REVERE —   Mark Sokoll is a busy man. Not only is he CEO of the Jewish Community Centers of Greater Boston, he has been the rabbi at Temple B’nai Israel for nearly 25 years. As the pressure builds among JCCs to stay vibrant and relevant, Sokoll’s job is more demanding; so he will pass the torch to a new rabbi this fall.

“The way that I became a rabbi had to do almost completely with the temple, so it was always my intention only to be there,” Sokoll said.

After living in Israel with his wife for 10 years, Sokoll decided in the mid-1980s to return to Boston. His mother-in-law’s rabbi, David Neiman of Temple B’nai Israel in Beachmont, was looking to retire. Sokoll became Neiman’s apprentice for three years at the same time as he began studying for a masters in Judaic Studies at Brandeis University. After that time, Sokoll went before a Beit Din in New York and was officially ordained as a rabbi.

“David was a professor of theology at Boston College and a Talmudic scholar, a wonderful human being and a wonderful teacher. I did a kind of rabbi internship with him, and I learned a tremendous amount,” Sokoll said.

Sokoll plans to use his freed up schedule to dedicate even more energy to his position as CEO of the Jewish Community Centers of Greater Boston.

“I plan to keep giving every ounce of energy I’ve been giving for the last 10 years,” Sokoll said. “We’re increasingly focused on strengthening Jewish identity for the new generations out there now in the community. This is the age of choice, of conversion and diversity. The JCCs are a resource for people making choices in their lives. We can be a source of meaning and connection.”

But while he looks forward to his rededication to that role, Sokoll will miss being the rabbi at Temple B’nai Israel.

“I will miss the love and the warmth of the congregation, and the learning that we did together, and the growing and the changing that we did. It’s been so rewarding, such a very spiritual experience,” he said.

Indeed, Sokoll was more interested in praising his congregation than talking about himself.

“It’s an unbelievable congregation. They’ve been willing to experiment, and I’ve come in with some new ideas. We do guided meditations, a healing service. We have a musical Friday night Shabbat service with a klezmer band. We’ve had bat mitzvah ceremonies for women who never had one when they were younger. We’ve even had a b’nai mitzvot ceremony for adults with special needs. Also, the role of women has really expanded and changed, and a lot of the leadership is now women,” he said.

“To quote Pirkei Avot, I learned a lot from my teachers, more from my colleagues, but from my students most of all. They’ve really taught me what it means to be a community of people who care about each other. They could teach a lot of people what that really means.”

The rabbi is as popular with his congregation as they are with him. Debby Cherry, the first female president of the congregation, said “Mark has been extraordinary and outstanding.

“He’s brought me on a spiritual journey,” Cherry continued, “particularly on a trip to Israel when I really understood in my soul that I was Jewish. He’s taught us everything from the liturgy to practical lessons that can be applied throughout life. This is definitely the majority opinion of him. You could talk to anyone and they’ll just go on and on.”

Cherry said she and the rest of Temple B’nai Israel will miss Sokoll. “Many of us have a wonderful connection to Mark, and we’re very comfortable with him.”

Even so, Cherry is excited for the new rabbi, Joseph Berman, who will begin his tenure by sharing the High Holy Day services with Sokoll this year.

“Like Mark was, he’s young and he’s a new rabbinic graduate. We as a congregation grew with Mark and he grew with us; my hope is that the same thing happens with Rabbi Berman. Change always brings opportunity,” Cherry said.

A brunch will be held in honor of Rabbi Mark Sokoll’s 25 years of service to Temple B’nai Israel on Sunday, June 27, at 11 a.m. at the Peabody Marriot. RSVP to Temple B’nai Israel at 781-284-8388.