Rabbi Jordan Helfman is the Senior Rabbi of the South West Essex and Settlement Reform Synagogue, where he has served for nearly two years. Previously he was the Associate Rabbi at Holy Blossom Temple, in Toronto where he collaborating in creating the active 20s and 30s learning community, Lishma, and served on the advisory board to “Heart to Heart” – a program of HaShomer HaTzair’s Givat Haviva.

Rabbi Helfman was born in the United States in Michigan and grew up in NFTY (the North American Federation of Temple Youth) in New Jersey. He studied both Political Theory and Constitutional Democracy, and International Relations at Michigan State University, and served on the Union for Reform Judaism’s College Leadership Council (KESHER).

Following university, Rabbi Helfman worked as the Education Officer Oved Chinuch of Liberal Jewish Youth-נוער ציוני רפורמי. In that time, he was able to audit classes at the Leo Baeck College, and met his two loves, the World Progressive Judaism and his wife. His journey next took him to Israel, where he studied at Ulpan Akiva and began his formal rabbinic training at the Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion. He was ordained at the Cincinnati campus after completing a rabbinic thesis on integrated curriculum used in Progressive Jewish informal education settings.

For eight years, Rabbi Helfman served on the World Union of Progressive Judaism’s executive board, with the specific responsibility for the Youth and Young Adults movements, and co-chaired the 2021 Connections conference. He has taught on the history of the Progressive movement, and has an upcoming book on the unique Torah interpretations of the first generations of Progressive Jewish teachers. He currently lives with his wife and four children in Barkingside, Ilford, UK.