Rabbi Brent Chaim Spodek

g on the marriage, rather than just the wedding. Rabbi Brent was thoughtful, warm, and insightful, taking the time to blend both of our cultures (Jewish & Indian) with great knowledge and depth. During our relationship counseling sessions, Rabbi Brent provided tools and exercises for us to think deeply about the marriage we were committing to and the type of challenges we may face. We're SO GRATEFUL to have had such a wise and loving guide as we took this important step in our relationship. Finally, we were touched by how many of our guests found the ceremony to be informative, engaging, and heartfelt due to really feeling Rabbi Brent's interest in this work and in us as a couple. We received MANY (unsolicited) compliments about the relatability of both Rabbi Brent and the ceremony itself. We wholeheartedly recommend working with Rabbi Brent to any couples who want to build a strong foundation for their marriage!

but also for our marriage. All of our guests were telling us how beautiful and memorable our ceremony was. We're so grateful!

e day is the strength of our marriage. We felt it was worth investing in our marriage more than anything else, and we are so happy we decided to do so by working with Rabbi Brent! From our very first meeting with him, we both felt extremely comfortable opening up, being honest, and communicating. He always gave such great advice and metaphors to help us understand our feelings and better communicate them. I truly believe the work we put in throughout our 12 sessions with Rabbi Brent has already made a massive positive impact on our relationship. He created a space where we felt safe to express ourselves without fear of judgement, and our relationship is much deeper as a result. On the day of the wedding, Rabbi Brent was incredible (and all of our friends and family loved him!). From a logistical perspective, he took care of everything (mailing the marriage license, helping us order the ketubah, clearly delineating exactly what we needed, etc.), so we did not have to worry about any of that at the wedding or after. The ketubah signing was extremely meaningful, and the words he shared with us and our families were beautiful. The ceremony was also incredible. He worked with us to ensure we were doing all of the traditions that were meaningful to us, and was open to us doing a modern adaptation of some of them. I'm not kidding when I say literally every person came up to us at cocktail hour to tell us it was the most beautiful ceremony they'd ever seen. Overall, I am so happy we chose to invest in our marriage by working with Rabbi Brent. I feel so relieved and happy to be in a new marriage where I feel everything has been laid out on the table and worked through, and that we always have Rabbi Brent on our side if we ever need him!

and Rabbi Brent came through in spades. Our sessions with him provided us with new perspective and tools to help us connect with each other and strengthen our relationship - absolutely 100% worth the time. Over those sessions, we got to know Rabbi Brent and he got to know us and he put that all to use in delivering a beautiful, meaningful, and personal ceremony (and Ketubah signing - which he helped us write). We could not have asked for more - all of our friends, Jewish and not, loved the ceremony and Rabbi Brent. We would recommend him to any couple without hesitation!

who truly understood our relationship. He delivered a really personal and heartfelt speech at our ceremony that made the moment very special. 

ted to build together. The process led us to create a ketubah that feels like a personally meaningful and practical document we can refer to in order to reflect on and be accountable to our commitments. We would recommend Brent to couples who want to put the effort into understanding each other better and gaining tools to deal with future conflicts. If you're curious about the process, it seemed similar to asking each other questions from the published "36 Questions to Fall in Love," with Brent adding marriage-focused questions and depth to the discussions. In the final stages, Brent guided us in translating our conversations into commitments in our ketubah.

y people actually came up to us both during and after the wedding saying how wonderful he was and how special the ceremony was. Even our non-Jewish friends specifically commented on how great he was, weeks after the wedding! We really enjoyed working with him and all of the words he said/feelings he invoked throughout the process and on the day made our wedding even more special.

rther explore what marriage means to us. On the day of our wedding, he brought the same warmth and calm presence, making the ceremony feel personal and special to us. We couldn’t imagine anyone else guiding us through such an important moment in our lives.

