Hi! I’m Rabbi Phil Goldwasser. I have worked in the Jewish community for over 30 years. After being involved in Jewish life for all this time, I decided to become a Rabbi.

Rewinding back a few decades, I grew up in a Jewish home in Central NJ. We were members of a Conservative synagogue. In the middle of my sophomore year in high school, I became active in USY. By my senior year, I was elected as Religion Education Vice-President of the Hagalil region (north and central NJ). I also served on the Religion Education committee of the International USY board. During my junior and senior years, I attended every USY program possible, from local chapter events to international conventions. I was also a participant in the USY Israel Pilgrimage. Since then, with a few years off while my wife and I were raising our kids, I have staffed USY conventions and programs.

After high school, I attended Rutgers University and majored in Jewish studies. My plan was to graduate and then go to the Jewish Theological Seminary for rabbinical school. However, “man plans and God laughs.” I was not accepted into rabbinical school, so I earned my MA at JTS in Jewish studies instead. I then became a youth director at a large Conservative synagogue in the Baltimore area, before returning home to NJ and starting a career in IT.

Over the years, I pursued Jewish learning both independently and with various groups. Staffing USY was likely the most significant aspect of my Jewish education, as it compelled me to provide answers to the many questions that the USYers might raise.

Fast forward a few years, and I developed an interest in a couple of different topics. My Hebrew name is Pesah, which may explain why I have such a strong interest in studying Passover. I have a substantial collection of Haggadot, some dating back to the late 19th century. I have also taught extensively about Passover to youth groups and synagogue groups. Additionally, I became very interested in all things related to the Jewish calendar, and I hope to include a section on this website dedicated to that topic.

Due to my staffing with USY, I began to consider ordination. A friend had received her ordination through an alternative program (meaning not one of the primary established Rabbinical schools), and the idea emerged for me to attempt to join the Rabbinate again. After some research, I found The Mesifta Adath Wolkowisk. This program is designed for individuals later in life who either work in or are connected to the Jewish community. In their words, “it has been designed for the mature Jewish adult, probably already serving the Jewish community, who can readily document competence and expertise in traditional Judaic academic disciplines and significant work experience.” I enrolled in this program, and on June 11, 2025, I received Smikha from the Mesifta.

This brings me to the present. USY has changed a lot, and I have no idea where things will go from here. I needed to establish a new purpose as a Rabbi. At the core, I have always been interested in Jewish education, as that was the driving force behind my involvement with USY. Therefore, this website attempts to share some of my knowledge with a broader Jewish (and non-Jewish) audience. Jewish learning must be accessible to all people, which is the concept behind my tag line—Jewish learning for every journey.  Everyone is on a journey through life, and I hope to bring some Jewishness to everyone’s journey.