New Jersey/New York

Reconstructionist Judaism: An Ever-Growing Branch

Melanie Schneider — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 10:29:04 -0500

RA'ASHAN - A RECONSTRUCTIONIST NOISEMAKER

Welcome to JRF NY/NJ online! Our electronic Ra'ashan provides up-to-date information about upcoming events, recent news, and exciting programming happening within our congregations, our region, and nationally in the Reconstructionist movement. We hope that this webpage facilitates networking, provides engaging program ideas and encourages involvement within the 14 congregations of our regions and the wider Reconstructionist community.

"Judaism continues to evolve."
--Mordecai Kaplan, founder of Reconstructionist Judaism

Congregations/Havurot of the New York/New Jersey Region

Reconstructionist Temple Beth Israel - Maywood, NJ
Bnai Keshet - Montclair, NJ
Congregation Beth Hatikvah - Summit, NJ
Kehillath Shalom - Cold Spring Harbor, NY
Reconstructionist Congregation Beth Emeth - Hewlett, NY
Havurah Mishkan Ha'am - Westchester-Riverdale Recon Group - Irvington, NY
Kehillat Ahavat Achim - New Paltz, NY
Society for the Advancement of Judaism - New York, NY
West End Synagogue - New York, NY
Reconstructionist Synagogue of the North Shore - Plandome, NY
Congregation M'vakshe Derekh - Scarsdale, NY
Hebrew Congregation of Somers - Shenorock, NY
Bet Am Shalom - White Plains, NY

Who is a Reconstructionist? This question certainly does not have a definitive answer. However, Kaplan's powerful words concisely describe the central philosophy of Reconstructionist Judaism: to maintain an ever-changing, pluralistic, and globally aware community. JRF strives to uphold Reconstructionist values by encouraging widespread participation from the movement's eclectic and diverse membership. From our unique prayerbooks and haggadot, to youth and camping activities, to professional development for Hebrew school teachers and synagogue leaders, to on-line resources and customized consultations, to conferences and Shabbatonim, JRF's primary mission is to promote a vibrant approach to Jewish life.

Questions, concerns, or input? Do not hesitate to contact our NY/NJ regional contact Rabbi Shawn Zevit at szevit@jrf.org.

For information regarding JRF offices and regional resources contact (215) 885-5601 or visit www.jrf.org.

JRF Legacy Project

Victoria Cangelosi — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 14:02:34 -0500

As the JRF and the RRC continue to restructure our movement for a better future, JRF has created a timeless Legacy Tribute Book in honor of our congregations. This keepsake memento will walk our members through the years of Reconstructionist history and highlight each of our communities in story and pictures. We are looking for your help to make this once-in-a-lifetime tribute book a reality. Would you consider making a gift to the JRF to support our lasting legacy?

For donors who support our movement with a gift at the Kaplan Legacy Sponsorship $5,000 level, we will send you a Legacy Tribute Book, the accompanying Legacy DVD, and commemorative leather bound editions of Judaism as a Civilization and Reconstructing Judaism.

For donors who support our movement with a gift at the Eisenstein Legacy Sponsorship $1,800 level, we will send you a Legacy Tribute Book, the accompanying Legacy DVD, and one commemorative leather bound edition of either Judaism as a Civilization or Reconstructing Judaism - your choice.

For donors who support our movement with a gift at the Patron Sponsorship $720 level, we will send you a Legacy Tribute Book and the accompanying Legacy DVD.

For donors who support our movement with a gift at the Friend Sponsorship $360 level, we will send you a Legacy Tribute Book.

For donors who support our movement with a gift at the $118 level, we will send you a complimentary Legacy DVD.

Please consider contributing to this special project and receiving these special, limited edition items you will always treasure for your personal library. These also make wonderful, unique gifts for a friend or loved one.

Make your gift online or call Jennifer at JRF: (215) 885-5601 ext. 20.

JRF Salutes! The New York/New Jersey Region's 2012 Celebration

Victoria Cangelosi — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 15:17:10 -0500

Start: Mar 12 2012 - 6:00pm

You're Invited to JRF's New York/New Jersey Region Annual Celebration! This year's celebration will take place at The Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York on March 12, 2011.

The theme for this year's event will be "JRF Salutes: L'dor v'dor (From Generation to Generation)"

As the JRF and the RRC (Reconstructionist Rabbinical College) continue towards restructuring the movement, JRF is celebrating the legacy of our first half-century as a congregational movement. We are creating a Legacy book to highlight JRF's communities. These books will be available in time for the New York/New Jersey Celebration.

REGISTER ONLINE NOW

Download and Print the Registration Form

Please Share Your News with JRF NY/NJ

Victoria Cangelosi — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 20:21:33 -0400

Please remember to share with JRF NY/NJ items of interest to which your congregation invites members of our region. We will do what we can to help publicize your event. Please e-mail the details to Victoria Cangelosi at vcangelosi@jrf.org. Thanks!

