Who We Are

Religious Leaders

    - Rabbi Ronald Roth
    - Cantor Eric L. Wasser

Rabbi Ronald Roth was born in Far Rockaway, Queens and spent his childhood in Brooklyn, New York. He graduated from Cornell University with a BA in theatre arts. While he grew up in a non-observant home, he was greatly influenced by the Cornell Hillel Rabbi, Morris Goldfarb, as well as the Rabbi of the Town and Village Synagogue in Manhattan, Stephen Lerner. He decided to attend the Rabbinical School at the Jewish Theological Seminary, where he received an M. A. in Rabbinics and Rabbinic Ordination. After graduation from JTS he served Beth El Synagogue in East Windsor, New Jersey for seven years and then left for a larger congregation, the West End Synagogue in Nashville, Tennessee. In 2007 he was chosen to become the Rabbi of the Fair Lawn Jewish Center/Congregation B’nai Israel.

At the Fair Lawn Jewish Center/Congregation B’nai Israel he has emphasized outreach, teaching a class for those who want to know more about Judaism called “Explore Judaism” and arranging for the Rabbinical Assembly’s intensive “Introduction to Judaism” class to meet at the congregation. He has helped to create a Keruv Committee that is working to make the congregation more open to intermarried Jews. He was the only Rabbi in Northern New Jersey to teach the Mitzvah Initiative class, a special program established by the Chancellor of the Jewish Theological Seminary, Dr. Arnold Eisen. He led a congregational trip to Israel that included a bar/bat mitzvah ceremony for several students in Jerusalem. He has worked closely with the Social Action Committee to strengthen several of its projects. He has a special interest in Adult Education and Family Education. In addition to offering a number of adult education courses, he continues to teach his popular weekly class, “Nosh and Knowledge” each Tuesday. He enjoys interacting with and telling stories to the students in our Shirley and Paul Pintel Nursery School and teaching classes in the Howard and Joshua Herman Education Center, our Religious School. Rabbi Roth has been actively involved in the community. He is a member of the West Bergen Ministers Association and arranged for the Fair Lawn Jewish Center/Congregation B’nai Israel to host for the annual Community Interfaith Thanksgiving service. He is the treasurer of the North Jersey Rabbinical Assembly, and a member of the North Jersey Board of Rabbis.

In Nashville Rabbi Roth sought to strengthen the connection of his congregants to Jewish life. Among his accomplishments was the realization of a vision he had for a dynamic, participatory Friday night service. To spearhead that effort he created a CD with the Friday night service with the help of talented congregants—many from Nashville’s music business. He brought to the synagogue many projects that the Conservative Movement spearheaded, such as “Make A Lulav Shake,” “Sneak to Synagogue,” and the Keruv Program to welcome intermarried Jews to the congregation. He encouraged his congregants to send their children to Camp Ramah, with the number of campers going from none to forty-two campers and staff during his tenure. Rabbi Roth has led two synagogue tours to Israel and was one of five Rabbis who toured Israel in the fall of 2006 with five evangelical ministers.

Rabbi Roth is a past president of the Nashville Association of Rabbis, Priests, and Ministers, and served on the boards of the Jewish Federation of Nashville and Middle Tennessee and the Southeast Region of the Anti-Defamation League. He has been the President of the Nashville Board of Rabbis, and served a term on the Joint Placement Commission of the Conservative Movement. Rabbi Roth was one of the first Conservative Rabbis chosen to mentor neophyte rabbis. He received an honorary doctorate from the Jewish Theological Seminary in 2005.

Rabbi Roth has been involved in the greater Nashville community as well. He served on the board of the city’s Family and Children’s Service, and has been on the board of the local chapter of the National Conference for Community and Justice (formerly known as the National Conference of Christians and Jews). He was a member of the esteemed Leadership Nashville program, class of 1994-1995; since then, he has planned the program’s “Diversity Day” each year. He recently taught a semester-long course on Jewish Liturgy at the Vanderbilt University Divinity School, and was a consultant for a series of social studies textbooks for Macmillan McGraw Hill. Nashville Life magazine chose him as one of the 100 Coolest People in Nashville in 1997, and in 2003 he was one of fifteen Nashville clergy chosen to meet with President Bush.

One of his hobbies is photography and he took many of the photos on this web site. He is married to Rhonda Cass Roth and they are the parents of two children, Gabriel, 28, and Deena, 23.

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Cantor Eric L. Wasser is an experienced Hazzan and master educator who, before arriving in Fair Lawn at the FLJC/CBI served a singular congregation for over fifteen years. He is presently thrilled to be completing his fifth year with his new extended FLJC/CBI family!

Throughout his Cantorial career, Wasser has functioned as a dynamic leader in his community, attracting numerous young families to synagogue life while adding vibrancy and genuine ruach to not only his shul but his entire surrounding Jewish neighborhood.

Wasser prides himself on his versatility and has served congregational life not only as Hazzan but also as choral director of adults and youth, tutor of local Hazzanim, pastoral force, Mashgiach, certified Mohel and magnetic spiritual leader. He was chosen one of the top Jews in Chicago by the Jewish Federation in the fall of 2000.

In his past role as president of the Midwest region of the Cantors Assembly, he is proud to have opened musically and humorously at the Chicago Theatre for both Bill Cosby and Dennis Miller. Today he proudly serves his collegial community as an active member of the CA Placement Committee.

Furthermore, Hazzan Wasser has been invited to lead both national and regional seminars teaching synagogue officers to become competent Shlichei Tzibbur for both weekday and Shabbat services via the Baal Tefilla program. Locally, he continues to challenge members of his congregation to increase their skill sets and fluency in worship skills by training them to take a more active role as lay prayer leaders.

Wasser is a master Torah reader who remains committed to the perpetuation of the traditions of Taamei HaMikrah. Throughout services he advocates traditional Nusachot and well paced davening and enjoys keeping congregants “on their toes” by incorporating new niggunim and melodies in both the Shacharit and Musaf services. His unique style of cantorial leadership is truly engaging and brings hundreds of visitors to the shul community to celebrate both Simchat Torah and Purim services!

Significantly, Wasser is doctoral fellow at the William Davidson School of Education at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America and is pursuing an EdD the field of philosophy of Jewish education. His academic work today focuses on transformative ritology and his dissertation proposal has received excellent feedback from practitioners in the fields of education and ritual studies.

Wasser is most proud of his family which includes Rachel (his wife of twenty one years, God help her), and his three daughters, Danya (16), Leor (14) and Nava (10).

He continues to be thrilled to be part of the transformation and innovation at the FLJC and he is more than thrilled to make your acquaintance and have you join him for Shabbat or Holidays.