Responding to antisemitism by growing community, deepening commitments and building coalitions
On Sunday Oct. 28, 2018 — one day after the deadliest day in American Jewish history — I mourned with members of Congregation Dor Hadash. The Pittsburgh Reconstructionist congregation met in the Tree of Life building and had lost one of its own, Dr. Jerry Rabinowitz (z”l). Another member, Dan Leger, clung to life. Virtually every member of the congregation had gathered in solidarity. People were understandably raw, numb and devastated. Yet, in their commitment to mutual support, I was reminded of the awesome power of Jewish community to cultivate resilience in the face of pain and threat, including violent antisemitism.
In these polarized times, discourse over how best to confront antisemitism has often been visceral and sometimes taken on hyperbolic tones. At Reconstructing Judaism, we believe there are several steps toward a vigorous and constructive fight against rising antisemitism.
Posted on October 28, 2021 by
Rabbi
Deborah Waxman
Ph.D.
Jews, Race, and Religion: An Online Lecture Series
Jewish experience offers a valuable entryway into the study of race. Jewish identities and experience complicate conceptions that are overly simplistic or that lack nuance. Jewish history illuminates both the difficulty and the imperative of grappling with race and racism. To deepen our understanding of race, we have organized a series of online talks that will bring leading scholars of race, religion and Jewish life to a broad public.
Posted on January 5, 2021 by
Rabbi
Mira Beth Wasserman
Ph.D.
Counting Every Vote
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.
Posted on November 9, 2020 by
Rabbi
Deborah Waxman
Ph.D.
Welcoming a Guest Into a Sanctuary Congregation
“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.
Posted on December 20, 2019 by
Rabbi
Seth Goldstein
Notes from the Border
Rabbi Deborah Waxman, president of Reconstructing Judaism, reports on her participation in the national leadership mission to the San Diego-Tijuana border organized by HIAS and the Anti-Defamation League.
Posted on August 27, 2018 by
Rabbi
Deborah Waxman
Ph.D.
The Poor People’s Campaign, a National Call for Moral Revival
The RRA recently became a partner of the Poor People’s Campaign (PPC). In the last two weeks the PPC has coordinated rallies and acts of civil disobedience in over 30 state capitals, including the participation of over 15 RRA members.
Posted on July 2, 2018 by
Rabbi
Elyse Wechterman
News
