Rabbi Elie Abadie, M.D., descends from a distinguished rabbinic lineage tracing back to 15th-century Spain and Provence. After the 1492 expulsion, his family lived in Italy, the Balkans, Greece, Turkey, Syria, and Lebanon. Born in Beirut and raised in Mexico City, he moved to the U.S. at 18 to study medicine.

Rabbi Abadie is President of JJAC (Justice for Jews from Arab Countries), Founder of the Sephardic Academy of Manhattan, and Founder and Rabbi of Manhattan East Synagogue on the Upper East Side. He previously directed the Jacob E. Safra Institute of Sephardic Studies at Yeshiva University and taught Sephardic Judaism, history, and law. He is Vice-President of the New York Board of Rabbis and serves on the Governing Council of the World Zionist Organization. He also maintains a private Gastroenterology practice.