Women of Reform Judaism

Ambassador Susan Rice, U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations and a member of President Obama’s Cabinet, told attendees at the RAC’s Consultation on Conscience Sunday night that not only does she love her work, but she feels it is a huge privilege to work on so many significant world issues while representing the United [...]

Editors’ Note: WRJ released a statement on this prayer service. Hello again from Israel and, in particular, from Jerusalem. Today was simply an experience almost too profound to articulate. We were awakened by our 5:30 a.m. wake-up call so we could have a cup of coffee, a quick bite of breakfast, and be on the [...]

Yesterday six of the group headed from their plane to Rosh Hanikra at the Lebanese border. Following their cable car ride to the sea, they then learned about the caves cut out by the British. They headed back to Tel Aviv but not before having lunch at the Tishbi Winery, which include a wine and [...]

I have discovered the fountain of youth… attend NFTY Convention! Our kids are AMAZING!  They come in all shapes and sizes, wear crazy clothes, and cling to each other like window stickers. They love being Jewish! They celebrate Shabbat with joy and exuberance. They pray and worship with reverence and intent. They sing and dance [...]

During a Shabbat weekend at the end of January, something very special happened – the start of our Centennial, a celebration of 100 years of Reform Jewish women’s accomplishments. Nearly 250 North American women traveled from cities and suburbs; small congregations and super-sized ones; North, West, South, and East to Cincinnati, OH, birthplace of WRJ [...]

Do you remember when you counted the days until Hanukkah arrived? I can still picture my mom polishing the traditional brass lion menorah and buying new candles from our Temple Sisterhood. I was allowed to select just the perfect candles, sometimes placed in order by colors and sometimes chosen to simply be bright and happy. [...]

Erev Shabbat Memorial Day weekend found me seated in the 115-year-old sanctuary of my home synagogue Congregation Shaarai Shomayim in Lancaster, PA, for our confirmation service. Unlike other Reform confirmations, ours marks a conclusion of our students’ religious education from pre-school through twelfth grade. Several years ago, our rabbi, Jack Paskoff, proposed changing Confirmation from [...]

We’re now in Bemidbar or Numbers, the fourth book of Torah. Naso, the second portion in Bemidbar, is the longest portion in our Torah. Here are some interesting Naso facts: Naso has 176 verses. In the diaspora, it is always read on the first Shabbat after Shavuot. It includes the dedication/consecration of the tabernacle. Many [...]

As we all know (I hope!), our thirteen Reform camps offer the most inspiring Judaism our children can experience. More than 10,000 youngsters had a taste of a Reform Jewish summer in 2011, and this year’s registration numbers are even better. I have the pleasure of serving as the Chair of the URJ Camp Harlam [...]

This past Wednesday JBI International (formerly the Jewish Braille Institute of America) celebrated the 80th anniversary of its founding. I was delighted to travel to NYC and attend the event along with several other WRJ women including Executive Director Rabbi Marla Feldman, Manager of Development and Special Projects Liz Rosenblum, and former WRJ Board of [...]