Rabbi Stanley M. Davids’ Bio

March 2009

Born in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1939, Rabbi Davids received his BA, magna cum laude, from Case Western Reserve University, where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.  He was ordained from the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in 1965, and was subsequently awarded his Doctor of Divinity from HUC-JIR.  Following service as a Chaplain in the U.S. Army, Rabbi Davids served congregations in Wisconsin, Massachusetts, New York and Georgia.

Widely active on the Jewish scene, Rabbi Davids's most significant commitments have been to ARZA, the Association of Reform Zionists of America, which he served as national president 2004-2008. It was through ARZA that Rabbi Davids founded the Reform Zionist Think Tank, an endeavor that led to the historic adoption of the CCAR's Reform Zionist Platform (Miami, 1997), which among other issues embraced for the first time Aliyah as a Reform Mitzvah.  He is Honorary Chairman of the State of Israel Bonds Rabbinic Cabinet.  Rabbi Davids is currently a member of the Board of Governors of the Jewish Agency for Israel and in April 2008 he was elected to the Executive Committee of the World Zionist Organization.

Long active with youth, Rabbi Davids was elected an honorary Member of NFTY.   He has also served as International President of Alpha Epsilon Pi, America’s sole surviving Jewish undergraduate fraternity.

Together with his wife, Resa, Rabbi Davids made Aliyah in 2004 and currently reside in Jerusalem.  Rabbi Davids has participated in missions of service to the Jewish communities of Moscow, Prague, Budapest, Vienna, Berlin, Paris, Addis Ababa, Baku, Tbilisi and Mumbai.  

Resa and Rabbi Davids recently celebrated their 47th anniversary; they have been blessed with three children and eight grandchildren.