Joshua Venture Group

Bat Kol responds to educational, religious, and health care concerns within and beyond the Jewish community. Cross-cultural and interfaith coalition building is at the heart of Bat Kol’s philosophy. Repairing the world – tikkun olam – is contingent on people working and acting together. Bat Kol’s variety of projects and programs upholds the value and belief that we are all responsible for one another’s well-being.

Rabbis Rochelle Robins and Sarra Levine founded Bat Kol in 1995. Its initial project, Bat Kol: A Feminist House of Study, a yeshiva in Jerusalem (1997-2000), cultivated a pluralistic atmosphere of intergenerational, cross-cultural, and progressive Torah learning. Since 2000, Bat Kol’s focus has been U.S.-based, with its mission expanding into the realms of interfaith coalition building, social action, and health care education.

Bio
Rabbi Rochelle Robins is a graduate of Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion. She was trained in clinical pastoral education at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and has extensive experience as a pastoral care provider. She sees her rabbinate as an opportunity to assist people in becoming empowered individually and as a community through dynamic engagement with traditional text and thought. In 2001, Rabbi Robins was awarded a Joshua Venture Fellowship, recognizing her has one of the country’s leading Jewish social entrepreneurs. Currently, Rabbi Robins is working on Bat Kol projects and serving as a chaplain educator in San Diego, California.