Germany Gets 1st Military Rabbi in Over a Century

Zsolt Balla, State Rabbi of Saxony, stands in the synagogue in Leipzig, Germany on June 21, 2021, after his induction into the office of Military Rabbi of the Armed Forces. Hendrik Schmidt/dpa via AP

BERLIN—The German military got its first rabbi in over a century Monday, with the inauguration to the post of Hungarian-born Zsolt Balla at a synagogue in Leipzig.

The German government in 2019 approved a proposal by the Central Council of Jews to restore religious counseling for Jews serving in the armed forces.