It was only 50 years ago this month that the first female rabbi was ordained
Female rabbis have become a way of life these days, but Sally Priesand changed the course of women and Judaism when she became the first female rabbi in the United States in June 1972.
For many American Jews, seeing a female rabbi is a pretty regular part of life. But it's a fairly recent development. Sally Priesand – the first American female rabbi – was ordained just 50 years ago, on June 3, 1972.
This groundbreaking ordination changed women's roles, and the course of Judaism itself.
Although Priesand had strong support from Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati, where she was enrolled in seminary, a lot of people still didn't want to see her in the role.
"There would always come a time where some person would
