Remembering Victims of Gun Violence: Join the National Gun Violence Prevention Shabbat
Tragically, 2017 has been a particularly deadly year for gun violence. Partner with us in the struggle to prevent gun violence – join the National Gun Violence Prevention Shabbat.
Against Gun Violence
This prayer to end gun violence calls for sane and common sense gun legislation, including a prayer for those who advocate gun control
Suicide Prevention and Awareness Is Our Communal Responsibility
Elul is upon us. The sound of the shofar reminds us that this silent epidemic must be addressed. Its cries echo those left in the depths of sorrow, feeling alone, believing that those who love them most would be better off without them. Our fear of mental illness must be replaced with a resolve to educate ourselves and others.
Meet the 2016-2017 Eisendrath Legislative Assistants
The beginning of the program year is always an exciting time at the RAC, as we begin a new cycle of tikkun olam work.
The External War and the Internal War
This week's Torah portion is called Ki Teitzei — meaning literally, "When you go out." It is a reference to violence and war. "When you take the field [literally, "When you go out"] against your enemies, and the Eternal your God delivers them into your power and you take some of them captive ... " (Deuteronomy 21:10).
This sentence is but a tiny portion of more than a thousand verses in the Tanach that deal with war. Our Holy Scriptures came into history in a world in which fighting was a normal and often necessary activity. The ancient communities of the Middle East were governed according to tribal custom and law, and each ethnic community was in a combative relationship with its neighbor. There was no United Nations in those days, no European Union designed to administer diverse people according to collective rules and laws. Some tribal federations such as the twelve tribes of Israel pooled their resources, but that was for protection rather than for advancing peaceful relations with the rest of the world. The harsh social-economic and political reality of the ancient world often triggered violent and deadly conflicts between communities and peoples, and it is rare that we read a comment such as is found in Judges 3:11: " ... and the land had peace for forty years."
A River Flows from Eden: Rabbi Rick Jacobs' Address to the URJ Biennial
This movement’s task, in this moment, is to nurture the natural waterways that connect us. To keep our congregations the strong sources of life they have always been and will always be.
Reform Movement Condemns Death Threats Against Israeli Arab Knesset Members
Saperstein: "While we may not always agree with the ideas expressed, our deep commitment to Jewish and democratic values requires that we defend the free speech of all Israel's citizens, including its Arab citizens."
Reform Movement Leader Statement on the Deaths of Terence Crutcher, Keith Scott and Justin Carr
Contact: Max Rosenblum or Graham Roth
202.387.2800 | news@rac.org
Reform Jewish Movement Statement on United Nations Jerusalem Vote
Today, the Reform Jewish Movement, represented by the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ), the Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR), and the Association of Reform Zionists of America (ARZA), issued the following statement:
We strongly commend President Trump and Ambassador Haley for the United States’ veto of the Security Council resolution on Tuesday and the strong U.S. opposition, in the General Assembly deliberations yesterday, to statements repudiating President Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.