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 Grants Support Innovative Outreach Programs
URJ President on United Methodist Church Rejecting BDS
This week’s clear decision by the United Methodist Church rejecting the efforts of those who misguidedly sought to draw the Church into the boycott, divestment, sanctions campaign to delegitimize Israel is a welcome step in support of peace between Israel and the Palestinians.
URJ Launches JewV’Nation Fellowship: An Interfaith Outreach Incubator for Emerging Jewish Leaders
Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) today launched the JewV’Nation Fellowship, an innovative year-long project incubator and leadership development program supporting emerging Jewish leaders and creative interfaith outreach initiatives. The program, which will begin in early 2017, is supported in part with a Jewish Funders Network grant from Avenues to Jewish Engagement for Intermarried Couples and their Families, in honor of 2015 Genesis Prize Laureate Michael Douglas.
The JewV’Nation (pronounced “juvination”) Fellowship program will be led by April Baskin, URJ’s Vice President of Audacious Hospitality, and seeks to engage a new generation of leadership by valuing the perspectives and insights of the younger members of the community and supporting them with resources and strategies to bring their best ideas to life. The fellows themselves will define and create exciting and contemporarily relevant Jewish programming.
On Shalit's Birthday, Reform Movement Prays for Release
Saperstein: "We pray that at this time next year, Gilad Shalit may celebrate his 24th birthday as a free man, reunited with his friends, family and the people of Israel."
Saperstein and Reform Movement Mourn the Loss of Senator Ted Kennedy
Saperstein: "Sen. Kennedys guidance over the years has been indispensable to our work, and my personal friendship with him was one of the great blessings of my life."
Contact: Kate Bigam
202.387.2800 | news@rac.org
Reform Movement Welcomes Appointment of Prosecutor in CIA Cases
Pelavin: "We are hopeful that this preliminary investigation will prove to be an important step toward shedding new light on how these abuses came to be, creating greater transparency and accountability in our governments actions, and preventing future acts of abuse."&
Reform Movement Applauds Supreme Court Action in Georgia Death Penalty Case
Pelavin: "The Reform Movement opposes the death penalty under any circumstances, but the application of the death penalty in a case where a defendant's guilt is in question is particularly distressing."
JewsForHealthCareReform.org Launches Prior to Faith Call with Obama
Saperstein: "This is an opportunity for all streams of Judaism to join together to carry on the prophetic tradition and make JewsForHealthCareReform.org a meaningful voice in the health care debate."
Reform Jewish Movement Congratulates Justice-designate Sonia Sotomayor
Saperstein: "We wish Justice-designate Sotomayor wisdom and strength as she takes on the awesome responsibility of pursuing justice on our nations highest court."