Congregation Beth Israel Abraham and Voliner (BIAV) invites the community to an appreciation and farewell Kiddush honoring Rabbi Mark and Dr. Ruthy Glass and family.
The Kiddush will be held at the shul on Saturday, May 2, at 12 p.m., following 9 a.m. morning services.
After six years at BIAV, Rabbi Glass and his family are preparing to take leave of the congregation. Glass began his tenure in Overland Park in August 2020, stepping into the pulpit in the middle of the COVID pandemic. Since then, his rabbinate has extended beyond BIAV’s walls, with leadership roles across the Overland Park Eruv, the Kansas City Vaad HaKashruth, Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy and recent presidency of the Rabbinical Association of Greater Kansas City.
Closer to home, his shiurim (study sessions), Day of Discovery presentations and blog, “Words of Myrrh,” have drawn a devoted following and engaged learners across the community.
Rabbi Glass is a native of Manchester, England, and received his BA in philosophy, MA in Jewish philosophy, and rabbinic ordination at Yeshiva University in New York City. Prior to moving to Kansas, he was the rabbi of the Adams Street Shul in Newton, Massachusetts, from 2017–2020, and a Judaic studies teacher at Maimonides School in Brookline, Massachusetts, both the middle and high school.