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When I had the chance go to the Kotel, or the Western Wall, I was able to walk up to the men’s section, find an open section of wall, and run my hands over the coarse, grey stone that I’d heard about ever since I learned the letter aleph. I had an unexpectedly intense connection with my Jewish identity, the kind of clichéd connection I thought only existed in the stories of Birthright trip promoters. I treasure that experience, but I know that part of the reason I was able to have that experience was because I’m fortunate. As a man, I could wear a tallit at the Kotel without being arrested, and I could go to the spacious men’s section instead of the crowded, smaller, women’s section. Because of these things, I was able to have a much better experience than my female counterparts.

During my senior year of college, I worked as a courtroom advocate at the St. Louis County Domestic Violence Court, a division of the court system that deals exclusively with orders of protection in cases of domestic violence. I worked with petitioners – survivors of domestic abuse filing for an order – to assist their navigation of the legal system and to connect them to community resources to ensure they could feel safer in their everyday lives. I say safer, and not safe, because individuals

The 114^th Congress opens this week, welcoming 12 new senators and 52 new representatives. As these new members take office – and move into their new offices on Capitol Hill – they become key players in our work to repair the world.

Last week, the Simon Wiesenthal Center released a list of its top 10 worst anti-Semitic offenses of 2014. Founder and dean of the organization, Rabbi Marvin Hier, explained to The Jerusalem Post that the list is meant to highlight how “rhetoric at the top has filtered down to average people,” meaning that repeat offenders were not included. The list includes the recent outbreak of anti-Semitism in the UK, the spread of hate in academia, a rape and assault in Paris and certain individuals who personally expressed anti-Semitism , among others.

Last month, at L’Taken, Jason and Bailey of Congregation Beth Israel in Colleyville, Texas lobbied their members of Congress in support of comprehensive non-discrimination protections for LGBT individuals, on the heels of an announcement by Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR), the lead sponsor of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act in the Senate, that he intends to introduce comprehensive LGBT non-discrimination legislation in the next Congress.

By Fletcher Harper and Paul Kaufman OurVoices and #LightForLIMA OurVoices has emerged as the leading international, multi-faith campaign supporting a strong climate agreement. We were busy during the UN climate meetings in Lima! In fifteen countries on four continents, and in countries vital to the negotiations, OurVoices organized vigils in support of strong agreement.  #LightForLIMA vigils took place adjacent to iconic locations (the White House, the Sydney Opera House, Jerusalem’s Jaffa Gate). They attracted international media coverage. They performed powerfully on social media, with the vigil’s hashtag attracting almost the same number of shares as the hashtag for the entire UN conference during the week of the vigils.

In all of the excitement over President Obama’s executive action on immigration, we haven’t been hearing much about the plight of unaccompanied children coming to the U.S.-Mexico border, which experienced a notable uptick this summer. Yet, there have been a few new developments:

The (secular) New Year brings new opportunities and new challenges in the world of Jewish social justice. The 114^th Congress will convene on January 3, 2015 at noon. As we look towards what 2015 will bring, let’s take a moment to look back at 2014 through 14 RACBlog highlights. This list is a mix of our most popular blogs or the blogs that represent landmark moments in our programming or observances. Don’t see your favorite blog here? Let us know in the comments!

Welcome to the Jewish month of Tevet and of course to the secular new year! I am anticipating a whole new year of personal, local, national and international environmental initiatives. Watching friends and family unwrap new phones, computers, TVs and new battery-operated kids’ toys this Hanukkah inspired me to choose but for reducing our waste output by recycling electronics this Tevet.