🤠 Meet Our Team
Rabbi Dan Ain
Rabbi & Co-Founder
Rabbi Dan finds holiness through honest conversation, creating space where people can speak freely and exchange challenging ideas within the context of Jewish community, tradition and ritual. After his ordination from The Jewish Theological Seminary, Rabbi Dan served as the rabbi of The New Shul in Manhattan, and was Director of Tradition and Innovation at New York's 92nd St. Y. He founded the Brooklyn based organization Because Jewish and served as Senior Rabbi of Congregation Beth Sholom in San Francisco from 2018–2022, when he relocated to Austin.
Alana Joblin Ain
President & Co-Founder
Alana Joblin Ain is a writer and educator whose work has appeared in Rattle, Tablet, The Forward, and The New York Times, among other publications. She holds an MFA in poetry from Hunter College, where she taught undergraduate writing. She co-founded Because Jewish alongside Rabbi Dan and leads Moontower Verses, a quarterly writer conversation series at Chez Zee. She currently lives in Austin with her family.
Jonathan Troen
Meditation Leader
Jonathan Troen is a leading authority on emotional intelligence, inner leadership, and sustainable success. As the creator of the Self Love Revolution and the Emotional Intelligence Mastery System, his groundbreaking methodology helps people break free from burnout, build deep emotional resilience, and create lasting fulfillment — both personally and professionally. He is also co-founder of the renowned Austin mindfulness center Austin Yoga Tree, and a respected voice in the personal development world. Jonathan's core message is this: success begins with how you treat yourself. When you master that relationship, every part of your life transforms.
David Rabinowicz
Musical Director
David Rabinowicz was born into a multicultural family — every member of his immediate family was born on a different continent. Growing up surrounded by different languages and traditions shaped his holistic, multifaceted approach to music. Drawing deeply from his Jewish and Latino roots and from a multitude of instruments, instrumentalists, and genres, David is always searching for a musical and artistic voice that is truly his own. He sings, plays guitar and piano, and writes with the band Big Love Car Wash.