Reform jews

A woman rabbi on healing Israel: Authority means service, not power - opinion

A woman rabbi in Israel reflects on leadership, feminism, and spiritual responsibility in a wounded nation

Six new Israeli Reform rabbis, all women, were ordained last year at the Hebrew Union College Taube Family Campus in Jerusalem.
A Jewish woman covered in a white prayer shawl prays in front of the Western Wall in Jerusalem's Old City, during the Jewish holiday of Passover, April 2, 2018

Netanyahu’s coalition threatens Jewish unity with law banning pluralistic Kotel prayers - opinion

A general view of Jerusalem's Old City shows the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest prayer site, in the foreground and the Dome of the Rock, located on the compound known to Muslims as Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as Temple Mount, in the background June 24, 2019

It's time for the Western Wall to be a home for every Jew - opinion

 A FAMILY prays at the section of the Kotel designated for non-Orthodox worship.

High Court grills state, Jerusalem over years-long holdup at egalitarian Western Wall Plaza


Open letter: Reform Jewish leader Rick Jacobs must resign amid 'rapid decline'

"It is time for Rabbi Rick Jacobs to step down for a new generation of leadership to bring the Reform Movement into its next era of growth and impact," said the open letter.

 Rabbi Rick Jacobs, president of the Union for Reform Judaism poses for a picture at the First Station Complex in Jerusalem on June 27, 2018.

Prominent Reform rabbi to Democrats: Don't take American Jews for granted

"Our synagogue and American Jewry support Israel unconditionally, not uncritically, there never was such a Jew who was an uncritical Jew, but we support Israel unconditionally," said Hirsch.  

American Jews and their supporters participate in the March for Israel in Washington, DC, earlier this month.

Nachman Shai named dean of Hebrew Union College

HUC-JIR's Taube Family Campus in Jerusalem is a hub for Reform Judaism in Israel. Its programs educate and prepare Israeli rabbis to lead religious pluralism in Israel and serve global Jewry.

Former Diaspora Affairs Minister Nachman Shai.

Prominent Reform rabbi denounces progressive groups for siding with Hamas

Hirsch warned of a "deteriorating commitment to liberal values on the Left," which was camouflaged behind ideological rhetoric about anti-racism, anti-colonialism, human rights, and progress.

 Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch is the senior rabbi of Stephen Wise Free Synagogue in New York City.

Growing number of Jews using NY’s first Reform chevra kadisha burial society

In the Jewish vernacular, caring for the dead is called chesed shel emet (“true kindness”) because bestowing honor upon the dead is a favor that cannot be returned by the beneficiary. 

 Sharon Shemesh, a member of New York’s Reform Chevra Kadisha burial society, prepares for a tahara to ritually cleanse the deceased's body at Plaza Jewish Community Chapel.

No ifs, ands, or buts in Jewish unity

We can either all unite around a shared narrative and ethos, despite our differences, or find ourselves pulled back into the internal wars in a sad and predictable process.

 A mass prayer event for the welfare of the hostages in Gaza takes place at the Western Wall last week.

He moved to Israel to make the world better - and he's still idealistic

As Benjy celebrates 40 years since his aliyah, he remains positive yet realistic.

 THE FAMILY (L to R): Benjy, Sagi, Tamar, Eden, and Nicky, in November.

This moment is showing the vitality and strength of the Jewish people's diversity - opinion

Our history is a poignant testament to the power of solidarity; it is the fortress that has protected our values, culture, and very existence throughout millennia of challenges.

 Jonathan Oswaks, a friend of victim Paul Kessler and witness to the deadly assault on November 5, speaks to the media at the scene in Thousand Oaks, California, several days later.

American Reform Jews' support for Israel drops amid Gaza war

From solidarity to uncertainty: American Reform Jews and the Israel disconnect

 Liberal and Reform Jews participating in a rally, in support of Israel In San Jose, CA

Hebrew Union College to end 4 graduate programs, including 2 in Cincinnati

Rehfeld cited “financial constraints” and enrollment among the reasons for discontinuing the programs.

 The Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives at Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati, Ohio, January 21, 2019. Under a new proposal, HUC is considering ending its rabbinical program in Cincinnati but maintaining the archives.