Rabbi Jack Bieler - Our Founding Rabbi

Rabbi Yaakov Bieler was the founding rabbi of KMS and served as our Mara D'Atra until his retirement in 2015. Rabbi Bieler has published numerous articles on Jewish education and issues facing Judaism today, especially from the perspective of Modern Orthodoxy. His Divrei Torah, podcasts, articles and other writings can be found on his website "Rayanot Yaakov" and on his blog "Contemporary Explorations of Jewish Texts and Thinkers".

Rabbi Bieler was ordained by the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary and received an MA in Jewish Education from the Ferkauf Graduate School of Education in 1974. Following graduation from Yeshiva, Rabbi Bieler served on the faculty and was Chairman of the Talmud Department of the Joseph H. Lookstein Upper School of Ramaz from 1974-1988.

During his tenure at Ramaz, Rabbi Bieler concurrently served on the faculty of the Adult Education Institute of the Lincoln Square Synagogue between 1971-1977, and as permanent scholar-in-residence of Congregation Kehilath Jeshurun from 1977-1988. In 1985, he received a Jerusalem Fellows fellowship and spent the year with his family in Jerusalem. In 1988, Rabbi Bieler assumed the position of Lead Teacher and Chairman of the Judaic Studies Department at the Hebrew Academy of Greater Washington, now as Berman in Rockville, MD.  He served as the Upper School Assistant Principal in charge of Judaic Studies from 1991-2005.