Top 5 Highlights of the URJ Board Leadership Mission to Israel
Earlier this month, I joined URJ president Rabbi Rick Jacobs, Director of Israel Engagement Rabbi Yehudit Werchow, and nearly 50 URJ leaders for an incredible four days in Israel on the URJ Board Leadership Mission. It was a working visit, and it's difficult to boil down such an intense trip into five highlights moments, but here goes:
- Spending Shabbat in Israel is always meaningful, but on this trip, we could truly feel the impact of the Reform Movement. Friday night we attended services at IMPJ communities across the country, and during a Shabbat lunch with HUC-JIR students. Meeting dynamic, indigenous leaders we experience the strength of the Reform Movement in Israel - and could see it is growing stronger.
- Throughout the trip, Israeli leaders affirmed the importance of Reform Judaism. It was clear through our meetings with Prime Minister Netanyahu, President Shimon Peres, Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai, and Cabinet Secretary Avichai Mandelblit that the Reform Movement is taken seriously and greatly respected in the halls of government in Israel.
URJ Announces New NFTY Director to Transform Jewish Youth Movement
May 2, 2014, New York, NY -- The Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) announced that a new Director of NFTY. Micol Zimmerman Burkeman took the helm of the Reform Jewish Youth Movement this week.
Camp Harlam Receives Largest Gift Ever
New York, NY | May 22, 2014 – Camp Harlam, the Union for Reform Judaism's regional overnight camp based in Pennsylvania, announced today that it has received the largest gift in its history.
URJ Announces New Director for Jacobs Camp
May 22, 2014, New York, NY -- The Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) announced this week that Anna Blumenfeld Herman will be the new director of the URJ's Henry S. Jacobs Camp in Utica, Mississippi. Ms.
Union for Reform Judaism Invests in LGBTQIA+ Leadership Development
URJ Stands with Israel and the Residents of the South
URJ's Rabbi Rick Jacobs Welcomes Rabbi Hara Person as CCAR Chief Executive
Following today's announcement that Rabbi Hara Person will become the next Chief Executive of the Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR), Rabbi Rick Jacobs, President of the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ), stated: "I could not be more excited to welcome my friend and colleague Rabbi Hara Person to her new, and richly deserved, position as Chief Executive of the Central Conference of American Rabbis."
2017 URJ Biennial to Bring 5,000 Reform Jewish Leaders to Boston December 6-10 For Learning, Leadership Development, Spirited Worship, Entertainment, and Much More
The URJ will gather 5,000 Jewish leaders at the 74th URJ North American Biennial convention, taking place December 6-10, 2017 at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston, Massachusetts.
Reform Jewish Movement Responds to Manhattan Terror Attack
URJ’s Rabbi Rick Jacobs on Birthright Israel Halting Outreach to Arab Citizens of Israel
Rabbi Rick Jacobs, President of the Union for Reform Judaism, issued the statement below in response to Birthright Israel's decision to halt their outreach to Arab citizens of Israel:
The fact that Birthright Israel has decided to halt their outreach to Arab citizens of Israel shows just how out of touch Birthright is becoming. Arabs make up 21% of the Israeli population, and tens of millions of dollars of Jewish philanthropy from North America, the UK, Israel, and elsewhere is being well spent by supporting and integrating Arab citizens of Israel into education, the workforce, and Israeli civil society.