OUR RABBI AND STAFF
rabbi noach lawrence
EMAIL: rabbinoach@bethshalom-bjc.org
Rabbi Noach Lawrence is grateful and honored to serve as the rabbi of Congregation Beth Shalom of Bloomington, the hometown of Indiana University. He is passionate about helping each person find their place in Jewish life, from b’nei mitzvah and confirmation students to conversion students and all seekers. He accompanies families in their moments of pure joy and deep sorrow, and is devoted to ensuring that we all walk our journeys in togetherness.
Rabbi Noach has developed creative, renewing prayerful experiences that fuse classic liturgy with modern Jewish writers and songwriters, incorporate discussion, and unearth mindfulness in traditional Jewish texts. His innovative adult study classes include Crisis of Justice: Israel’s Supreme Court and its Ethics of Power, blending his passion for Talmudic teachings with his first career in law and politics, including his work at the Israeli Supreme Court. He also teaches New Song • Shir Chadash: Modern Jewish Song Lyrics, exploring how artists like Leonard Cohen and Regina Spektor inherit Jewish texts and give them modern, personal twists.
Previously, he served Temple Isaiah in the Bay Area as Assistant Rabbi for two years, and served Congregation Kol Ami in White Plains, NY for three years as a rabbinic intern. In his first career in law and politics, Rabbi Noach worked at the US Senate, the Israeli Knesset, the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, and the UN International Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague, all of which inform his rabbinic work. In the Bay Area, he represented Judaism's voice as a board member of Hope Solutions, an interfaith nonprofit that strives to remedy homelessness.
Rabbi Noach's writing can be found in CNN Opinion, Newsweek, The Times of Israel, and the interfaith online publication Patheos. He was a member of the Shalom Hartman Institute's Rodan Family Fellowship for East Bay Jewish Communal Professionals in 2022-23.
Rabbi Noach grew up in the Boston area, and cherishes his bike rides down the path that was originally Paul Revere’s ride. He received his BA with distinction from Yale, his JD from NYU School of Law, and ordination from the New York campus of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. He is married to Katie, a geriatrics and palliative care doctor.
Click here to watch Rabbi Noach’s sermons and classes and to read his writing.
SARAH PORTWOOD, Executive Director
EMAIL: office@bethshalom-bjc.org
PHONE: (812) 334-2440
STEFANIE WEINTRAUB, GAN SHALOM DIRECTOR
Elly Cohen, Family Programs Manager
EMAIL: elisheva.cohen@gmail.com
Libby Karon, Head Teacher, Religious School
Chuck Roldan, Assistant
EMAIL: assistant@bethshalom-bjc.org
Nava Teller, Clergy Intern
Nava Teller is a junior at Indiana University studying Jewish Sacred Music as a Jewish Studies major, originally from Houston, Texas. A gifted songleader, guitar player, and singer, she leads weekly services at IU Hillel and serves as the co-Music Director of Hooshir A Cappella. She has served as Religious Chair on IU Hillel’s executive board and has led Tot Shabbat here at Beth Shalom. Previously, she worked at Houston's Congregation Brith Shalom, where she continues to lead family High Holy Day services.
This past summer, Nava served as Head Songleader at URJ Greene Family Camp. She strives to inspire the national Jewish community with her music, bringing more meaning, joyful energy, and a sense of connection to Jewish life.