Rabbi Asaf and Atara Forges
Chaplaincy Couple
“We are here to create a warm and loving environment for you, one that is open-minded and allows for deep personal connections, and building a close-knit, embracing community with vibrant and joyful Jewish life. We look forward to meeting all of you and welcoming you into our home!”
Rabbi Asaf & Atara Forges
Asaf and Atara Forges come from Israel with their daughters, Noam and Kedem. They share a deep passion for education, Jewish continuity and building communities, which they are excited to share with Jewish students across the Bristol and Western region.
Regional Amenities
Where are you from?
Asaf – Ra’anana, Israel
Atara – Tzfat, Israel
Why chaplaincy?
We think these years are crucial for the development of students’ identities, and they can also be very tough and challenging. We believe that we can be there for the students during these years, we can connect with them, make their life better, help them on their journey, and build a community with them.
How can you help students?
We host students, listen to their needs giving advice where it is needed, learn and think with them. Ultimately, we provide them with a home away from home, aiming to cater to all their needs.
What do you enjoy doing most with students?
Cooking for Shabbat meals, playing together, hosting special events – but we just love hanging out together too 🙂
What do you want students to take away from their Jewish experience at uni?
Jewish life guides all of us to be a part of a community – we hope that the students will feel that they are part of the Jewish nation, that they are not alone, and that they will be happy and proud of who they are.
What prepared you for this role?
Following high school, Asaf delved into Jewish studies, learning in Yeshiva for 5 years and serving as an educational mentor and teacher in a post-high school seminary for girls alongside other educational roles.
Atara has an academic and Jewish studies background, and has a few years’ experience of building communities and leadership development. During her two-year national service, she pursued diverse experiences: working in Tel Aviv at a centre for Jewish Studies, followed by a year abroad teaching in San Francisco, after which she attended a post-high school seminary for further Jewish studies.
Both Asaf and Atara trained in the Straus-Amiel Institute of Ohr Torah Stone, for rabbis, educators and spiritual leaders of the Diaspora.
Personal interests?
Asaf – reading, playing football and tennis, and learning new things.
Atara – reading, art and crafts, yoga, chilling out with music, and being out in nature.
Where did you go to yeshiva / university?
Asaf studied in the yeshiva in Netivot, and holds a B.A. in Jewish History and Hebrew Literature, an M.A. in Hebrew Literature (both from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev). He’s currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Hebrew Literature.
Atara was in a Jewish seminar in Givat Washington, and holds a B.A. in Community Social Work from Bar-Ilan University.
Universities we cover