it's one of our favorite things we did in the lead up to the wedding. We'll use a lot of the communications practices that we talked about for the rest of our lives. We were also able to combine my husband's Jewish faith with some traditions from my Catholic faith for the ceremony - Rabbi Brent was open and flexible as we discussed what felt right for us as an interfaith couple.

t to know Rabbi Brent well, as he acted as a rabbi, wedding officiant, and pre-marriage counselor. He is thoughtful, kind, and giving. Rabbi Brent led us through an engaging and comprehensive pre-wedding process, where he learned about us individually and together, and he helped usher in our marriage with excitement and happiness. He guided us through the verbiage and design of our Ketubah, asked us thought-provoking questions, and provided us with meaningful exercises between sessions. During both the Ketubah signing and the marriage ceremony, he spoke beautifully - many of our guests came up to us after the ceremony to comment on how wonderful he was. We could not recommend his services more highly.

d him be a part of our special day!

lp us transcend a simple wedding party, and Rabbi Brent immediately impressed us with his dedication to sharing his deep and accessible relationship wisdom. We spoke to many officiants and instantly connected to Rabbi Brent’s commitment and unique process. We learned so much about each other through our conversations and we loved memorializing the journey our unique Ketubah. The ceremony itself was moving, inclusive, and authentic. Many of our guests are still asking us, “How did you find that Rabbi??. ” While we’re very happy with the event and our guest’s experience, what’s special to us as a couple today, weeks after our wedding, is the lasting impact Rabbi Brent has had on our relationship!

ounseling, but it turned out to be such an important and meaningful experience for us. Rabbi Brent facilitated us having big conversations about our relationship, helping us to instill the practice going forward and build and maintain a strong foundation for our family. Every session that we had with him, he provided thoughtful, helpful guidance, along with useful literature on relevant topics. By the time we were planning the nuts and bolts of the ceremony, we had spent so much time in deep conversation with Rabbi Brent that we had grown incredibly comfortable with him. He helped us write a beautiful custom text for our ketubah, which makes the act of signing it feel much more intimate and personal. He made the ceremony easy and comfortable, and brought a lot of love to the event. And he was the hit of the night. We've received more praise for his performance than for any other aspect of our--in my biased opinion--perfect wedding. We cannot recommend using Rabbi Brent more strongly!

le, and on the big day he did an an amazing job making it special. We received many comments after the ceremony that he was an excellent officiant.

ere a bit skeptical in the beginning, but as soon as we had our first meeting with Rabbi Brent, we knew we made the right decision. He went from being a complete stranger to us, to feeling like a true friend by the time of our wedding, and we couldn’t have imagined our wedding day without him. Though my husband and I didn’t necessarily uncover new truths about each other through the counseling, the meetings with Rabbi Brent helped reinforce the principles and values that we need to make our relationship successful and gave us a new perspective on marriage. The best part by far was writing our own Ketubah. This was incredibly special, and something we’ll cherish forever. Rabbi Brent is super kind, personable and really really funny, which really makes it very easy to open up to him. He did a fantastic job at our ceremony, bringing the perfect blend of Judaism and our own love story, which made the wedding feel very personal. Our family members loved him. We’d highly highly recommend Rabbi Brent’s services if you want a personalized and special wedding ceremony as well as introspective and meaningful pre-marital counseling.

and were excited to see his enthusiasm for our marriage. We particularly enjoyed the "pre-marital" counseling, where we met with Rabbi Brent about every 2 weeks for the ~4 months leading up to the wedding. He posed many questions to topics we didn't even realize had not been addressed in the time of our 5 year relationship. Rabbi Brent was a pleasure to work with, and we highly recommend him to any couple looking for insightful and rewarding discussions before getting married. Added bonus, he was a hit with all of our family and friends during the ceremony. We continue to get feedback about how beautifully he spoke and how thoughtful his speech was.

