Fresh Updates from RAC

Our cup runneth over! Because of our collective efforts, we flooded the Senate with some 10,000 calls from Americans of faith at precisely the right moment preceding the Senate debate and imminent vote on a bill.

Our success is a testament to the dedication of more than 75 diverse religious denominations and organizations who worked tirelessly to promote Faiths Calling and to encourage their members and congregants to call the Senate.

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As you sit down for your seder this year, prepare for a richer experience. These specialized haggadahs provide insight and awareness for a more meaningful seder. Whether you download an entire haggadah focused on one social justice issue or adding thematic supplements, Pesach is the perfect opportunity to inform our Jewish rituals with social justice concerns.

Visit our holiday guide for even more resources to enhance your Passover!

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Fun costumes, drinking (for those who drink), delicious hamentaschen, Haman (booo!), Esther and Mordecai, another tale of Jewish persecution and redemption: these are the first thoughts that come to mind when I think of Purim. I grew up living a somewhat ‘typical’ Reform Jewish East Coast life, where I learned about and celebrated the various Jewish holidays at Hebrew school, camp, and youth group. The annual production of the Purim Spiel in my home congregation was a huge deal; an outside producer was even hired as the director! As a child, Purim served solely as an excuse to dress up in costume and run around with friends.

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Earlier this week, Reform Movement leaders outlined their hopes and priorities for President Obama’s State of the Union address. President Obama spoke about almost all the issues our leadership raised, including:

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Tonight, President Obama will deliver his State of the Union address to Congress and the nation. Leaders of the Reform Jewish Movement are highlighting key issues they hope President Obama will address in the speech and calling on the President and Members of Congress to act swiftly on pressing domestic and international concerns.

Watch it here after the jump & watch the President’s address to this joint session of Congress. Weigh in yourself by following us on Twitter, @theRAC.
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In response to the Supreme Court Decision on the constitutionality of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, Rabbi David Saperstein, Director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, released the following statement:

Today is a bright day for our nation, and, especially, for those whose access to health care is fragile. Today’s historic ruling on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) is a victory for those whose believe, as we do, that health care is a fundamental right, and, especially given the lead opinion by Chief Justice Roberts, a victory for the court itself.

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As two recent college graduates with many friends who are unemployed or working as unpaid interns, we are all too familiar with bleak employment and financial prospects. It’s disheartening to know, though, that even as the economy begins to recover, statistics show that Katharine might still be paid an average of 77 cents on every dollar that Ian makes, simply because she’s a woman. This disparity is widened for minorities.

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The following is a profile of Rabbi Miri Gold that IRAC published back in July of 2006. We’re reposting it here at this time given yesterday’s landmark decision in Israel to actually provide funding for Rabbi Gold. Check out the coverage in the Washington Post or the New York Times. Or read Rabbi Rick Jacobs’ Ha’aretz article.

Obviously this victory was the result of a broad effort on the part of the Reform Jewish community around the world, and the responses poured in over the last 24 hours. Rabbi Rick Jacobs, President of the Union for Reform Judaism, and Rabbi Daniel Allen, Executive Director of ARZA: The Reform Israel Fund, released a statement welcoming the news as “historic.” You may have read Anat Hoffman’s statement we posted here yesterday, where she called on us to say a shecheyanu, and Rabbi Gilad Kariv, director of the Israel Movement for Progressive Judaism said it “is a major breakthrough in the effort to promote freedom of religion in Israel.”

Read after the jump for the profile of Rabbi Gold from the early days of the struggle. Read more…