Temple Beth El Says Goodbye to Beloved Rabbi

Rabbi Allen Krause, one of the original leaders of, died March 3 after a battle with cancer.

Krause began serving the South O.C. families of Temple Beth El in 1984, when it was much smaller and located in Laguna Niguel. When the temple moved in 1992 to a 3.4-acre piece of land in Aliso Viejo, it was the first time in the congregation’s history that all religious services, classes and administration offices were in the same location.

Krause was influential in the temple’s growth, said Executive Director Al Welland.

“He was clearly beloved,” Welland said. “He touched so many lives.”

More than 700 people attended the funeral services, which were held Tuesday morning at the temple.

“I’ve known Rabbi Krause since 1996 and my wife, Rosalind, met him in 1989. [Krause] married us here in Aliso Viejo in the year 2000. We will remember him for his humor, knowledge and capacity to teach so many people on so many topics,” said Greg Gantman.

Krause was devoted to human rights issues and was active in creating programs to help “repair the world.”

“I had the pleasure of working with him for eight years,” Welland said. “He was a dynamic and beautiful man, committed to all of the world and in repairing the world, making it a better place.”

According to the Temple Beth El website, his accomplishments include:

• He was active in the Save Soviet Jewry movement in the 1970s, which led to his journey to the FSU to visit and bring support to Jewish Refuseniks.
• In 1983, he created the Ad Hoc Rabbinic Committee to Rescue Ethiopian Jewry, which mounted a national petition campaign to influence the American government to take action to save this threatened Jewish community.
• In Orange County, Krause was a leader in interfaith activity and the founder of the Religious Diversity Forum.
• He was also the founder of the Morasha Day School, which for many years met the needs of the Jewish community in South Orange County.
• Krause served as president of the Orange County Board of Rabbis and of the Pacific Association of Reform Rabbis.
• He also served on the Executive Board of the Central Conference of American Rabbis and chaired the CCAR Task Force on Rabbi/Cantor Relations.

Krause is survived by his wife, Sherri, and their two grown children.

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A message from Temple Beth El’s sister congregation in Israel —

In Memory of Rabbi Allen Krause
from our sister congregation in Ra'anana, Israel

Rabbi Tamar Kolberg and all members of Kehilat Ra'anan (Ra'anana, Israel)
send their heart felt condolences to Sherri and the children, to Rabbi Peter Levi and to the members of Temple Beth El.

Rabbi Krause was a devoted friend of our congregation for many years and was one of the moving spirits behind the vision of building a permanent home for us. It is through his endeavors that the Samueli family funded this project and they have remained solid friends ever since.

Rabbi Krause was a strong supporter of Israel even when he found reasons to be critical of its policies – this is the essence of true friendship: being able to uphold a solid relationship while also knowing that in every partnership there are different opinions that can be discussed and evaluated. Loving Israel and believing in the idea of a Jewish homeland does not negate giving up dreams of peace, of working towards a more inclusive situation for all those who live in Israel and in the Middle East.

Above all Rabbi Krause was a true "mench" – a human being who touched so many of our lives with his deep understanding and keen sense of the "other".

We will miss Rabbi Kraus's physical presence when we celebrate the Tenth Anniversary of Beit Samueli this coming June, and yet his spirit, his love and his compassion will certainly be with us all.

May all of you find comfort in his life long activities; his love of family; of the members of his congregation; his devotion to so many great causes and especially his love of Am Yisrael and Judaism.

We send our love to Sheri, Gavriela, Roger and Stephen and to all of our friends at Temple Beth El -

May his memory be blessed!    

Rabbi Tamar Kolberg
Kehilat Ra'anan, Israel