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Below, you'll find a collection of perspectives informed by Reconstructionist ideas and communities. 

Reconstructionist Voices

Below, you'll find a collection of perspectives informed by Reconstructionist ideas and communities. 

Reconstructionist Voices - Pursuing Justice
April 26, 2021

Many people have asked how I feel about the Chavin verdict. Whenever I struggle to find words, I’m grateful for the teachings in the Torah, and this week is no exception.

Reconstructionist Voices - Videos
March 23, 2021

We’d like to share this video message for Passover 2021 from Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D., the president of Reconstructing Judaism.

Reconstructionist Voices
March 10, 2021

As part of the American Values, Religious Voices project, Elsie Stern writes to America's executive and legislative leadership on the 50th day of President Biden's administration to reflect on what it means to be "in the thick of" sacred work.

Reconstructionist Voices - Reconstructionism
March 5, 2021

In her presentiation, Rooted and Relevant: 21st Century Jewish Life, Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D., explores how Reconstructionist Judaism can lead the way in the post-COVID world toward a religious revival that meets this century's new realities. 

Reconstructionist Voices - Racial Diversity
February 24, 2021

From its very beginnings, the Jewish story is full of journeys. When it comes to racial justice work, the Reconstructionist movement is in the midst of a profound journey.

Reconstructionist Voices - Hanukkah
December 14, 2020

Rabbi Yael Ridberg writes: It is no secret that much of the world can’t wait for 2020 to end. The compounded losses brought to us by the COVID-19 pandemic have penetrated every layer of our existence, and hope and joy have been elusive and fleeting. As we approach the darkest days of the year, we also anticipate holidays of light that we need so badly. We have been searching for miracles all year: an end to the suffering, to be able to embrace one another again, and to gather without concern. This week Jews all over the world will light the eight-branch Hanukkah candelabra to remember and celebrate the unexpected miracles found in the depths of despair. 

Public Statements - Public Square
November 9, 2020

Many American Jews considering voting to be a mitzvah, a commandment. It is essential that every vote is counted so that every voice is heard and so that our full-throated democracy can flourish.

Reconstructionist Voices - Movement Activities
October 27, 2020
Reconstructionist Voices - Congregational Resources
September 8, 2020

Rabbi Joshua Lesser (RRC '99) has had a front seat to one of the most joyful spots of our tragic time. With a group of Jewish leaders from different movements and perspectives, he helped create a Facebook group called Dreaming Up High Holy Days 2020.

Reconstructionist Voices - Congregational Resources
September 8, 2020

When COVID-19 hit, synagogues closed their physical doors, pivoting their presence online.  Responding to the tensions and conflicts arising from this challenge, Rabbi Nathan Weiner (RRC '16) offers a covenental approach guiding synagogue leaders and congregants to navigate these difficult times with integrity, understanding, and generosity of spirit. 

Reconstructionist News
September 3, 2020

This summer we encountered a growing movement that forces us to stare into the face of racial injustice. For those of us who are accepted as white, it demands that we stop looking away. It requires us to try to imagine what it means to raise a child of color in America and examine how we, despite all of our best intentions, fail in our efforts to include and empower people of color in our civil and religious communities.

Reconstructionist News - Ethics and Values
June 4, 2020

At the Center for Jewish Ethics, we have created Jewish Values and the Coronavirus, a guide to help frame values-based decision making in this time of pandemic. This web-based resource collects and curates sources from the Torah and rabbinic texts alongside insights from leading ethical thinkers from across the Jewish world and beyond.

Reconstructionist Voices - Videos
May 27, 2020

On the brink of Shavuot, Rabbi Vivie Mayer shares insights into the concept of multiple intelligences as it applies to receiving Torah.

Reconstructionist Voices
May 7, 2020

Crystal clear to me, now, is that all the coffees, the story sharing and listening, and the showing up, has resulted in the cultivation of a most rare commodity in our society. Trust. 

Reconstructionist Voices - Spiritual Practice
April 27, 2020

https://www.sefaria.org/Berakhot.54a.3?lang=bi&with=all&lang2=enRabbi Nancy Fuchs Kreimer, Ph.D., reflects on the insights gained from daily Talmud study during the coronavirus pandemic. 

Reconstructionist Voices - Videos
April 23, 2020

In this enriching conversation, Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D.  and Rabbi Shmuly Yanklowitz, Ph.D. focus on the things that traditional and Reconstructionist Jews have in common, the challenges that social distancing is posing to community, and ways that Jewish practice can bolster resilience.  

Reconstructionist Voices - Pesakh
April 3, 2020

Usually, on Passover, we ask "How is this night different from all other nights?". This year, many of us are asking, "How does this Passover resemble any we’ve ever experienced?" While social distancing has seemingly changed everything, Passover is still about telling the story of going from oppression to freedom.

Reconstructionist Voices
March 23, 2020

As a rabbi, my prescription for most every challenge, drawn out of millennia of Jewish wisdom and practice, is community. But what is the Jewish response when the best way to slow down contagion is by “social distancing”?

Reconstructionist Voices - Pursuing Justice
December 20, 2019

“One who destroys one life destroys the entire world. One who saves one life saves an entire world.” This  dictum has new meaning to me since my congregation, Temple Beth Hatfiloh (TBH), welcomed our guest into physical sanctuary, making the commitment to provide housing and shelter for an asylum seeker who is at risk of deportation.

