Synopsis
As Sam Karff approached his eightieth birthday, he embarked on a life review. For This You Were Created chronicles the life of a gifted rabbi who ministered to congregations―Sinai in Chicago and Beth Israel in Houston―for over forty years, and has since come out of retirement twice to provide insight and compassion in the fields of relational medicine and social justice. Here, Karff delves into the nuanced reasons he decided to become a rabbi and addresses the question of calling, as it affects everyone. Although he candidly shares his experiences of personal struggle and regret, he emerges from the pages as a man who feels very blessed. His life’s work began as a convergence of skills, interest and values but became in time L’chach notsarta―the ancient rabbi’s understanding that there are certain moments when your work makes you feel “for this you were created.” Karff followed his calling to become a leader in the Reform movement and then an influential voice in interfaith conversations, in Houston and nationally. Through anecdotes, interpretation and excerpts from his sermons and books, For This You Were Created illuminates the life of an extraordinary man, a momentous time in American Judaism and the importance of discovering spiritual significance in our work. Those familiar with him―whether as family, friend, congregant, student or colleague―will delight in the riches of understanding he shares here, and those who have not had the pleasure of knowing Sam Karff will discover the warmth of a dear friend and the inspiration of a revered teacher. Indeed, for this he was created.
About the Author
For twenty-four years Samuel E. Karff was Senior Rabbi of Beth Israel, the oldest Jewish congregation in Texas. He received his AB degree from Harvard magna cum laude and was ordained and earned his doctoral degree from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. When he retired in 1999 after forty years as a congregational rabbi, he joined the faculty of the University of Texas Medical School, where he created and taught courses on the non-biomedical or spiritual dimension of being a healing physician. He is the author of three books and contributed the chapters on Judaism to Religions of the World, a text used in over 200 campuses in this country and abroad. For twenty-two years, Rabbi Karff taught in the religious studies department of Rice University and is a past president of the Central Conference of American Rabbis. In “retirement,” he partners with Reverend William “Bill” Lawson and Archbishop Joseph A. Fiorenza on issues of criminal justice reform. He and his wife, Joan, live in Houston. They have three daughters and seven grandchildren.
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