URJ President to Spend Night at Synagogue Homeless Shelter He Founded 30 Years Ago
Brooklyn, NY, January 14, 2014 – In 1983, when Rabbi Rick Jacobs was the rabbi at Brooklyn Heights Synagogue (BHS), he had a vision to start a shelter to address the growing problem of homelessness in New York City.
URJ President Rabbi Jacobs Responds to Reports of Murdered Arab Teen
Jerusalem, July 2, 2014 - In response to reports of the death of an Arab teenager in what may be an act of revenge for the murders of Naftali Fraenkel, Gilad Shaar, and Eyal Yifrach, Rabbi Rick Jacobs issued the following statement:
Men of Reform Judaism Announce New Strategic Plan
July 15, 2014, New York, NY - The Men of Reform Judaism (MRJ) met recently in New Orleans for their annual convention where they announced significant organizational changes to better advocate for and support compelling strategies to engage and connect the men of Reform Judaism.
URJ Service Corps Program Uses Camp Activities in Congregations to Engage Youth Year-Round
New York, July 31, 2014 -Who says the magic of camp has to end in August?
URJ Awards Reform Congregations' Outstanding Outreach and Membership Programs
New York, New York, May 21, 2013--The URJ is pleased to announce the winners and honorable mentions of the 2013 Belin Outreach and Membership Awards. The Belin Outreach and Membe
URJ Collects Donations for Oklahoma Tornado Victims
URJ's Camp Harlam Launches First Reform Day Camp in Philadelphia in 2014
Rabbi Rick Jacobs: Israeli Ministers Must Stop Their Hate Speech
Union for Reform Judaism Establishes Presidential Fellowship on Millennial Engagement
The Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) is launching a new high-level fellowship to strengthen its engagement with millennials. The first Fellow will be Evan Traylor, 21, of Edmond, Oklahoma. Traylor, who will graduate from the University of Kansas in May, will work alongside URJ President Rabbi Rick Jacobs and leaders of the Reform Movement to develop a toolkit for engaging millennials as partners in creating a more just, whole, and compassionate world.
Rabbi Rick Jacobs: Ultra-Orthodox MKs Must Learn the Torah of Respect
Statement by Rabbi Rick Jacobs, President of the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ):
MK Israel Eichler’s comments yesterday are yet another example of the extreme intolerance of the ultra-Orthodox religious establishment. Clearly they feel a seismic shift in their decades-old monopoly on Judaism in Israel. Their stranglehold on Judaism is being loosened, and their response is desperate and pathetic.
It is hard to imagine what twisted Torah MK Eichler studies when he characterizes the largest Movement in Jewish life as “mentally ill.” Our Torah teaches us the values of pluralism and of tolerance - and it teaches us not to use phrases like “mentally ill” as an epithet.