Fifty-one percent of students within “non-Orthodox rabbinical training programs” identify as LGBTQ+, according to the Atra’s report “Calling to Career: Mapping the Current State and Future of Rabbinic Leadership.”

When I read this data point aloud while speaking on a panel last week at the Jewish Federations of North America General Assembly, the room filled with applause. Since that moment, I have seen more commentary expressing concern about it — and I want to offer reassurance from my perspective as an LGBTQ+ Jewish communal leader.

Robust representation of marginalized identities in leadership is a signifier of communal strength and health. It is a mark of pride that our rabbinic leadership increasingly reflects the diversity of our community.  

Decades of hard work made this possible. When Keshet was founded in 1996, many LGBTQ+ Jews were alienated from Jewish life: Jewish institutions at large did not relate to LGBTQ+ Jews as part of Jewish life; and during the height of the AIDS crisis, less than a decade before, most synagogues had failed to be the safe havens LGBTQ+ Jews needed to grieve, be comforted and heal with their Jewish community.

Today, we are on the other side of over 25 years of institutional change work, of tens of thousands of LGBTQ+ inclusion trainings for Jewish professionals and lay leaders. These trainings and consultations have taken place in synagogues, JCCs, Jewish day schools, youth movements, summer camps, Hillels, among others — exactly where rabbis today are seeking employment. 

It is no surprise that the outcome is that more and more LGBTQ+ Jews feel embraced by their Jewish communities and called to serve as leaders in the Jewish community — that is what moving ever-closer to belonging looks like. And it benefits all members of our community, not just LGBTQ+ members.

The argument that fifty-one percent LGBTQ+ representation indicates that the rabbinate is a “countercultural career choice” was, frankly, baffling to read. 

Yes, we have never been more openly represented on the bima than we are now; however, we have always been interwoven throughout the fabric of Jewish life. The contributions of LGBTQ+ Jews can be seen — are, indeed, enjoyed — in every aspect of Jewish life: our texts, our scholarship, our liturgy, the melodies we sing every week, the rituals that enrich our holidays and more.

We are not counter to Jewish culture: we are inextricable from it. 

As our experiences of belonging and our visibility increase, we will continue to see more and more people coming out in each generation. And queer Jews will continue to take on leadership in ever greater numbers. 

Fifty-one percent may feel disproportionate to some, but when I consider my own experiences as an LGBTQ+ Jewish leader, I am not surprised to see this, especially at this point in time. In my life and line of work, I meet numerous people who seek to lead and serve as agents of change in their communities specifically because they experienced ostracism and otherness themselves within those communities. I fall into that category myself, and I imagine this may also apply to some of the rabbinical students who participated in this survey. Many of us want to see our communities achieve their full potential. However, we LGBTQ+ Jews are also not a monolith: just like every community, the LGBTQ+ Jewish community reflects a vast variety of identities, experiences, beliefs — and reasons for answering a rabbinic calling. 

What gives me the most hope about this data point from Atra is what it will mean for our future generations. More and more LGBTQ+ Jewish youth will see themselves reflected in their community’s leadership. They will hear their own stories centered in sermons delivered from the bima. They will have further reassurance that their needs and safety are being prioritized. For my fellow LGBTQ+ Jews reading this, can you imagine what having a proudly LGBTQ+ rabbi would have meant for us growing up?

We know from the Trevor Project’s research that having at least one older LGBTQ+ adult role model in their lives is associated with positive outcomes for LGBTQ+ youth, including higher rates of self-reported life purpose and lower rates of suicidality. We also know that only 12% and 13% of LGBTQ+ youth report having access to LGBTQ+ adult role models in their community or school, respectively.

I know I want to see a world in which every LGBTQ+ Jewish young person has access to LGBTQ+ Jewish adult role models in their synagogues, schools and other Jewish institutions. I want the Jewish community to stand out in how representative and affirming we are of our full diversity. When a thriving LGBTQ+ Jewish adult looks back on their journey, I want them to see that it was lined with an abundance of role models who both paved the way and cheered them on at every turn.

While Atra’s report is a promising sign that we are on our way, we also know that this road is not without its obstacles.

In the year following Oct. 7, 2023, the Jewish community experienced a “surge” in engagement in Jewish life. Data collected in 2024 by JFNA indicated that this surge was especially pronounced among LGBTQ+ Jews, as well as other marginalized groups.

Today, new data tells a different story. The aforementioned surge is beginning to contract, and LGBTQ+ Jews are expressing a desire to engage in Jewish life at lower rates than other marginalized groups. Knowing the backdrop against which this contraction is taking place — that hundreds of anti-LGBTQ+ pieces of legislation, the majority targeting trans, nonbinary and intersex people, have been proposed across the U.S. in 2025, amid rising antisemitism, racism, xenophobia and so many other forms of hate — my heart cannot help but ache at the reality that many LGBTQ+ Jews are not finding the safe havens we need today in our Jewish institutions.

This data invites us to ask: What are LGBTQ+ Jews experiencing in broader Jewish communal life that may be detracting from the sense of belonging that inspires engagement? How might our institutions be missing the mark on affirming LGBTQ+ Jews?

Today’s LGBTQ+ rabbinical students are preparing themselves to answer the call to lead the Jewish community toward an affirming, vibrant future for all. Is the rest of our Jewish community ready to pursue that future with them? 

Jaimie Krass is the president and CEO of Keshet, the leading national organization working for the full equality of LGBTQ+ Jews and our families in Jewish life.