Regina Jonas secured her place in history on 27 December 1935, when she received semicha to become the first woman ordained as a rabbi. Born in Berlin in 1902, she navigated a religious landscape that restricted female leadership, eventually crafting a scholarly defense of her right to serve through a rigorous examination of Biblical and Talmudic sources.
Academic Foundation and Ordination
Jonas studied at the Hochschule für die Wissenschaft des Judentums for 12 semesters. Her academic focus culminated in a thesis titled 'Can a Woman Be a Rabbi According to Halachic Sources?' While her initial supervisor, Eduard Baneth, died before granting her ordination, she persisted. She eventually gained recognition from Rabbi Max Dienemann, head of the Liberal Rabbis' Association in Offenbach am Main, who oversaw her formal entry into the rabbinate.
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Despite her ordination, Jonas faced significant professional barriers within the German Jewish community. Synagogues in Berlin declined to employ her, forcing her to work as a chaplain for social institutions and the Women's International Zionist Organization. As Nazi persecution intensified, she continued to lead services and teach, providing pastoral support to increasingly isolated congregations across Germany.
Internment at Theresienstadt
In November 1942, the Gestapo arrested Jonas after confiscating her personal property. Deported to the Theresienstadt ghetto, she continued her rabbinical work under extreme conditions. She collaborated with Viktor Frankl on a crisis intervention project to prevent suicides among new arrivals. She also participated in the cultural life of the camp, contributing to lectures and concerts designed to provide a respite from the environment.
Legacy and Historical Recovery
Jonas was deported to Auschwitz in mid-October 1944, where she was murdered at the age of 42. Her role as a pioneer remained largely obscured in post-war records until the 1970s. In 1991, researcher Katharina von Kellenbach located a cache of her personal documents and ordination papers in an East Berlin archive, enabling a comprehensive reconstruction of her professional life.
Fast facts
- Born: 1902, Berlin
- Died: 1944, Auschwitz
- Ordination date: 27 December 1935
- Education: Hochschule für die Wissenschaft des Judentums
- Nationality: German Reich
- Occupation: Rabbi
Questions readers ask
What was the subject of Regina Jonas's rabbinical thesis?
Her thesis investigated whether Jewish law allowed for the ordination of women, utilizing Biblical, Talmudic, and rabbinical sources to argue in the affirmative.
How was her work rediscovered?
In 1991, researcher Katharina von Kellenbach discovered an envelope containing Jonas's rabbinical diploma, dissertation, and personal documents in an East Berlin archive.
Achievements
- Educated at Hochschule für die Wissenschaft des Judentums and Primo-Levi-Gymnasium
- Worked as rabbi
