Abby Chava Stein (Yiddish: אביגיל חוה שטיין, born October 1, 1991[1]) is an Israeli-American transgender author, rabbi, activist,[2] blogger,[3] model, and speaker.

[10] For the Jewish year of 5785, beginning in September 2024, Stein will serve as part-time rabbi of Kolot Chayeinu, a progressive non-denominational synagogue in Park Slope, Brooklyn, New York.

[11] Stein was born to a family of notable Hasidic leaders, in 1991 in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York City, as the sixth of thirteen children.

[b] Stein attended the Viznitz yeshiva in Kiamesha Lake, New York,[16] for her high school and rabbinical education; she received semikha in 2011.

In her book,[1] as well as in numerous interviews, Stein credits the New York City-based non-profit Footsteps with helping her succeed after she left the Hasidic community, even calling their work "life saving.

"[18] In a March 2021 interview with the New York magazine, she credits Footsteps therapists with helping her both when she left the Hasidic community and later came out as a transgender woman.

Stein said that speaking with a Footsteps social worker "Was the first time I ever spoke to a professional where I felt listened to, as opposed to feeling like a problem that needed solving.

[43]Stein's first book, Becoming Eve: My Journey from Ultra Orthodox Rabbi to Transgender Woman, a memoir, was published by Seal Press (Hachette) on November 12, 2019.

[48] Becoming Eve has been translated into Dutch, and was published under the title Eigenlijk Eva: Mijn transitie van ultraorthodoxe rabbi tot trans-vrouw by De Geus on January 18, 2022.

[51] It is to be published by Ben Yehuda Press,[52] who describe the book as "Jewish views on gender and sexuality anthologized from Biblical, Talmudic, Midrashic, Rabbinic, and Chassidic sources with contemporary and personal commentary," with publication date set for September 2nd, 2025.

[53] Stein was profiled in, and wrote the foreword for, Peter Bussian's book of portraits, Trans New York: Photos and Stories of Transgender New Yorkers.

Stein wrote an essay specifically for the book, titled, Trans Woman (and Former Hasidic Jew): Atheists Should Support the LGBTQ Movement (ISBN 978-0692989647).

[64] Stein also contributed to Jewels of Elul: A Letter to Myself XII, a collection of essays published by singer / songwriter and music producer, Craig Taubman.

[80] Stein's avid blogging also gained her a big following in the Jewish community, and she has become a role model for former ultra-Orthodox Jews – both LGBTQ and not.

[84] In 2018, Stein co-founded her own feminist/womanist multi-faith and inclusive celebration of women and non-binary people of all faith traditions, called Sacred Space, with former Mormon feminist and founder of Ordain Women, human rights lawyer Kate Kelly, and Yale Divinity School professor and Baptist preacher Eboni Marshall-Turman.

[85] During the 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries, Stein served as a national Surrogate[further explanation needed] for the Bernie Sanders campaign.

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[97] Stein's first public appearance was in a promotional video for Footsteps 10th anniversary gala in 2013, where she was interviewed about her experience leaving the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community.

[101] In addition to public speaking, she also teaches classes on gender within Judaism, as well as bringing attention to trans people from Orthodox communities.

According to a 2017 report by Hillel, "Stein has visited more than 100 campuses, sharing her story with thousands of students, in hopes of teaching them the importance of inclusivity, and that 'Judaism and queerness are not a contradiction'.

"[107] Her events drew hundreds of students, where she talks about her life, Transgender in Judaism, Intersectionality, policy, and politics, as it relates to the LGBTQ community, and consulting on how to be more inclusive.

[123] A February 2022 article in Distractify claimed that the transgender rabbi character (played by Hari Nef) in episode 10 of And Just Like That… was based on Stein.

[124] As of the High Holy Days 5784 (September 2023), Stein has been working as a rabbi and scholar-in-residence at The New Shul, a Non-Denominational progressive synagogue in Manhattan's West Village.

The AJPA commented by saying that, "This piece captures the humanity of Abby Stein, with an abundance of quietly telling details (like what she's eating during the interview).

"[149] In addition to a long list of interviews with major national and international news networks,[d] Stein has also been featured in several TV segments in the United States, Canada, Israel, Bulgaria, and more – in English, French, Hebrew, Bulgarian, Russian, Spanish, and Yiddish.