[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 4]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 5648]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                    HONORING RABBI NORTON D. SHARGEL

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. NITA M. LOWEY

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 10, 2016

  Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize my fellow congregant, 
Rabbi Emeritus Norton Shargel, who is celebrating the 70th anniversary 
of his Bar Mitzvah on Saturday, May 14th.
  I have had the great pleasure of knowing Rabbi Shargel since moving 
to Westchester County and joining his congregation. He has served as a 
spiritual leader for the Jewish Community Center of Harrison (JCCH) 
since 1970. Throughout his time as Rabbi, he has enriched our community 
with his insight and warm demeanor, and his dedication to his 
congregation is unflinching.
  Throughout his life, Rabbi Shargel has committed himself to his 
rabbinical studies. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Philosophy and 
Semitics from Johns Hopkins University, and a degree in Religious 
Education from Baltimore Hebrew College. He first entered the Jewish 
Theological Seminary in 1954 and studied at the Hebrew University in 
Jerusalem before earning his Master of Hebrew Letters and Rabbinical 
Degree in 1959. He also holds a degree of Doctor of Hebrew Letters and 
an honorary Doctorate of Divinity from the Jewish Theological Seminary 
of America.
  Beyond his impressive academic resume, the Rabbi has worked as a 
spiritual leader in various communities. In 1959, Rabbi Shargel served 
as an army chaplain at Fort Benning, Georgia, where he was an active 
member of the local Jewish community. He then moved to Easton, 
Pennsylvania, where he served as leader of the Bnai Abraham Synagogue. 
During his time in Easton he founded ``ProJect,'' an interfaith, 
interracial group devoted to improving the community.
  Since 1970, Rabbi Shargel has served JCCH and has worked to improve 
interfaith cooperation in the community. He organized an interfaith 
Bible Study Group and has developed an ongoing dialogue with local 
clergy. He has served as President of the Westchester Board of Rabbis 
and helped create the first Westchester Clergy Institute, a seminar for 
clergy of all faiths. Since 1998, Rabbi Shargel has served as an 
Adjunct Professor of Religion at Manhattanville College in Purchase, 
New York, teaching courses in Judaism and Holocaust Studies.
  Mr. Speaker, I am proud to call Rabbi Shargel my friend, confidant, 
and spiritual leader. I congratulate him on a lifetime of commitment to 
the Jewish community, and I urge my colleagues to join me in 
celebrating the 70th anniversary of his Bar Mitzvah.

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