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 President Rabbi Rick Jacobs: Republican Jewish Coalition Leaders Must Ask Candidates Today about Gun Violence in America
An Urgent Open Letter to the Leadership of the Republican Jewish Coalition: RJC Leaders Must Ask Candidates about Gun Violence on America
URJ Leadership: President Obama Must Take Action to End Gun Violence in America
Contact: Lauren Theodore at 212-650-4154
December 3, 2015
21 Kislev 5776
President Barack H. Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW
Washington, DC 20500
Reform Movement Leadership Meets with MK Ayman Odeh, Leader of the Joint List in Israel's Knesset, A Day After Trump’s Reprehensible Anti-Muslim Proposal
Rabbi Rick Jacobs, the president of the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ), and Rabbi Joshua M. Davidson, senior rabbi of Temple Emanu-El in New York City, hosted a group of area rabbis and lay leaders from the Reform Movement on December 8 for a discussion with Member of Knesset Ayman Odeh, head of the Joint List, the third largest party in the Knesset.
Statement by Rabbi Rick Jacobs on MK Ayman Odeh's Decision to Not Meet in the Offices of the Jewish Agency
The Union for Reform Judaism is committed to dialogue for equality and dialogue between Jewish and Arab Israeli citizens. This week, we invited MK Ayman Odeh to speak to Reform Jewish leaders. This was an opportunity for us to engage in the complexities of the issues of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the internal Jewish-Arab issues in Israel.
URJ's Rabbi Rick Jacobs on Knesset's New Mikvaot Bill
Rabbi Rick Jacobs, Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) President, commented today on a new bill being promoted by the Haredi parties in the Israeli Knesset. The bill seeks to overturn a recent Israeli Supreme Court decision to allow Reform and Conservative conversions in state-controlled mikvaot (ritual baths).
Reform Leader Condemns Horrific Attack on Orlando Nightclub
In response to the tragic violence in Orlando, Rabbi Jonah Dov Pesner, Director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism issued the following statement:
The horrific violence in Orlando shakes us to our very core. The staggering loss of life, yet again facilitated by a military-style weapon that has no place on the street, causes us deep pain. We pray for those who were murdered, for healing of body and soul for the injured, and for comfort to the families of all who were present in Pulse nightclub.
We are grateful to law enforcement, the first responders, and all those volunteers who are helping during this crisis.
URJ's Rabbi Rick Jacobs On Today's Prayer Service At The Western Wall's National Plaza
Rabbi Rick Jacobs, Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) President, issued the following statement:
“Today’s prayer service, 500 strong, at the National Plaza adjacent to the Kotel represents simply the legitimate right of the Jewish people to gather in prayer as we have done in that holy place for millennia. The National Plaza, especially, must be a place where all Jews are treated equally and no stream of Judaism has a monopoly."