urse of several months, through our meetings with him, Rabbi Brent really got to know us as a couple, which made the entire experience feel personal and meaningful. The pre-wedding meetings were invaluable in preparing us for marriage, helping us tackle important and sometimes difficult conversations, ensuring we were aligned or could communicate effectively through any differences. On the day of our wedding, Rabbi Brent led a beautiful and meaningful ketubah signing ceremony just before the main ceremony, which provided a grounding moment amidst all the excitement. Our wedding ceremony itself ended up being our favorite part of the entire day. Thanks to all the work we did leading up to it, we felt calm, confident, and completely focused on each other. We cannot recommend working with Rabbi Brent enough!

uiding light through the entire process. As an interfaith couple, we were unsure what our ceremony would look like and wanted to ensure both families felt represented. Rabbi Brent went above and beyond to do so, researching and performing a traditional Irish hand binding ceremony and reading. In addition to officiating a beautiful ceremony, our work with Rabbi Brent went so far beyond that. During our weekly sessions and conversations at home, my now husband and I learned invaluable tools about communication, conflict resolution, the importance of “checking in” and connection. Our sessions never felt like therapy, rather speaking with a trusting, wise and knowledgeable friend with no judgement. We took so much away from our time and experience working with Rabbi Brent and know that the lessons we’ve learned will help us through life’s challenging seasons. We also take comfort in knowing our relationship and journey with Rabbi Brent did not end on our wedding day and that he is someone we can always turn to for guidance and life milestones. You will not regret working with Rabbi Brent, it was the easier vendor decision to make.

g a premarital counselor who happens to be conducting the ceremony after you’ve finished working with him. If that feels right to you, look no further. For the first several sessions, Rabbi Brent gave us questions to ask each other and guide us through important conversations. Many of them we had touched on in the past, but it was helpful to really make sure we were on the same page. As we discussed our conversations with him, he was completely non judgmental about all sorts of things you might be nervous to tell a rabbi. Ultimately he guided us through writing our own Ketubah, which was so much more personal than a standard issue document. We finished the process itching to keep Rabbi Brent in our lives, and I’m looking forward to the day we have him over for a drink.

ength of our relationship. All of our guests commented on how amazing he is. We are lucky to have met him and have had him as a part of this process. He is an incredible human and would recommend him to anyone.

12 sessions we met with him leading up to our Wedding day. During the ceremony it was evident that Rabbi Brent really knew us and created an atmosphere of comfort and inclusivity for everyone present. Majority of our guests commented on how much they loved Rabbi Brent for this reason! One of the most meaningful moments was the signing of the Ketubah. Rabbi Brent made this tradition incredibly meaningful, explaining its significance in a way that resonated deeply with us and our guests. Rabbi Brent’s ability to blend personal and traditional elements truly made our ceremony and wedding unique and special. We are so grateful. We couldn’t have asked for a better officiant to lead us into this new chapter of our lives! Absolutely book him to lead yours!

wish guests alike! One of the most meaningful parts of the wedding for us and our families was our ketubah signing- it was a brief moment to get centered and mentally grounded for all of the madness to come at the ceremony. He was very flexible with our ever changing schedules and just did such a wonderful job from start to finish!

ning our lives together. It can be hard to know if a service like this is worth it, but it was our favorite part of the wedding planning process and, we expect, the most rewarding. Rabbi Brent brings a personal perspective and wisdom that we find ourselves revisiting in the early days of our marriage- it was a gift to work with him in laying the foundation for a long future - thank you Rabbi Brent!

lead to an amazing wedding day, but our many meetings together before the ceremony helped prepare us for the lifetime of marriage ahead of us. These interactions were so personal and instructive with how to approach the milestone of marriage, and working with him to discuss the true challenges and joys of this commitment provided us with an honest, sincere understanding of what is to come. Working with him to craft our own custom Ketubah text was such a meaningful and special experience and we are so glad that we will have this text to guide us throughout our marriage. We also can’t speak highly enough about how wonderful a job Rabbi Brent did on our wedding day. Our immediate family all recount our ketubah signing as their favorite part of the day, and we could not have imagined a more beautiful or meaningful chuppah ceremony. We’ve received feedback from numerous guests, both Jewish and not, about how great Rabbi Brent was and how the ceremony was both personal and accessible. When you work with Rabbi Brent, you become a member of his congregation - this means you are privy to his wisdom, his kindness, and his generosity as he works personally with you as a couple to plan a memorable wedding ceremony and a meaningful life ahead. We are SO glad we chose to work with Rabbi Brent and would do it over again in a heartbeat.

