Is there a “highest” Jew like the Catholic Pope or the Mormon Prophet?
There is no “highest Jew” per se but there are “chief Rabbis. This is a title given to the recognized head of the Jewish community in a country. Rabbi Yona Mertzger and Rabbi Shlomo Amar are the chief Rabbis of Israel. In Israel they preside of the Rabbinate which is a kind of council that has pretty strict control over marriage, divorce, conversion and who is a Jew according to halacha for purposes of aliya (immigation). A lot of Israelis get married in other countries so they don’t have to deal with them. In the US, there is not one but many. For instance, Rabbi Schneerson was the Lubavitchor Rebbe but he died and he left no successor. A community will tend to follow the Rabbi of their area. Where a Rabbi goes for instruction depends on what branch he is. In Reform there are schools in Ohio and New York (among other places). Conservative has the JTS and the American Jewish University. Orthodoxy has several rabbinical colleges as well. Good question. Out of the realm of the “usual”.
