Aaron Cohen/Introduction
Rabbi Cohen is a Philadelphia native going back three generations. His grandfather and grandmother immigrated from Europe in the late 30's, and promptly settled themselves in South Philadelphia with the rest of the immigrants. He sports a proper south Philly accent, and never bothered to try to rid himself of it, even despite his role as a public speaker. Perhaps especially because of his role as a public speaker. He sounds like the community he serves.
He is a graduate of Harvard Divinity School with a Doctorate in Divinity from Hebrew Union College. His mixed focus on politics, activism, and congregational duties has kept him in an Associate Rabbi role for years. While he genuinely enjoys leading services, the responsibility of leading an entire congregation would devour his time and keep him away from his work within the community and at City Hall. The access this gives the congregations he associates with is more than enough incentive to keep him on staff; he has an uncanny ability to Get Things Done.
In the early 2010s, he first came across the young men and women behind the Plain Blog. He was among their first supporters, and after a year or two, one of their first students. Despite the irreligious tenets of the Plain, he instantly latched onto the group for their literal embodiment of the principle of Tikkun Olam; healing the world. Since becoming one of The Plain himself, he has placed himself body and soul into social justice causes. His work with Kol Tzedek and his outreach into Philly's LGBT community has found him marching in the annual Trans Pride March, speaking passionately for LGBT inclusion in civil society. He's tried to push for causes as various and vital as safe injection sites for intravenous drug users, early childhood education programs, firearm buyback programs, and even an ill-fated gang outreach which he found himself woefully ill-equipped to spearhead. But he tries.
In early May of 2020 something seems to have snapped in Aaron. He was caught on video at a counter-protest against the Proud Boys, responding to the beating of an Imam by charging the police, bodily hurling himself into their line, knocking one of them out cold with a single punch, and then withstanding repeated baton clubbings, attempts to restrain him by medical first responders, and eventually being knocked unconscious by a bean bag shotgun blast to the face.
After being cleared of his charges, Aaron fell out of public life, resurfacing after nearly two years a thoroughly changed man. Ridiculously fit, and in top mental form. He's now enrolled in Law School at Villanova, because what he needs is more degrees.