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Home > Who We Are > Leadership

Ordained Leaders

Secular Humanistic Jewish Leadership

The International Institute for Secular Humanistic Judaism is the ONLY accredited institute for training and ordaining Secular Humanistic Jewish leadership:

  • Officiant Program - Secular Humanistic Jewish Officiants create and lead meaningful lifecycle event celebrations.
  • Leadership (Madrikh(a)/Vegvayzer) Program - Secular Humanistic Madrichim (Hebrew) / Vegvayzers (Yiddish), translated as "Guides," act as officiants, community guides, movement spokespeople, and educators.
  • Rabbinic Program - Secular Humanistic Rabbis act as Madrichim / Vegvayzers, counselors / mentors, and experts in Judaism.

Wait, can a rabbi even BE secular?

The short answer is: Yes!

The primary roles of a rabbi are to lead services, officiate lifecycle events, and provide philosophical / spiritual guidance with their vast knowledge of Jewish history, mythology and traditions. None of which require one to believe in a higher power!

By that same token, nothing about the philosophy of Secular Humanistic Judaism mandates the existence of formal Jewish clergy / leadership in our movement. We choose to train and ordain these leaders for our denomination to ensure that we can all participate in Jewish life more fully and authentically.

Request a SHJ Officiant for your lifecycle event!

Meet SJC's Madrikh: Jeff Treistman (he/him)

Jeff graduated from the International Institute for Secular Humanistic Judaism and was ordained a Madrikh (Hebrew) / Vegvayzer (Yiddish) (translates to "Guide") in 2024 after two years of intensive study. Madrichim / Vegvayzers can officiate most lifecycle events, including naming ceremonies, weddings and funerals.

Being a retired public school librarian, Jeff brings a commitment to education and a passion for self-discovery to his work in the SJC community. Naturally, this inclination led him to double as a teacher at our Sunday School, and a mentor in our Youth B Mitzvah Program.


In 2022, Jeff followed his passion for storytelling to found the Jewish Comics Library of Seattle (JCLS), a nonprofit charity dedicated to creating a low-stakes entrypoint into the diverse, modern Jewish experience by amplifying Jewish graphic narratives. Visit JCLS's pop-up library on every 2nd and 4th Friday of the month at the Couth Buzzard Bookstore!

Ask a Madrikh!

Your November Ask: Most Jews I know at my local Reform temple don’t believe in God, and nobody seems bothered by that. So why create a separate Secular Jewish community at all?

A very reasonable question! And yes — you’re absolutely right that plenty of Jews attend theistic services while personally feeling…let’s call it a "polite theological distance". There’s often an unspoken understanding of, “We’re all reciting this, but none of us are taking a divine attendance roll, right?”

And that works for a lot of people. Truly! In Secular Humanistic Judaism, we say: If you’re happy, nourished, and fulfilled where you are — fantastic. Stay! We are not actively recruiting like some mystical gym membership.

However, some of us feel most at home when we can say what we mean and mean what we say — out loud, in public, and in our ritual life, without winking across the sanctuary like, “We’re all just collectively pretending, right?” We’re not allergic to tradition, but we prefer our Judaism without the background hum of theological apology.

So why create our own communities? Because some people want:

  • Jewish ritual without explicitly supernatural language,
  • Jewish identity without theological footnoes, and
  • Jewish celebration with full sincerity.

Different Jews sometimes need different spaces. And the Jewish world is both big enough, and creative enough, for all of us.

In short: Go where your heart feels most at home. We’ll be over here singing the same melodies…but with the honesty turned all the way up.

— Jeff Treistman, Madrikh/Vegvayzer (Guide)

Read Past Asks!

Got a question for your friendly neighborhood Madrikh? Need spiritual or philosophic guidance? Ask away!

YOUR question may get featured on our upcoming YouTube Shorts series!

Mon, 1 December 2025