Nearly 50 years ago, the Mollo family belonged to Main Line Reform Temple-Beth Elohim.
Mother Holly Mollo sang in the choir. Father Thom Mollo converted to Judaism there. And daughter Alyssa received her Hebrew name at the Wynnewood synagogue.

The family’s younger child – son Eric Mollo – was not yet born. He’s the only one with no history at MLRT.

Until now.

Mollo, a rabbi, is returning to the place that helped start the Jewish life of his household. He was hired as the synagogue’s associate rabbi. His first Shabbat will be on July 5.

“Joining MLRT feels like a homecoming for me,” the rabbi wrote in an introductory note to the community now posted on mlrt.org.

Mollo is the child of Philadelphians, and he made a point of saying he roots for the Eagles in his opening message. But the rabbi was born after the family moved to State College, where his dad opened a podiatry practice. That’s also where he grew up and attended Penn State University.

At Penn State, a pre-law adviser told him that international business law was just drawing up contracts in isolation.

“Do you really want to do that?” she asked. “It doesn’t seem like who you are.”

He decided to attend rabbinical school instead. Mollo’s mother was the religious school principal at his childhood synagogue, Congregation Brit Sholom. The rabbi always felt the importance of Judaism, he said.

“I grew up in congregational life,” he added.

His journey took him to Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion in Cincinnati, where he met his wife, Rabbi Carolan Glatstein. The couple went from there to Temple Chayai Shalom in Easton, Massachusetts, and then the Tree of Life Congregation in Columbia, South Carolina.

They worked together in South Carolina, Mollo as senior rabbi of the 160-family congregation and Glatstein as rabbi educator. They have also worked together for the past five years at Temple B’nai B’rith in Wilkes-Barre, Mollo as senior rabbi of the 120-family congregation and Glatstein in senior programming and the religious school.

Along the way, the couple had two daughters, Izzie and Rosie, and picked up a dog, Trinket, a pit/beagle mix. But there was one more big step to take, according to Mollo.

The rabbi had served as a senior spiritual leader. But Tree of Life, Chayai Shalom and B’nai B’rith were all smaller congregations. He wanted to try to help lead a bigger one.

Main Line Reform Temple-Beth Elohim is one of the largest Reform synagogues in the Philadelphia area with 905 households. Under its previous rabbi, David Straus, who retired in 2022, the synagogue underwent a $10 million renovation that added worship spaces and wheelchair accessibility. Its Early Childhood Education center and religious school welcome more than 150 and 300 students annually.

Mollo saw the associate rabbi opening on a job board on the Central Conference of American Rabbis’ website. He knew he had to apply.

“Here was a very different opportunity,” he said. “I get to pursue congregational life on a much larger scale with a clergy team.”

Mollo said he’s excited to work with Senior Rabbi Geri Newburge, Cantor Faryn Rudnick, Associate Rabbi Kevin Kleinman, Director of Youth Engagement Ross M. Levy and Early Childhood Education Director Mihaela Schwartz.

“They are all highly regarded professionals in their respective fields, and I hope that, together, we will reach even greater heights for MLRT,” he said.

Mollo is co-chair of the Pennsylvania chapter of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, an advocacy organization at the state level. He expects to take on a similar role at MLRT. The rabbi hopes to galvanize congregants to work on issues such as gun violence and interfaith collaboration.

He thinks the latter is particularly important in the post-Oct. 7 environment of rising antisemitism.

“Now more than ever there is a need for interfaith collaboration,” he said.

The rabbi and his family moved to their new home in Newtown Square over the weekend of June 1 and 2. His wife, who is also an artist, is going to look for opportunities in Jewish art and teaching.

Mollo has finally arrived in the Philadelphia area and at MLRT.

“I’m home,” he said.

jsaffren@midatlanticmedia.com