The Zoo Rabbi - Biography

Born in Manchester, England, Natan Slifkin spent many years of study at yeshivot in Israel. He then taught Talmud and Jewish philosophy at Ohr Somayach Institutions, where he received rabbinic ordination. Rabbi Slifkin also has an MA in Jewish Studies from the Lander Institute in Jerusalem, where he graduated summa cum laude, and he is currently pursuing a PhD in Jewish History at Bar-Ilan University. Rabbi Slifkin is the founder and director of The Biblical Museum of Natural History in Beit Shemesh, Israel. Rabbi Slifkin has written numerous books on the topic of Judaism and the natural sciences, and he has also written extensively for the Daf Yomi Advancement Forum, as well as for many newspapers, websites and journals. He also maintains a popular blog, Rationalist Judaism.

In 1999, Rabbi Slifkin began teaching about the relationship between Judaism and the animal kingdom at the Jerusalem Biblical Zoo. He then developed the Zoo Torah program, which he has since successfully operated in New York, Detroit, Philadelphia, Washington D.C., Baltimore, St. Louis, Atlanta, Sacramento, Phoenix, Los Angeles, Toronto, San Diego, Cape Town, and Johannesburg. This program has led Rabbi Slifkin to be featured in television and radio shows as well as in countless newspapers and journals. Rabbi Slifkin has a lifelong fascination with wildlife and has kept a wide variety of exotic pets. His work has led him teaching on safari in Africa, observing great white sharks preying upon seals, whale-watching in the Pacific, wrestling alligators in California, and behind the scenes at numerous zoological facilities worldwide.

Rabbi Slifkin's wife Avital (Tali), formerly Tali Samson, holds a master's degree from Yeshiva University's Wurzweiler School of Social Work. The Slifkins live in Ramat Beit Shemesh, along with their four children and an assortment of pets, which at various times has included chinchillas, squirrels, rabbits, guinea-pigs, hamsters, cockatiels, parrots, pheasants, parakeets, finches, quails, snakes, iguanas, geckos, chameleons, turtles, frogs, toads, basilisks, and fish.

Rabbi Slifkin's published works include:

• » Lying for Truth: Understanding Yaakov's Deception of Yitzchak (Targum Press 1996)
  
• » Focus: Classical and Contemporary Issues through the Lens of the Weekly Parashah (Targum Press 1997)
  
• » Seasons of Life: The Reflection of the Jewish Year in the Natural World (Targum Press 1998)
  
• » Second Focus: Original and Stimulating Essays on Jewish Thought (Targum Press 1999)
  
• » In Noah's Footsteps: Biblical Perspectives on the Zoo (The Tisch Family Zoological Gardens 2000)
  
• » The Science of Torah: The Reflection of Torah in the Laws of Science, the Creation of the Universe, and the Development of Life (Targum Press 2001)
  
• » Nature's Song: An Elucidation of Perek Shirah, the Anceint Text that Lists the Philosophical and Ethical Lessons of the Natural World (Targum Press 2001/ Zoo Torah 2009)
  
• » Mysterious Creatures: Intriguing Torah Enigmas of Natural and Unnatural History (Targum Press 2003)
  
• » The Camel, The Hare, And The Hyrax: A Study of the Laws of Animals with One Kosher Sign in Light of Modern Zoology (Targum Press 2004)
  
• » Man and Beast: Our Relationships with Animals in Jewish Law and Thought (Zoo Torah 2006)
  
• » The Challenge of Creation: Judaism's Encounter with Science, Cosmology and Evolution (Zoo Torah 2006)
  
• » Sacred Monsters: Mythical and Mysterious Creatures of Scripture, Talmud and Midrash (Zoo Torah 2007)

Rabbi Slifkin can be contact by e-mail at zoorabbi@zootorah.com or by phone in Israel at 077-332-0678.