all of these concerns to rest. Rabbi Brent was incredible to work with from day 1. Through our time with him, he encouraged us to ask each other thought provoking questions about the lives we want to lead. The conversations were intriguing and deep without ever getting uncomfortable. Dually, these conversations helped us let Rabbi Brent into our lives and familiarize himself with our relationship so much so that on the day of the wedding when we finally met, it was like being reunited with an old friend. Rabbi Brent was truly a pleasure to work with and I would highly recommend hiring him for your occasion.

magical. If you want a memorable and personal wedding experience, Rabbi Brent is the perfect choice. Our love for each other deepened through our counseling sessions with Rabbi Brent. We have found a life long friend and advocate in Rabbi Brent.

in our lives and relationship. His concept of "pre-marriage" counseling made our relationship stronger in the stressful months leading up to the wedding. At the end of the day we left with a lifelong friend and and mentor, would highly recommend to anyone.

y great place and we loved working with him. The ceremony was exactly what we wanted and he really listened to us. Thank you so much for everything rabbi Brent!! Highly recommend!

his incredible and important stage in our relationship. This work was a highlight for us in the midst of wedding planning. It was so valuable to have time to connect with each other, on what marriage means to us, and why we're doing this. We are very grateful for his humble and honest approach and will continue to recommended him to friends.

could work through big and small details about the future of our relationship. Brent was so kind, professional, compassionate, and thoughtful. Nothing felt cookie-cutter, everything was tailored to us and our unique experiences. It was so easy to talk with him and just as great to listen to him! So many of our guests remarked on how beautiful his words were during our ceremony -- while we were a little over-stimulated and excited while it was all happening, we have so enjoyed re-watching the video of the ceremony and loved all of the personal and touching remarks Brent made. It was the perfect way to start our marriage! Thank you, Brent!

y surprise in the best way: we're an interfaith, interracial couple (Jewish, and Dominican Catholic-turned-atheist), and we didn't come in with too many needs beyond wanting a ceremony that was accessible to everyone and that felt "like us." But we got so much more than what we expected. While planning for a wedding can be a mix of happiness and excitement (as well as wedding-industrial complex hell, at times...) most of it isn't particularly "meaningful," for lack of a better term. In other words, every other vendor for a wedding is, understandably, about locking down details for the big day: flower arrangements, table settings, photos, transportation, etc. We didn't realize that Rabbi Brent would be the only part of the process that ensured we had a built-in time to explore what our marriage really means at large: we were able to really focus on us as a couple, and put the work into investigating how we want to foster a long, healthy relationship together. Rabbi Brent is so compassionate, curious, generous, funny, and wise, and met us where we at every step of the way. There was nothing about his process that was dogmatic or exclusionary to someone who didn't grow up Jewish, but at the same time, he really knows his stuff and how to apply all his knowledge to your individual relationship. It was also fun! We looked forward to our meetings with him so much, and were constantly telling all our friends about it: each time after we met with Rabbi Brent, we'd have a date night and review a thoughtful series of questions he shared with us. Those questions are honestly something I believe every couple, regardless of religion or marital status, would be better for asking and exploring. We came to consider Rabbi Brent a dear friend and part of our community. And the day-of was just as we wanted, too: meaningful, funny, thoughtful, accessible, and felt "like us". We truly could not recommend Rabbi Brent more!

ly created a beautiful wedding ceremony, but was invaluable for us as a couple. I raved about Rabbi Brent and his process to everyone during the months we worked together, and then all of our guests raved about Rabbi Brent and his amazing ceremony to us. He is worth every penny and what you gain from his work is so powerful.

