The Atlantic

Mentorship That Goes Beyond Career Advice

Two rabbis in Washington, D.C., say that, for them, the relationship is about finding someone who knows and challenges you.
Source: Kristina Barker / AP

Often mentorship is thought of as a relationship that can help younger workers get to the next step of the corporate hierarchy. But many people work in settings that are not at all corporate. How is mentorship different for these careers? What kinds of coaching and support do people need when their work focuses matters of spirituality and faith?

For ’s series about mentorship, “,” I talked to Rabbi Scott Perlo and Rabbi Shira Stutman about their work together at Sixth & I, a historic synagogue in the heart of Washington, D.C., where Stutman serves as Perlo’s mentor. The two have worked with each other to engage more deeply with thousands of years of Jewish tradition, and spoke about how their relationship has helped each sharpen their understanding of what it means to be a

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