Temple B’nai Darom welcomes new cantor and spiritual leader

Cantor Alisa Forman poses with the Torah at Temple B’nai Darom on Southwest 38th Street in Ocala, Fla. on Saturday, March 7, 2025. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette] 2025.

Alisa Forman was 27 years old when she stepped out in faith and pursued a career that in the early days of Judaism was dominated by men.

A graduate of Hebrew Union College with a Doctor of Ministry degree in sacred music, Forman is now the cantor and spiritual leader at Temple B’Nai Darom in west Ocala. She replaced Rabbi Harold S. Jaye, who retired last summer for personal reasons. The congregation held a special gathering to welcome Forman and people from Congregation Beth Shalom in Beverly Hills, where Forman previously served as cantor, also attended.

It seems the die was cast long ago for Forman, who can trace her rabbinic lineage back to the 1500’s.

“My great-grandfather was the chief orthodox rabbi in Cincinnati,” Forman said. “And my great-uncle was a professor of Hebrew at the Hebrew Union College. We call it ‘yichus,’ which means coming from a family of similar occupations. I come from a family of very learned and serious rabbis.”

Forman’s father is a retired Reform rabbi, and her sister and brother also are rabbis in the Reform Movement. She had an uncle who was a Conservative rabbi and a cousin who is currently a Conservative rabbi.

Though originally accepted at Hebrew Union College for rabbinical training, Forman began to have second thoughts.

“I began to think, ‘Is this the right career for me?’” she recalled. “I decided to defer acceptance. I was a teacher of English as a second language and then I picked up little jobs at synagogues, teaching bar mitzvah kids after school. I was teaching music in religious schools since I was 16. I was always doing services with my father. It was a big part of our lives. When I realized I could do the music, I decided I wanted to be a cantor. It was a natural career choice.”

According to the Women Cantors’ Network, women began serving as cantors near the end of the 19th Century, but it wasn’t until the 1970’s that women were ordained as cantors and then as rabbis.

Through a series of events, Forman entered the Reform Movement’s Cantorial School and was invested in 2003, joining 65 percent of the 500 members who are women in the American Conference of Cantors.

“The class I ended up graduating with was all females,” she said.

She started her career as an associate cantor at a large synagogue in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. More recently, she served as cantor for six years at Congregation Beth Shalom, until membership declined due to financial reasons, she said.

Forman, who also plays the guitar, said she wants to bring a joyful experience to prayer and worship. She tends to be less formal and does not plan to wear the traditional white robes except during High Holy Day services in October. She said she wants her services to have a lighter, more joyful atmosphere.

“I think as a cantor I bring a very different approach—joy and trying to communicate through the music,” she said. “There’s such joy for me in the music and communicating that to the parishioners. That’s a sign I’m on the right track if people get up and move.”

Howard Shiner, president of Temple B’nai Darom, described the transition from Rabbi Jaye to Cantor Alisa as a bitter-sweet experience. While it was sad to see Jaye retire, it was a blessing to find a replacement so quickly, Shiner said, adding that there were no other candidates.

“Alisa is going to be a great fit,” said Shiner. “We saw her online. We had a committee that was looking for another spiritual leader and we found her, and we went after her. Alisa will be her own person. We knew of her history, and where she comes from. She comes from a family of rabbis. A cantor does a lot more singing; a rabbi does a lot more teaching. She will do both.”

At Jaye’s departure, the congregation awarded him rabbi emeritus standing.

“I do feel blessed,” said Jaye, who served there for 37 years. “I had one conversation with Cantor Forman on the phone. I told her to go slowly. Like I was told by my senior rabbi when I was in grad school, if you’re going to make changes, do it incrementally, slowly. Make little changes, not all at once. That’s what I told her.

“The gender doesn’t matter that much,” Jaye added. “Our liberal movement accepts women in that position. It’s more of a generational thing. There are going to be differences, specifically in style. Her worship style is different, the music is more folksy, but she does put in a prayer.”

Services at Temple B’nai Darom alternate weekly on Fridays and Saturdays. There is a Zoom link to participate online.

For more information, call (914) 482-5326 or visit templebnaidarom.org

Cantor Alisa Forman plays guitar and says she wants her services to have a lighter, more joyful atmosphere. [Photo by Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette]