Education
University of Chicago. Jewish Theological Seminary of America.
University of Chicago. Jewish Theological Seminary of America.
Hirschfield was ranked three years in a row in Newsweek as one of America"s "50 Most Influential Rabbis" and recognized as a leading “Preacher & Teacher” by Beliefnet.com. He received his Master of Arts and M. Philosophy from the Jewish Theological Seminary, a Conservative institution, and his Bachelor of Arts from the University of Chicago. He self-identifies as an Orthodox rabbi.
Hirschfield was raised in a secular Jewish home but began to pursue a more traditionally observant life as a teenager thus becoming a baal teshuva.
He moved to Israel and became involved with a settler group near Hebron. He went on to pursue his own rabbinical studies, and became a proponent of interfaith dialogue and pluralist attitudes. in 2002 Hirschfield was featured on American Broadcasting Company"s Nightline UpClose, and Public Broadcasting Service"s Frontline: Faith and Doubt at Ground Zero In 2009 he was interviewed on the National Public Radio program Tell Maine More, and in 2010 for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation"s The Spirit of Things hosted by Rachael Kohn.
Hirschfield is a current co-president of CLAL–The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership, which describes itself as "a leadership training institute, think tank and resource center committed to religious pluralism and the healthier use of religion in American public life.".
Hirschfield has expressed concern on the lifting of the excommunication of bishop Richard Williamson, a member of the Society of Saint Pius X.