Among the warm smiles, and greetings were our RAC upstairs neighbors’ Rabbi Scott Sperling, Lisa Helfman and Lynda McCann Gilman. They immediately offered me lunch and I decided to sit on a workshop about synagogue leadership. After the workshop was over, I went into the Plenary session where I had a chance to listen to Rafi Harpaz, Minister Counselor of Public Affairs at the Embassy of Israel, speak about the Israeli-Lebanon conflict from the past summer. He also spoke about upcoming challenges that Israel would face and the current struggles to find the missing Israeli soldiers.

After the speech was over, I had a chance to meet with Emily Grotta, the Director of Marketing and Communications for the Union for Reform Judaism, and sit in her marketing workshop. The participants of the workshop were eager to find ways to reach out to their communities and their congregations. The Union for Reform Judaism and the Religious Action Center work on a daily basis with congregations to help them reach out to their local communities and if our assistance is ever needed- just call!

During the course of the MAC Biennial, RAC staff participated and led various workshops. Barbara Weinstein, the Religious Action Center’s Legislative Director, ran a workshop entitled: Speaking Truth to Power: A Guide for Congregations Engaged in Social Action Advocacy. Barbara spoke about the importance of advocacy, Jewish values that compel us to speak out on social issues, tools for successful advocacy, and the legal dos and don'ts that are imperative for all congregations to know.

The rest of my day consisted of greeting people and introducing myself as the Religious Action Center Press Secretary. I was glad that I was able to get to know the Mid-Atlantic Council a bit better and was able to get a feel for the needs of congregations. All in all, I felt the warmth and the kindness of participants of the MAC biennial and was glad that I was able to go. I encourage you to check out the MAC website. Pictures have been posted!