my name is mati and i’m a disabled autistic student and teacher of jewish tradition(s) and texts based in the principals of neurodiversity & disability justice

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my story began with a curious kid hanging out in the back of the synagogue. from my earliest years I’ve always been deeply drawn to our community - the songs, the traditions, the rituals - but i needed something more - a place where all people are welcome. that’s why i’m now studying to be a rabbi.

As a multi-disabled autistic and ADHD person with POTS and dyspraxia, I deeply understand the challenges faced by my fellow neurodivergent and disabled humans. My life's work is rooted in fighting ableism and amplifying the voices of those who have been silenced by others who do not have the lived experience of our reality.

I lead support groups, educational seminars and trainings, provide peer support and spiritual direction to autistic people, both Jewish and non-Jewish, and teach disability and neurodivergent Torah worldwide.

I’m studying for rabbinic ordination at the École Rabbinique de Paris and am pursuing my doctorate on the treatment of neurodivergence and madness in Jewish texts. I’m also a fellow in the Pedagogy Chaburah at SVARA and studying in the Classic Talmud Program of Yashrut.

I’m the co-founder and spiritual director of La Shul, an intentionally egalitarian, queer, disabled, neuro-affirming, neo-hasidic, diasporist spiritual Jewish community in France. We put a big emphasis onto ecstatic prayer, self-actualization, serious learning, and social justice in action as a means of connecting with the Divine.

I love reading our traditional texts, particularly the Talmud, the Zohar, and the Hasidic masters through the lens of autism, Neuroqueer Theory, and madness, seeing how these have influenced both our theology and liturgy and how we can reinterpret them anew.

I explore how our texts, and the practices and belief systems that have emerged from them, can affirm autistic, neurodivergent, and queer experiences and reframe traditional views of disability, gender, sexism and xenophobia (and how often, they simply cannot). My spiritual journey draws deeply on the teachings of the Hasidic and Neo-Hasidic masters, Mordecai Kaplan and Reconstructionist Judaism, and the traditionally radical thinkers of the Reform movement in Europe and the United States.

I am committed to creating neuro-affirming and disability-affirming spaces with the Jewish community that address sensory, emotional, physical and cognitive needs while challenging and confronting ableism. Inclusivity means ensuring that everyone feels valued and included from the outset, not as an afterthought. I aim to foster a spiritual practice that reflects the true diversity of human experience, where everyone, regardless of neurocognitive style, neurotype, or way of being can find a place to belong and thrive.

Embodied prayer is central to my practice and I find deep connection in walking and praying, hitbodedut, hashkata, and dance meditation. These practices ground me and enrich my spiritual journey and I believe them to be an essential thing for seekers to try, even if you’ve tried before. Meditation for neurodivergent and disabled people is different and my practice and teachings keep that in mind. Our practices need to work for us.

I studied Jewish Philosophy and Jewish History at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Indiana University, where I completed my thesis on the Hasidic concept of Dirah beTachtonim under Rabbi Dr Shaul Magid.

My religious studies have taken me to seminaries as diverse as Yeshivat Mayanot, Yeshivat Bat Ayin, and Yeshivat Hamivtar. While they don't represent my current worldview and outlook on Torah and Jewish practice, they have all been crucial to my growth, and the Torah I learned there has been, and continues to be, vital to my spiritual, personal, and professional development (which are ultimately, the same). I am eternally grateful for and to all of my teachers and classmates.

I hold a certificate in Jewish Mindfulness Practice for Jewish Communal Professionals from the Institute for Jewish Spirituality and Yael Shy and I am a graduate of the Jewish Learning Venture’s Neurodivergent Teacher Training program.

I serve on the Advisory Board of Jewish Disability Inclusion News and am the Education Director and Peer-Support Coordinator of the Jewish Autism Network.

I’m also the co-editor of Neurodivergent Torah Volume 1, which will be published in 2026 by Ben Yehuda Press.

Outside of my work with the Jewish community, I am the founder of the #ActuallyAutistic Coach, an educational consultancy for autistic adults and the general public.

I’m the Co-Founder and Lead Trainer of the Autistic Peer Support Coach Collective, an international organization of autistic peer-support coaches dedicated to supporting fellow autistic adults from a neuro-affirming perspective. Our mission is to foster environments where autistic humans can thrive in community with other autistic humans and support ourselves from within the community.

Additionally, I am an Autism Coach with the APCA, the only professional organization of autism life coaches in the United States.

My spiritual, personal, and professional journeys are one, and I am fortunate and grateful to have the opportunity to travel on this path.

You can read more about my work here and sign up for classes and events here. Want to work together? Let’s chat!