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.
Reform Leaders Protest Klinghoffer Opera
October 2, 2014, New York, NY -- In response to recent controversy over the Metropolitan Opera's production "The Death of Klinghoffer," Reform Movement leaders sent the following letter to Metropolitan Opera General Manager Peter Gelb:
Dear Mr. Gelb,
Reform Movement Condemns Act of Anti-Semitism at Emory University
October 7, 2014, New York, NY -- In response to recent news of Anti-Semitic graffiti on a Jewish fraternity house at Emory University, URJ President Rabbi Rick Jacobs made the following statement:
Reform Movement: Jerusalem Chief Rabbi Vote is Vote Against Racism
October 21, 2014, Jerusalem- Elections for the Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem were held today after an eleven-year hiatus.
Reform Movement Distressed by Attack in Jerusalem
In response to today's apparent terrorist attack in Jerusalem, the Union for Reform Judaism's President, Rabbi Rick Jacobs, issued the following statement:
URJ Announces New Director for Goldman Union Camp Institute (GUCI) in Indiana
October 30, 2014, New York, NY-The Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) announced this week that Jeremy Klotz will be the new director of the URJ's Goldman Union Camp Institute (GUCI) in Zionsville, Indiana. Mr.
URJ Responds to Accusations Reportedly Made By Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas
Union for Reform Judaism President Rabbi Rick Jacobs issued the following statement reacting to reports of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’ invocation of the classic anti-Semitic canard of water poisoning:
It is deplorable that Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas engaged in spreading libelous accusations against Israeli rabbis in his remarks to the European parliament today. This persistent lie dates back thousands of years and is no more true today than it was in medieval ages.
URJ Responds To UUA Rejection of Divestment From Israel
Rabbi Rick Jacobs, President of the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ), issued the following statement today reacting to a vote taken on June 25th at the General Assembly of the Unitarian Universalist Association defeating a resolution to support Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) against Israel:
URJ Board Adopts New Resolutions on Paid Leave, Immunizations and Predatory Lending
The Union for Reform Judaism North American Board this week overwhelmingly adopted new resolutions on Paid Family Leave, Mandatory Immunizations and Predatory Lending. The resolutions’ adoption concludes a consultative and inclusive process that began before the recent Biennial assembly held in November 2015 in Orlando, FL. The resolutions add to the canon of hundreds of URJ resolutions adopted over more than a century and which outline the URJ’s values and priorities.
URJ President: We're Opposed to Israeli Legislation on NGOs
In response to attacks against human rights NGOs in Israel, including the advancement of a “Transparency Bill” in the Knesset, Rabbi Rick Jacobs, President of the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ), issued the following statement.