Howard Shapiro, Thomas O'Brien & Nasir Ahmed


Religious Studies

Rabbi Howard Shapiro was educated at Brandeis University and ordained by the Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion. He came to Temple Israel, West Palm Beach, in 1981 after serving as a chaplain in the U.S. Army in Vietnam and as a rabbi in Springfield, N.J. He serves on the Reform Pension Board of the Central Conference of American Rabbis and the Union for Reform Judaism. In 1993, Rabbi Shapiro was awarded tenure at Temple Israel and granted the honorary degree of Doctor of Divinity from HUC-JIR. He is the Rabbi Emeritus of Temple Israel, and his spiritual guidance, intellectual stimulation, creative programming and full participation in all aspects of Jewish life reflect his love and dedication to Judaism and the Jewish people.

Thomas G. O’Brien received his B.A. magna cum laude in 1964 from Notre Dame and graduated from Yale Law School in 1967. He practiced corporate law for more than 30 years, retired in 2001, and received an M.A. in theology summa cum laude in 2003 from St. Vincent de Paul Regional Seminary in Boynton Beach. Tom is a Canon in the Episcopal Church and the Examining Chaplain for Holy Scripture for the Episcopal Diocese of Southeast Florida, has taught courses for LLS, taught scripture and theology courses at Bethesda-by-the-Sea Episcopal Church in Palm Beach, and led interfaith dialogues for the Palm Beach Fellowship of Christians and Jews for many years.



Dr. Nasir Ahmad has been the Imam at Masjid Al-Ansar in Miami, FL since 1977 and is the Assistant Regional Imam for the SE United States. He was born and raised in Chicago, IL and received his B.S. from Miami-Dade College and Florida Memorial University in Miami Gardens, FL. He is a practicing Maxillofacial Oral Surgeon who received his dental training from Meharry Medical College in Nashville, TN. He is a frequent lecturer in the U.S. and abroad. Dr. Ahmad was the copresenter with Howard and Tom on Islam at Lifelong Learning Society in 2015. He is married, and has 10 children and 33 grandchildren.
 
 Last Modified 2/12/15