of about 85 families met in an office building.  “That was refreshing,” said Aaronson, “because you did not have people who would say, ‘well, when my father was president …’ That was liberating. I had a wonderful opportunity to help a congregation establish its own traditions. This is not a chance you get a lot.”

At Har Shalom, he learned more about how to build community, about collaboration with partners, not only lay people but other institutional partners – and how to raise money. Aaronson employed his imagination more than before, becoming more entrepreneurial, more innovative. During his tenure at Har Shalom, the congregation tripled in size and moved into a new building. 

“You are kind of on your own there, which is both freeing and a little scary, he said. The experience, he said, was good training for Temple Judea.

“I don’t like Judaism to be a cult of personality. Judaism is a tradition that is anti-cult of personality.“

After 11 years in Park City, the rabbi was starting to feel antsy. “At what became the end of my tenure in Park City, in conjunction with my wife, I realized I really had done as much as I could,” Aaronson said. “I don’t like Judaism to be a cult of personality. Judaism is a tradition that is anti-cult of personality. The Park City synagogue had become focused around me and what I was doing. I felt I no longer could be as creative as I wanted to. Both of us would benefit if I moved on.”

When the Aaronsons were scouring the country for his next posting, they found an attractive community 700 miles west that was seven times larger than his Utah congregation.

“One thing that drew me to Judea and L.A.,” the rabbi said, “was that my wife and I hoped that it would be far more likely our kids would remain close rather than in Utah, which was unlikely.” The rabbi and his wife have three kids, each born in a different city, each graduating from different high schools.  Another factor, he said, was that Judea “has a wonderful reputation as a leader in social justice and social actions – something I always had been heavily involved in.” 

Speaking of family, the next simcha for the Aaronsons is only weeks away. Over the Memorial Day weekend, their son Harry will become the first of their children to marry.

As for the rabbi’s future, he says he will be retiring from Temple Judea, “but not for some years. My wife and my family have fallen in love with L.A.” 

Fast Takes with Joshua Aaronson

Jewish Journal: What is your favorite Jewish food?

Rabbi Aaronson: Chopped liver, brisket, rugelach, all kinds of things. 

JJ: Favorite place to travel?

Rabbi Aaronson: Hard to answer. We have traveled to more than 30 countries. Israel is a common destination for our family where we have spent extended times.

JJ: What is your favorite pastime? 

Rabbi Aaronson: Two. I play guitar occasionally here on Friday night. Left to my devices, I play blues.