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Our Story

Our Story

Kehilat Nitzan was founded in March 1999 by Professor John Rosenberg and a small group committed to establishing Melbourne's first Masorti community. That initial meeting drew 41 participants—the seeds of what would grow into a thriving kehillah.

We held services at the Kadimah Cultural Centre, then B'nai Brith House, before moving into our own building on Hawthorn Road, Caulfield North in July 2013. For our first six years, we operated with lay leadership, supported by visiting Masorti rabbis from North America and Israel.

Today, we are a self-sustaining community of approximately 250 families. Our members come from diverse backgrounds. 70% are from mainstream Orthodoxy, 20% from the Progressive movement, and the rest previously unaffiliated. True to our name, Nitzan means "a bud", we planted the first seeds of Masorti Judaism in Melbourne and continue to blossom.

Our Rabbi

Rabbi Yonatan Sadoff, joined us in May 2018 from Congregation Magen Avraham in Omer, Israel. Ordained at the Schechter Rabbinical Seminary in Jerusalem, he previously served as assistant rabbi at Adath Jeshurun Congregation in Minnetonka, Minnesota. Rabbi Sadoff is joined by his wife Merav, daughters Tiferet Tehilla, Maayan Tekhelet, Atara Zohara and their son Oz Lev.

See From Our Rabbi for more.

Our Rabbinic History

 

Rabbi Ehud Bandel (January 2006–September 2010) served as our first rabbi and emissary during our formative years. A recognized leader in the world Masorti movement, Rabbi Bandel came from Jerusalem with his wife Avital and children Hadas and Ro'i. Under his leadership, membership grew steadily, with nearly 600 people attending High Holiday services.

Rabbi Adam Stein (August 2011–May 2016) was ordained at the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies in Los Angeles and came to us from Congregation Beth Shalom in Kansas City, Missouri. He, his wife Tamar, and their sons Eli and Gabriel (both born during their time with us) enriched our community for five years.

Fri, 5 December 2025 15 Kislev 5786