Danya Ruttenberg

Evanston, IL

Dahlia Blossom Cohort 2025

About Danya

Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg is an award-winning author of eight books who now makes her primary writing home with the newsletter/magazine LifeIsASacredText.com. She has received the Lives of Commitment Award from Auburn Seminary, and the Rabbinic Human Rights Hero Award from the human rights organization T’ruah, was named by Newsweek as a “rabbi to watch,” and as a “faith leader to watch” by the Center for American Progress, and has been a Sunday Washington Post crossword clue (83 Down). Her most recent book, On Repentance and Repair: Making Amends in an Unapologetic World is a National Jewish Book Award winner and an American Library Association’s Sophie Brody Honor Book. It was hailed by Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley as “A must read for anyone navigating the work of justice and healing.” She has written for a number of publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, and been featured on NPR, the Today Show, USA Today, MTV News, and elsewhere.

She organized a network of 2500 Rabbis for Repro before– and leading it through and beyond– the fall of Roe. In other roles she has organized the Jewish community to fight for economic justice; created frameworks for dialogue and understanding across lines of difference; and led student communities on several college campuses. She has also been involved in shaping the Jewish response to sexual misconduct in a number of formal and informal roles. She's so thrilled to be part of this new adventure with you all. She lives in Evanston, IL with her spouse and three kids.