Congregation Mickve Israel

Rabbi Robert Haas, a native of McAllen, Texas, is honored to join Congregation Mickve Israel as its 14th spiritual leader. He comes to Savannah after a year in Africa where he had the experience of providing intense volunteer service in Nairobi, Kenya through the American Jewish World Service. He has previously served as associate rabbi, both at Congregation Emanu El in Houston, TX and Temple Shalom in Dallas, TX. In each location, he gained invaluable experience through both his numerous rabbinic duties and a broad range of congregational and community activities.

Rabbi Haas' wide variety of experiences provides a versatile background for working with different groups both within the congregation and the Jewish and general communities. He began his first career as an elementary school teacher and taught for three years before beginning his training for the rabbinate. He has worked as a Jewish studies and Hebrew day school teacher, as a youth director for a number of NFTY and Young Judaea youth groups, as a camp staff member at three Jewish camps and has served as the assistant camp director at Camp Young Judaea in Texas. He has also volunteered as a hospital chaplain and served as Hillel Director at Occidental College. In addition to his work with youth, he has provided specific programming for a wide variety of age groups in the communities he has served. He organized young adult programming at both of his previous synagogues, served as the rabbinic liaison to the social action committees and worked extensively with the senior groups and organizations.

Within the Jewish community and the community at large, Rabbi Haas has served on various boards and has been a valued religious resource and contact person for the community. Because of his community involvement through Jewish-affiliated organizations while in Houston, Rabbi Haas was recognized for his hard work by being awarded the Jewish Federation's coveted Mae and Edmund Hecht Rabbinic Award for outstanding rabbinic service to the Jewish community.

Rabbi Haas is committed to personal education and growth. After receiving his BS from the University of Texas at Austin and working as a teacher in Houston, he spent a year studying in Israel through the World Union of Jewish Students. From there he attended Hebrew Union College, receiving his rabbinic ordination in 2002. He has since studied in Jerusalem at the PARDES Institute of Jewish Studies and Shalom Hartman Institute.

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