About Me

Rabbi Eitan's Story

I grew up in Denver, Colorado, skiing and going to football games. During my time in New York during college I became observant and decided to move to Israel, fulfilling the two thousand year hope of the Jewish people to return home. My bachelor's degree was in philosophy from Sarah Lawrence college and I followed that up in Israel spending a few years learning Torah in a yeshivah (Jewish rabbinic seminary), eventually earning ordination as an Orthodox rabbi, getting married, having a few kids, and becoming a tour guide. I live in the small town of Tekoa, home of the biblical prophet Amos, with my wife and three little boys. My background, with feet in a few different worlds, gives me an ability to relate to people from diverse backgrounds and communicate ideas across cultural and religious divides. My passion is to share my love of Israel and of Judaism with you. Below are a few ways that I do that.

Tours in Israel

Your tour of Israel should be custom designed for maximum effect. I get a feel for you and your family or group by phone and e-mail, and adjust the itinerary to create a life changing and life enhancing experience, not just a vacation. With me as your guide you will enjoy American style full-service and attention to detail, as well as a learned and easy going companion, guide, driver, logistics-maven, and security-guy at your service.

Podcast: Jewish Geography

These 20-30 minute, weekly episodes address issues about Judaism or the Jewish world that many won't dare touch with a ten foot stick. Everything is discussed in depth, from the heart, with sensitivity and no holds barred from wrestling the truth as I see it to the ground and making it cry uncle.

Teaching

I am available to meet groups in hotels in the evening during their trip, or during the day, to give lectures on various subjects from an introduction to Judaism or Jewish history, to the intricacies of Jewish law on various subjects, or the geo-political landscape of the Middle East today. I also am available to tutor students one on one via skype.

Reviews

"In a single day, our large family experienced three aspects of Israel’s complex heritage: The desert site when Jeremiah pronounced his prophecies, the excavated settlement and the caves where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered, and the Dead Sea. Eitan was a fabulous leader and guide, dramatically proclaiming the words of Jeremiah, pondering the extremes of the Essene sect, and finding a great place for us, our kids and our grandkids to experience the astonishing buoyancy of the water and the equally astonishing enthusiasm of the other visitors for the salt-infused mud of the seabed. Our group ranged from 2 years to 72 years old, and we all left delighted with Eitan’s planning, knowledge and patience."

-B. Heitler

"My family could not have been more blessed with our choice of Rabbi Eitan. It was our first trip to Israel, including my 13 year old son. Rabbi Eitan took us through Jerusalem on a walking tour and drove us to surrounding areas. I was worried at first that a “tour” would be rigid, rushed and impersonal. Rabbi Eitan was the opposite of all of this. Each time we stopped, he took the time to connect the place historically, spiritually and to us personally. He made a special connection to my son and this was the highlight of his trip."

-J. Defez