Cooperative Model Between Synagogue and Farm Reflects Reconstructionist Philosophy

Gari Weilbacher — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 11:02:39 -0400

Reconstructionist Synagogue of the North Shore, partners with Hazon’s Tuv Ha’Aretz Community Supported Agricultural program (CSA), and provides the Jewish community with an opportunity to support local, sustainable agriculture. Read the article in the Jewish Week

JRF Remembers Cantor Susan Wehle

Lisa Tuttle — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 22:31:47 -0500

Cantor Susan Wehle, zl.With the deepest sadness, we want to let you know of the tragic death of Cantor Susan Wehle, who was among those who died in the plane crash of Continental Flight 3407 on Thursday evening, February 12. Susan was a dearly beloved cantor in the Buffalo area, where she previously served JRF congregation Temple Sinai in Amherst, NY for nine years, working alongside Rabbi Jamie Arnold. She was currently serving as cantor at Temple Beth Am, where she had worked for the last seven years.

Susan is remembered with tremendous love, devotion, affection and beauty by those across the country who knew her and have been sharing their sadness and remembrances following her untimely death. As Temple Sinai President, Adrienne Crandall, said “Susan was a part of so many organizations and groups. Everyone knew her. She was very well respected, loved and very devoted to her music.”

Our collective hearts beat as one in sympathy with Susan’s two sons, her family, friends and colleagues, the communities of Temple Sinai and Temple Beth Am and with all those in the Buffalo area who lost loved ones in this tragic accident. Condolences may be sent to Temple Sinai, 50 Alberta Drive, Amherst, NY 14226 and Temple Beth Am, 4660 Sheridan Drive, Williamsville, NY 14221.

Those who knew Susan are invited to share your memories of her by writing a comment to this story, and to pay your respects at www.respectance.com/Susan_Wehle.

Congregation Beth Hatikvah's First Adult B'nai Mitzvah Class

Lisa Tuttle — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 14:27:41 -0400

Congregation Beth Hatikvah's Adult B'nai Mitzvah ClassCongregation Beth Hatikvah of Summit, NJ, celebrated its first Adult B’nai Mitzvah on Saturday, March 8, 2008 in a joyous service with Rabbi Amy Joy Small.

Guests, family and members celebrated at a festive luncheon given by the congregation. The class studied for two years in preparation for this important day.

In the photo, standing from left, are Carol Sussman-Skalka, Leslie Weber, Arleen Soldati and Connie Seligman. Seated from the left, are Katia Segre Cohen, Rabbi Amy Joy Small, and Gary DeBode.

Honoring June Walker

Lisa Tuttle — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 11:55:04 -0400

Submitted by Rabbi Amy Joy Small

June Walker with her husband Barrett and Rabbi Amy Joy SmallOn June 4, 2008, June Walker was awarded an honorary Doctorate from the University of Haifa. The immediate past president of Hadassah, the Women's Zionist Organization of America, June is Chairperson of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations and a member of JRF affiliate Congregation Beth Hatikvah in Summit, NJ. Rabbi Amy Joy Small accompanied June and her husband Barrett to Israel for the ceremony. An article on Ms. Walker's honor appeared in a recent edition of The New Jersey Jewish News, attached to this story.

When I was growing up in the '60s and '70s, I wasn't fully conscious of how much I was impacted by the absolute dearth of female role models available to young Jewish girls like me. But it certainly did impact me. In part, we are all products of our environment and culture at its moment in time. Many aspiring Jewish feminists like myself, even before we could claim the feminist mantle, fought hard to become educated, to achieve positions of leadership that opened access for us to contribute to the world in powerful ways. Many of us adored Golda Meir, a beloved leader of our people, a world leader who was also our "Jewish grandma."

Yet we have learned that a small number of extraordinary women were paving the way before we got to there. Their road, preceding the Feminist Movement, was far more challenging than the one my generation faced. And their accomplishments have been truly heroic.

Such is the case for Rockaway, NJ resident June Walker – this generation's Golda Meir. Grandmother to six adoring grandchildren and grandmother-in-spirit to thousands more, June's down to earth, humble and loving manner endear her to all those who meet her. But don't be fooled by her very kind heart to think she's all about nurturing. This petite lady is a lioness – endlessly and fiercely pursuing projects to support medical care, education, the Jewish people and the State of Israel.

June's accomplishments were recently acknowledged on June 4th when the University of Haifa conferred an honorary doctorate on her in a glorious, life affirming ceremony. Citing June's great accomplishments, primarily as president of Hadassah, professor Aharon Ben Ze'ev and Yossi Ben Artzi, president and rector of the University, beamed as they welcomed June into their academic community as a new Doctor of Philosophy, Honoris Causa. The program booklet for the event, in describing June's accomplishments, notes that "She saw her work in Hadassah as the perfect synthesis of everything she is most interested in – Judaism, education, medicine and Zionism." Whether it was the building of the new Judean Youth Hostel in Jerusalem, the forthcoming new wing of Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital, the dramatic improvements in Hadassah youth villages to help youth at risk, or the ascendancy of Hadassah College Jerusalem to a high level academic institution, it seems that whatever June sets out to do, she makes it happen. With tenacity, terrific smarts, diplomatic acumen and fierce passion, June has moved mountains. Her current work in helping the University of Haifa to map out its vision and plans for the development of a major medical center in Northern Israel has made her a star at the University's Board of Governors and administration. They realize that this woman who ascended from the ranks of Hadassah to become chair of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations could significantly help them.

