About Rabbi Lazarus-Klein
Rabbi Alex Lazarus-Klein came to Buffalo in the Fall of 2008 to serve as the rabbi of Temple Sinai, now called Congregation Shir Shalom. He brings warmth, creativity, and compassion to the role of synagogue rabbi. A trained chaplain and gifted teacher, he is actively engaged in all aspects of communal life, from helping people with their everyday struggles, to intricate details of synagogue governance.
Rabbi Alex is a respected leader in the Buffalo area, serving on many local and national boards including: the Buffalo Board of Rabbis and Cantors, the Network of Religious Communities, Jewish Family Services, the Bureau of Jewish Education, Jewish Community Center, Hillel of Buffalo, the National Federation of Just Communities of Western New York, the Coalition of Economic Justice, and the Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association Board. He was president of the Network of Religious Communities from 2014-2016 and was awarded the Interfaith Community Leader Award by the NFJC in 2016 and the Judith and Daniel Kantor Professional Leadership Award by the Buffalo Jewish Federation in 2019. Between 2019-2021, Rabbi Alex was a member of the fourth cohort of the Clergy Leadership Incubator: Training Visionary Spiritual Leaders for the American Jewish Community sponsored by Hazon: The Jewish Lab for Sustainability. In addition to his work at Congregation Shir Shalom, he also serves as the rabbinic advisor for Jewish Community Relations Council of Western New York. Rabbi Alex works with leaders of all faiths, to improve the quality of life in Western New York and beyond.
A 2004 graduate of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College he also holds Masters and Bachelor Degrees from the Jewish Theological Seminary, as well as a Bachelor’s degree from Columbia University. Before coming to Buffalo he served as rabbi of Temple B´nai Abraham in Bordentown, New Jersey, and directed the Community Partnership Program for the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia.
Rabbi Alex is the author of three books of poetry, Looking Out an Airplane Window, Poetry Written While Walking Dogs, and Wildflowers & Fireflies, as well as the nonprofit management book, Going Above and Beyond: How Creating a Culture of Exceeding Expectations Allows Your Life and Your Business to Take Off (MD Press, 2022). He is a frequent contributor to the Buffalo News, and has published articles in ejewishphilanthropy.org, The Jewish Forward, and the The Times of Israel.
He currently resides in Amherst, with his wife Ashirah, and three children, Jarah, Boaz, and Noam.
Last Updated on 02/11/2024 by wpadm