Reconstructionist Voices - Public Square
December 13, 2019

The rise in antisemitism is a real and growing threat, but the prospect of defining Judaism as a nationality is deeply problematic. The Reconstructionist notion of peoplehood sheds light on the weighty issues at stake.

Reconstructionist Voices - Reconstructionism
November 21, 2019

If we are serious about building Jewish community, what could be more important than educating, nurturing and supporting Jewish leaders — rabbis — who will partner with us, teach us, learn with us, and both ground us in our tradition and inspire us to reach for new meaning?

Reconstructionist Voices - Theology
November 7, 2019

Video of Chautauqua Institution talk on Jewish views of Divine Justice (July 19, 2019)

Reconstructionist Voices - Rosh HaShanah
September 22, 2019

“We accept the responsibility for changing and for changing this world. That is what people need to stay in hope. And without hope, there is no energy for no creative new solutions,” says Rabbi Amy Bernstein in this moving video, Tashlikh Reconstructed

Reconstructionist Voices - High Holidays
September 20, 2019

The Talmud tells us that God created repentance (teshuvah) before creating the physical world. As Billy Joel once sang, “we’re only human, we’re supposed to make mistakes.” It’s how we respond to mistakes, how we grow, that matters. This video explores the twin themes of teshuvah and gratitude (hakarat hatov.) Our tradition offers us practices that cultivate self-reflection and humility, relationship and repair. We hope these words offer some comfort and guidance as you undergo your own process of teshuvah and, in meaningful relationships with others, make Godliness present in the world.

Reconstructionist Voices - Religious Experience
September 6, 2019

Jonathan Markowitz recounts his narrow escape from the World Trade Center on 9/11, and reflects on God, Judaism and humanity in light of his experience.

Reconstructionist Voices - LGBTQ Inclusion
June 11, 2019

A personal message from Rabbi Deborah Waxman

Reconstructionist Voices - Peoplehood
June 4, 2019

Rabbi Deborah Waxman reflects on the ways in which Reconstructing Judaism is strengthening the ways in which we support and connect Jewish communities traumatized by the recent surge in antisemitic attacks.

Reconstructionist Voices
May 17, 2019

Profile of Rabbi Sheila Peltz Weinberg: her journey, and her contributions to the Reconstructionist movement and to Jewish spiritual life writ large. 

Reconstructionist Voices - Movement Activities
May 10, 2019

In a brief video, Seth Rosen talks about the role Reconstructing Judaism plays in supporting and connecting Reconstructionist communities, and amplifying our collective Reconstructionist voice. Seth Rosen is chair of the board of governors of Reconstructing Judaism.

Reconstructionist Voices - Peoplehood
May 10, 2019

Rabbi Maurice Harris shares the moving story of welcoming new Jews through conversion —on a Reconstructionist beit din in the Netherlands. 

Reconstructionist Voices
April 29, 2019

Can Reconstructionist communities avoid discussing controversial political issues? Seth Rosen argues that despite the challenges, difficult conversations are the only path forward. 

Reconstructionist Voices - Reconstructionism
April 2, 2019

Synagogues are a means, not an end in themselves. But thriving synagogues contribute to Judaism's goal: to create healthy individuals, thriving communities, flourishing Jewish life, interconnected human life and a sustainable planet.

Reconstructionist Voices - Public Square
February 26, 2019

Pluralism is dead. Long live pluralism.

Reconstructionist Voices - Community Learning
February 13, 2019

Learn more about Reconstructionist Educators of North America, a vital resource for professional development, mentorship and connection for Jewish educators in Reconstructionist communities.

Reconstructionist Voices
February 11, 2019

A Camp Havaya alum reflects on the ways that her camp experience shaped her for the better.

Reconstructionist Voices - Disabilities and Inclusion
January 11, 2019

Emet Tauber, a rabbinical student facing terminal illness, devoted his last days to supporting causes and institutions that he values — including affordable and accessible rabbinic education. 

Reconstructionist Voices
January 9, 2019

U.S. Representative Andy Levin is a longtime active member of Reconstructionist congregation T'chiyah in Oak Park, Michigan. This interview explores his deepest commitments, and how he lives them out. 

Reconstructionist Voices
November 6, 2018

We deeply believe in holy conversation. It is essential and urgent. We know Reconstructionists are good at it. We want to maintain this strength and deepen it, and to model it for the wider community. We hope that you agree and will join us.

Reconstructionist Voices - Reconstructionism
October 26, 2018

Two November events loom as I write this column: the mid-term elections on November 6, and the first Reconstructionist movement-wide convention in a decade, a week later.  The first admittedly will have far more impact on the world than the latter, but they are linked in my mind for one important reason: movements matter.

Reconstructionist Voices - Ethics and Values
September 14, 2018

In 5778, the hashtags #TimesUp #MeToo #GamAni sparked a broad communal conversation about abuses of power on the part of individuals and institutions, within and beyond the Jewish community. The year brought revelations of misconduct among celebrities and government officials, and in Jewish schools, organizations, and synagogues. Now, powerful people who abuse their power are being held accountable, and this is a development that is welcome and long overdue. That doesn’t mean it is easy.

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