Myer S. Kripke

Kripke endowed the Kripke National Jewish Book Award for Education and Jewish Identity in memory of his wife Dorothy, who died in 2000.

In 1946, Kripke became the Rabbi at the Conservative Jewish Beth El synagogue in Omaha, Nebraska. He held this position from 1946 to 1975. In 1975, he was named rabbi emeritus at Beth El. From 1976–90, Kripke was an adjunct Associate Professor of Theology at Creighton University, regularly teaching courses in Judaism and Hebrew Bible. He toured various cities as a lecturer and speaker. Starting in 1980, Kripke wrote a commentary on the weekly Torah portion for the Omaha Jewish Press.

Kripke met his wife, Dorothy Karp, at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, while both were students there. They married in 1937. His children were Madeline Kripke, a book collector, and Saul Kripke, a philosopher.

In 1930 Kripke moved to New York to study at New York University and the Jewish Theological Seminary of America. He graduated from New York University Phi Beta Kappa and earned a master's degree in philosophy from Columbia University. He received his master's, doctoral, and rabbinical degrees from the Jewish Theological Seminary of America in New York City. He was senior class president at the seminary in 1937.

Myer Samuel Kripke (January 21, 1914 – April 11, 2014) was an American rabbi, scholar, and philanthropist. He was based in Omaha, Nebraska.

Kripke was born on January 21, 1914 in Toledo, Ohio, to parents Jacob "J. Michael" Kripke and Nettie Kripke (née Goldman). Kripke was one of seven children: Harold, Sidney, Albert, Homer, Shirley, and Joseph. His father bought and sold containers (bottles, barrels). Kripke's parents were from Poland. In the 1860s, his family settled in Cleveland, Ohio.