RABBI ELY ALLEN

Rabbi Allen has roots deep in the Middle Eastern/North African Jewish Community. Both of his parents are from Cairo, Egypt, a Jewish community which dates back a thousand years before the Common Era, and his family also traces to Iraq, Syria, and Tunisia. Rav Allen’s parents were forced to flee Egypt in the 1960s, escaping government antisemitism, arrest of Jews, and seizure of Jewish assets. They met in the United States.

Rav Ely grew up steeped in Sephardi/Mizrachi culture, with a father who spoke many different Arabic dialects, while also learning the dominant European Jewish culture of his American surroundings. After earning a BA in Psychology at Fairleigh Dickinson University, he received Smicha (Rabbinic ordination) from Yeshiva University.

Rav Ely was Director of Northern Jersey Hillels and a faculty member at Yeshiva University focusing on Sephardic studies. He is the Founder of the Jewish Outreach Network, which has hosted thousands of people, and served as the Rabbi of Sharei Orah, the Sephardic Congregation of Teaneck, NJ.

Rav Allen currently lives with his wife and family and teaches at three different institutions, where his work includes educating people about Sephardic culture and tradition.