Gainesville Rabbi Encourages Education Through Jewish Lens
See Original Article for Lifestyle After a brief visit to Gainesville three years ago for a Menorah lighting, Rabbi Shmuel “Shmuly” Perlstein and his wife decided to make it their home. It wasn’t a decision based only on a fondness for the community, but also because there was an overwhelming response to having a Jewish celebration in the immediate area. Rabbi Perlstein is part of the Chabad Lubavitch movement. Chabad places an emphasis on building a relationship with G-d (in the Jewish religion, the ‘o’ is typically omitted out of respect) through education and, while the movement is actually more than 250 years old, the religious organization was formed in the 1940s as a way to bring a message of love and community to Jews following World War II. Rabbi Perlstein, born the seventh of eight children, grew up in the Chabad community in Chicago. His parents were both educators and most of his siblings are following in their footsteps, as is Rabbi Perlstein. Photo by: Kara