Association of Reform Zionists of America
Equality. Democracy. Pluralism. Israel.
What is ARZA?
The Association of Reform Zionists of America is the Israel arm of the Reform Movement, representing our community to the Zionist National Institutions.
ARZA’s Mission is two-fold: to center a connection to Israel in the American Reform community, and to strengthen our Movement on the ground in Israel.
Equality. Democracy. Pluralism. Israel.
What’s New
Stepping Forward: Heroism, Hope, and the Future of Jewish Leadership
Friday December 26, 2025 – ו׳ טֵבֵת תשפ”ו It was an odd and quietly moving scene inside the Knesset this week. In a building more accustomed to arguments, protests, and procedural tension, two Reform rabbis—one of them also a cantor—sat and ended a Knesset committee session by pulling out a guitar and singing Debbie Friedman’s […]
We Don’t Need Another Verse…
Friday, December 19, 2025 – כ״ט כִּסְלֵו תשפ”ו Yesterday in Sydney, the Jewish and broader Australian community gathered for an emotional funeral for 10-year-old Matilda, the youngest victim of the Bondi Beach Hanukkah massacre. Friends and family remembered her as a bright, joyful child — a “ray of sunshine” whose sudden loss was nothing short […]
Symbols, Stories, and the Spirit of Our People
Friday, December 11, 2025 – כ״ב כִּסְלֵו תשפ”ו I want to begin with a symbol—one that shocked many of us upon first seeing it. For the last two years, so many of us in Israel and the Jewish world have worn a small yellow ribbon pin, a quiet but powerful reminder of the hostages […]
Parashat VaYishlach – Strengthened By the Struggle, Blessed by the Moment
Strengthened By the Struggle, Blessed by the Moment A Dvar Torah by a URJ Heller High School student delivered as she became Bat Mitzvah on the Hebrew Union College Campus in Jerusalem, Israel. Thursday, December 4, 2025 – תשפ”ו י״ד כִּסְלֵו In this week’s parasha, VaYishlach, Jacob reaches the Jordan and prepares to meet his […]
Until the Break of Dawn – Staying Connected While Conflicted
Friday, December 5, 2025 – ט״ו כִּסְלֵו תשפ”ו וַיֹּ֣אמֶר שַׁלְּחֵ֔נִי כִּ֥י עָלָ֖ה הַשָּׁ֑חַר וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ לֹ֣א אֲשַֽׁלֵּחֲךָ֔ כִּ֖י אִם־בֵּרַכְתָּֽנִי׃ (בראשית לב:כז) “Then he said, ‘Let me go, for dawn is breaking.’ But he answered, ‘I will not let you go, unless you bless me.’” (Genesis 32:27) We find Jacob, alone at night on the banks […]