Rabbi Andrea C. London (she/her/hers) is a nationally recognized Jewish leader who has forged close ties with congregants and community members of all age groups and walks of life. Whether welcoming teens to her basement for deep dives into Talmud and ethics, leading Friday morning Close Look at Torah classes, providing counseling and support to congregants, visiting the sick, or leading worship, Rabbi London is deeply engaged in all aspects of congregational life. She has served at Beth Emet since 2000 and as senior rabbi since 2010.
Rabbi London’s path to the rabbinate may have begun during her summers as a camp counselor (and champion log-roller!) in northern Wisconsin or perhaps in her years as a peer counselor at her alma mater (Brown University). During a post-college year of volunteering in Israel, her passion for Jewish history, identity and faith intensified, as did her love of Israel and the Hebrew language. Back in Chicago, Rabbi London found inspiration in mentor Rabbi Joseph Edelheit’s scholarship and activism surrounding the AIDS crisis.
Social justice activism is integral to Rabbi London’s work, and she has received widespread recognition for her leadership on issues ranging from Jewish-Muslim and Black-Jewish relations to peace and justice in Israel/Palestine. In 2020, she received the Religious Community Service Award from the North Shore NAACP. The Forward named Rabbi London one of the U.S.’s most inspiring rabbis after she led Black and Jewish Evanston youth on a spring break trip to visit civil rights sites across the South.
Since 2016, she has served as co-chair of J Street’s Rabbinic and Cantorial Cabinet and regularly invites speakers from diverse backgrounds to offer challenging perspectives on Israeli/Palestinian issues. Rabbi London also has worked to build bridges among Chicago-area Jews, Christians, and Muslims. Rabbi London was recently honored with the 2022 J Street Chicago Tzedek v’Shalom (Justice and Peace) Award.
Rabbi London has written scholarly essays on Jewish scripture and values, including, most recently, chapters in the Mussar Torah Commentary (2020), the CCAR’s Social Justice Torah Commentary (forthcoming, 2021) and No Time for Neutrality: American Rabbinic Voices from an Era of Upheaval (forthcoming, 2021). Rabbi London has brought a variety of programs on spirituality to Beth Emet as well.
Rabbi London received her ordination in 1996 from the HUC-JIR and her doctor of divinity degree in 2021. Prior to her arrival at Beth Emet, she served as assistant rabbi at Temple Israel of Minneapolis (1996‒2000). She and her husband have two children, and live in Evanston.
To listen to some Divrei Torah (sermons), click here and select the category “Divrei Torah.”
Email Rabbi London
Call: 847-869-4230 x306