or the first time we understood why. During that first meeting, we sat on his front porch and talked about our family dynamics, our relationship to each other and to Judaism, our thoughts and feelings about marriage as an institution, and why we wanted to get married in the first place. He had a way of making us feel at ease, allowing us to open up about things that are deeply personal but really important to discuss before taking such a huge step in life together. From that afternoon on, through dozens of conversations, he helped us understand each other on a deeper level and communicate effectively about topics that had the potential for causing tension and frustration. He always seemed to have the perfect things to say, drawing from his own writing and his favorite selections from literature (both religious and secular). The ketubah we produced with his guidance is a really special keepsake that we will cherish for the rest of our lives. Working with Rabbi Brent was essentially like doing pre-marriage couples therapy. His process was thorough and it required a significant amount of effort, but it was hands-down the most important investment we made throughout the two years we spent planning our wedding. We formed a really special bond with Rabbi Brent and we feel so fortunate to have him as a resource in our lives, from these early months as newlyweds and beyond. We love him!!

ht of going through the entire process and expense of putting on such a production seemed to be overkill to celebrate something that had already "happened.'' Now, however, thanks primarily to Rabbi Brent, I look back at the lead-up to our wedding and our ceremony as a truly wonderful experience that I believe will pay dividends decades into the future. Alongside helping lead a beautiful wedding, we're convinced the process materially improved the chances of us having a healthy marriage that lasts in the long run. As we began our introductory session, very quickly my wife and I realized that we were about to undergo the furthest thing from an assembly-line process a few of my friends have been disappointed in in their experiences with religious officiants. Rabbi Brent began by quickly leading us into conversations in and out of session with him about the shape and tenor of our lives. These sorts of discussions we had occasionally engaged with but were too polite and non-confrontational to address directly. Rabbi Brent got us talking about what matters, like the shape and tenor of the lives we hoped to live with each other, what marriage meant to both of us, the expectations we had for each other in our relationship, and what role we wanted Judaism to play in our lives. While leading into these conversations, he also gave us the tools to address them more constructively and from a more loving posture. We would check in every few weeks, check in on what serious life topics we discussed and what fights we had. Rabbi Brent is openminded and a professional-grade listener who did a masterful job of taking us into and beyond our disagreements and transforming them into learning opportunities on how we should best engage with each other. While he has a rough schema for the types of topics he wants to get into, he is flexible and skilled enough to use the "material" our relationship raises each week to bring us to where the discussions grow most useful. The principles and tools he introduced and demonstrated on our disagreements helped us look at problems thematically and not settle for one-off solutions. For instance, the framework he kept coming back to, the need to recall the occasionally wide distance between impact and intention, is a really helpful way of looking at relationships I expect to come back to for decades to come. These discussions culminated in an exercise to write a ketubah which was deeply meaningful to both of us. Our relationship was between a Jew and a gentile, and Rabbi Brent handled the discussions with sensitivity and grace. He led a beautiful ceremony us three developed together that was a life highlight. I could not give a stronger recommendation for choosing Rabbi Brent to accompany you and your future spouse through your marriage process. If you have questions feel free to get in touch with me via linkedin or twitter https://www.linkedin.com/in/jorschneider https://twitter.com/jordanschnyc?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor.

rent’s approach is different in the best way. We instantly felt comfortable with him, and looked forward to each meeting together. During this time, not only did he help us to reach a deeper understanding of one another, he also got to know us very well, as individuals and as a couple, which made our ceremony all the more special and meaningful. Our wedding guests are still commenting on how awesome our Rabbi was, and how beautifully he lead our ceremony. My husband and I were raised with different levels of exposure/connection to our Jewish heritages, and Rabbi Brent was an informative and gentle guide through the Jewish learning areas while always being open and not overbearing, and sent us helpful material to learn from on our own. He prepared us for the inevitable ups and downs of a long lasting marriage, and our sessions even helped ground us during the exciting, but also overwhelming process of wedding planning. Our beautiful Ketubah, which is now framed in our living room, was written by us, with the guidance of Rabbi Brent, and we love that it’s so personal to us. After this experience, we believe that this process should be a standard for all couples before getting married. We will surely recommend Rabbi Brent to any Jewish (and Jew-ISH) friends and family who decide to get married in the future.

