December 1, 2023 – י״ח כִּסְלֵו תשפ”ד “Thank you for being here,” they said. “Thank you for showing up and showing your support, it means so much to us.” These were the words we heard from every single person we met this week. As our Reform Movement leadership delegation from North and South America made […]

By Dr. Elan Ezrachi The past week was marked with the pause of military operations and a partial return of the hostages. While the relative (though most likely short-lived) calm was felt all over, the horror stories of the returnees and the anguish over those who are still in captivity were the main motif of […]

Friday November 17, 2023 – ד׳ כִּסְלֵו תשפ”ד Have you ever been in a conversation with someone who says, “I’m not antisemitic; I’m just against Zionism?” Or “I have nothing against Jewish people per se; just don’t think they need to have a state.” Or, better yet, “Israel doesn’t need to have an ethnic-nationalism, but […]

Friday November 10, 2023 – כ״ו חֶשְׁוָן תשפ”ד   (בראשית כג:ט)וְיִתֶּן־לִ֗י אֶת־מְעָרַ֤ת הַמַּכְפֵּלָה֙ אֲשֶׁר־ל֔וֹ אֲשֶׁ֖ר בִּקְצֵ֣ה שָׂדֵ֑הוּ בְּכֶ֨סֶף מָלֵ֜א יִתְּנֶ֥נָּה לִּ֛י בְּתוֹכְכֶ֖ם לַאֲחֻזַּת־קָֽבֶר׃ “Let him sell me the cave of Machpelah that he owns, which is at the edge of his land. Let him sell it to me, at the full price, for a burial […]

By Rabbi Marc Rosenstein (I am a Reform rabbi, born and raised in the US, who moved in 1990 to the Galilee, where I engaged in work to further Jewish-Palestinian dialogue.  Since October 7, many friends from abroad have written to ask for my thoughts, amidst the strident public discourse on subsequent events; hence, these […]