Rabbi Paul J. Citrin

Rabbi Paul J. Citrin has been privileged to lead congregations for thirty-six years. He has always viewed synagogue life as the arena for the intellectual and spiritual growth of the individual Jew, as well as being the predominant institution to guarantee flourishing Jewish life. He understands the synagogue as the place where Jewish values are learned and lived, and from which Jews contribute to the larger community and the world. The synagogue is a bastion of comfort and support for individuals even as it summons its members to work for justice and Tikkun Olam (repair and perfection of the world).

Rabbi Citrin sets a tone of acceptance and exploration in synagogue life. He encourages the recognition of the unique offering of each member, the appreciation of differences, and the requirement of mutual support. He challenges congregants to grow in Jewish knowledge and to apply what is learned to daily living. In his view, the synagogue must be a vital link in the chain of Jewish existence and peoplehood. This is expressed in our support for Jews in Israel and around the world.

A third generation Californian, Rabbi Citrin was born in Los Angeles in 1946. He graduated Alexander Hamilton High School, and was raised at Temple Emanuel (Reform). He attended U.C.L.A. where he received his Bachelor of Arts in history in 1968. He studied for his Master of Arts in Hebrew Letters and Ordination at the Hebrew Union College, Los Angeles and Cincinnati. He was ordained in 1973. In 1998, Rabbi Citrin was honored by H.U.C. with a doctor of Divinity degree for twenty-five years of rabbinic service.

Rabbi Citrin has served congregations in Boston, Albuquerque, Philadelphia, Palm Desert, and San Diego. He assumed the pulpit of Temple Beth-El of Las Cruces in 2008. He is a past president of the Pacific Association of Reform Rabbis and a past board member of the Central Conference of American Rabbis. He has served on the national board of the Association of Reform Zionists of America (ARZA). He was also on the Union of Reform Judaism’s Commission on Outreach.

In 1973, as part of the requirement for the Master of Arts in Hebrew Letters, Rabbi Citrin wrote a thesis entitled, ”The Arab in Hebrew Literature”. In 1987, he wrote a children’s novel on Jewish values and identity entitled: ”Joseph’s Wardrobe” (published by the Union of American Hebrew Congregations). The Central Conference of American Rabbis published his children’s High Holy Day prayer book, Gates of Repentance for Young People, co-authored with Judith Z. Abrams. Rabbi Citrin also headed the editorial team which produced Dr. Werner Weinberg’s anthology, Essays on Hebrew, published in 1995. Additionally, Rabbi Citrin has written a variety of articles on topics such as conversion, teaching Jewish history, Isaac as a model of reconciliation, and personal views of God.

Work in the larger community has been a significant part of Rabbi Citrin’s life. He was a co-founder of the Jewish-Catholic Dialogue of Albuquerque. He served on the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Multi-Cultural Committee in Albuquerque. Rabbi Citrin presently serves on two inter-faith boards in Las Cruces including N.M.S.U.’s campus ministries.

Rabbi Citrin is married to Susan Morrison Citrin. They have four children and seven grandchildren in California and New Mexico.