eremony over 10 Zoom sessions. During these sessions we had thoughtful discussions and Rabbi Brent took the time to get to know us as individuals and as a couple. We come from different religious backgrounds, and he helped facilitate conversations around religion, as well as emotional intelligence, our families, and our relationship. We worked together to write our ketubah and plan our ceremony. On our wedding day, our family and friends were touched by how well Rabbi Brent knew us and how personal and beautiful the ceremony was. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house! We highly recommend working with Rabbi Brent and hope our paths cross again.

ur jewish beliefs was important to us. But also, one that actually knew us as a couple and had a connection to our love and this commitment we were making to each other. While my husband and I did not have relationships with rabbis from growing up, we were starting from scratch. We got married in beacon (The Roundhouse) and during my husbands search for Rabbis in the area, up popped Rabbit Brent Spodek. We met with him in September 2021 in person and from there, we connected instantly. He made us feel comfortable as we shared our story, what we wanted from our wedding, and our dreams and hope for the future as a couple. Leading up to our June 2022 wedding, we spent the next 9 months meeting with Brent over ZOOM for sessions where we talked about our families, the kind of marriage we wanted for ourselves, our communication styles - essentially pre-martial counseling. While we did not anticipate this when we started our rabbi search for our wedding, this was a blessing I know my husband and I are grateful for. Through these sessions, Brent not only got to know us better - but also guide us on how to strengthen our relationship and areas in our relationship that needed support. Two months before the wedding, we talked through logictics of the ceremony and ketbuah - and Brent was incredibly helpful, organized, and knowledgeable. Then, the day of the wedding, when we had our ketubah signing, I was so emotional - in the best way possible. Feeling so grateful for the day and for Rabbi Brent being in our lives and helping us to this day. The ketubah signing and ceremony went off without a hitch. Actually, a bee landed on my hand as I was reading my vows and Rabbi gently brushed it away. He kept us calm, focused, and looking ahead. Even in the sun, while it was quite warm, the rabbi kept his cool. I know he will be a part of our lives forever and we are forever thankful to Rabbi Brent.

ut the months leading up to the wedding and after. When we met with Rabbi Brent – we knew instantly it was a perfect match. He not only made our ceremony so personable, but he made the months leading up to the wedding so joyous. He reminded us of the importance to break barriers and really develop our emotional intelligence. He helped us understand our love languages and value what we were doing well in our relationship. Our wedding ceremony was also perfect. Our friends all commented on how personable and authentic it was. Rabbi Brent is someone you will love spending time with! We cannot say enough positive things about him as a rabbi and a person! We will cherish the discussions and ceremony for the rest of our lives! We HIGHLY recommend Brent!

e about the minutia of wedding planning, but also wanted to spend time preparing ourselves for the commitments we were about to make to each other. Rabbi Brent is more than just a wedding officiant. He gently and lovingly guided us through a process of learning about ourselves and each other. Our time meeting with him, working through a list of questions as a couple (over some wine), and writing letters to each other helped clarify why we decided to take this next step as a couple. Our letters to each other were the basis of the formal commitments we made to each other on our wedding day (in the form of a Ketubah). We are able to look at our ketubah every day and reaffirm our promises to each other. Our family and friends who attended our wedding spoke so highly of Rabbi Brent. They marveled at how beautiful the ceremony was and how well he knew us. The ceremony was deeply personal and reflected all of the work we did with Rabbi Brent. We feel so indebted to him for helping us become a stronger couple. We highly recommend him!

reciation of religious thought balanced by an understanding of the world we live in today. He is thoughtful, extremely knowledgeable, and compassionate. He infused the harried wedding preparation with meaning and value that can often get lost in the shuffle. We are so appreciative of his guidance.