Meet Cantor Howard Stahl
Cantor Stahl is cantor emeritus of Congregation B’nai Jeshurun in Short Hills, New Jersey, New Jersey’s largest synagogue serving some 1,250 families. He is a graduate of the School of Sacred Music of the Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion in New York City, from which he was ordained. He earned a Masters degree in Social Work from the State University of New York at Albany with specializations in both Gerontology and Marriage and Family Therapy. In recognition of his outstanding contributions to the cantorate and the Jewish people HUC-JIR awarded Cantor Stahl an Honorary Doctorate.
Throughout his career, he has coached and counseled clergy and other synagogue professionals at varying points in their careers. He currently serves on the faculty of the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion mentoring students as they navigate their roles in congregations and helping them synthesize what they learn in the classroom with the exigencies of the pulpit and congregational life, helping them attain new heights in their careers and find greater meaning in their personal lives.
Highlights & Accomplishments
Cantor Stahl has held major leadership positions with the American Conference of Cantors (ACC), and was instrumental in re-shaping and re-invigorating the modern cantorate. He served as its President and Executive Vice President and was the founding chairperson of the National Commission on Cantorial Congregational Relationships, and the editor of the present-day Guidelines for Cantorial-Congregational Relationships which describes and prescribes the methodology for creating meaningful and sustainable cantorial-congregational relationships.
A gifted and creative educator, Cantor Stahl was honored by the National Association of Temple Educators for his commitment to Jewish education and he was awarded Life Membership in the North American Federation of Temple Youth for his pioneer work with Jewish youth.
He designed and facilitated a leadership development program for his synagogue, identifying and training potential synagogue leaders. Currently, the majority of the members of the congregation’s Board of Trustees are graduates of this program and have effectively used these leadership skills to enhance their role in synagogue governance and creating and implementing policy and programs which are innovative and sustainable.
Throughout his career, he has shepherded nearly 2,000 thirteen-year olds through the B’nai Mitzvah experience, giving them confidence and self-assurance to stand before a congregation of adults and peers. He has been able to help them reduce tension, fear of failure and vulnerability allowing them to complete this often anxiety-ridden task with increased self-esteem and a deep and lasting sense of accomplishment.
He has counseled hundreds of couples who seek his expertise as they prepare to start their married life, helping them to work through a myriad of issues prospectively to prepare for beginning their new and sometimes challenging days as a married couple.
He created and implemented a Jewish Chaplaincy program for a large area hospital owned by the Albany Catholic Diocese and he has done extensive work with families in crisis as a result of illness, grief and loss.
His insights and his warm and caring demeanor have enabled individuals and families to navigate life-changing moments and learn to acknowledge their own vulnerability while affirming the richness of life’s gifts.