As a result, June was selected to be the speaker at the ceremony—addressing an enthusiastic crowd on behalf of all seven honorees of the evening. Noteworthy was how truly amazing and accomplished all of the other six honorees were. And there was June—the star of the event. A whole busload of adoring Hadassah (and Young Judea) staff and dignitaries drove up from Jerusalem to honor June. There was not a dry eye in the house. The Deputy Executive Director of the Hadassah Office in Israel, Barbara Goldstein, offered a powerful tribute to her friend and colleague, recalling her to service to Israel and the Jewish people through her many years of leadership in Hadassah. The love felt for June from the Hadassah community was palpable throughout the auditorium.

In her address that night, June spoke on behalf of the assembled honorees, saying,

“I am honored to speak in the name of my esteemed fellow awardees. The prophet Isaiah said, 'Let the wise man boast of his wisdom, the rich man of his riches.' This honor that you bestow upon us today is beyond all of this – and I am in awe beyond appreciation.”

June’s talk then focused on the importance of education, while highlighting the unique role her own education played in the development of her skills, values and her drive to accomplish good in the world. Her tribute to Hunter College was then linked to her new relationship with the University of Haifa. She concluded by saying:

“We are privileged to be linked with an institution of high academic caliber, of social activism, and of service to Israel in general and the North in particular. All of us know that great institutions and achievements begin with a seemingly impossible dream. I quote the prophet Isaiah: 'Learn to do good, seek justice, aid the oppressed, uphold the rights of the orphan, defend the cause of the widow.' That is our mission on earth.”

June has lived this mission more fully and more successfully than most ever could. Representing the many thousands whose lives have been touched by June’s work, the Hadassah organization expressed its gratitude through an ad placed in the Jerusalem Post on that same day. The ad wished a Mazal Tov to June, calling her "Eshet Lapidot: like Deborah the Prophet and Judge, a Beacon of Light and Inspiration."

These were my thoughts exactly! I had the extraordinary privilege to accompany June, who invited me as her rabbi to share the occasion with her and her husband Barrett. I was honored to bask in her light and thrilled to see her honored so magnificently. This event was a life moment of the highest order for June, and it was my pleasure to enjoy it with her as she soaked it in.

The honorary doctorate was a well-deserved honor. But the true honor is ours—to have been blessed by the leadership of this Jewish heroine. I am so pleased that my daughter’s generation has women like June to serve as such outstanding role models. As a result, there is no telling to what heights our granddaughters will be able to soar. The Jewish people and the world will indeed be strengthened and enriched.

Mishkan Ha'am Celebrated Their Tenth Anniversary on March 9th, 2008!

Lisa Tuttle — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 14:03:42 -0500

These are the hands of Mishkan Ha'am.

This 4' x 6' banner is made up of over 150 felt tracings from the many children and adults who have joined in Mishkan Ha'am's services and celebrations since the shul's founding.

Ten years ago, Yonkers, New York, residents Joey Parnes and Ellen Tattelman ran a notice in local newspapers inviting area residents who were “looking for a synagogue and haven’t found the right fit” to meet. “We were looking to create a Reconstructionist group that would be egalitarian, participatory, and open to varying viewpoints,” says Parnes. “Joyously, we found others who were looking for the same thing!”

Today, Mishkan Ha’am, with members from Riverdale through Westchester’s Rivertowns, has grown to include regular Shabbat services for all ages, holiday and life cycle celebrations, a Hebrew School, adult education program, social action activities, and innovative programming such as meditation and chanting-centered Shabbat observances and Shabbat morning yoga sessions. In all these contexts, participants engage in connecting Jewish tradition with their contemporary lives.

On Sunday, March 9th, at the Riverview in Hastings, the congregation’s teen klezmer ensemble, Yiddish Groove Machine, provided music for dancing as the Mishkan Ha’am community—including its past and present rabbinic leaders—celebrated its ten-year anniversary.

For more information, see www.mishkanhaam.org or call 914-478-4996.

Bet Am Shalom Takes Part in Backpack Project for Darfur

Lisa Tuttle — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 14:39:52 -0500

JWW Backpack ProjectCongregation Bet Am Shalom in Whiteplains, NY, joins the Westchester Darfur Coalition and Jewish World Watch (JWW) in providing and education for children fleeing genocide in Darfur. JWW's Backpack Project will enable children in the Oure Cassoni refugee camp in Chad to attend schools run by the International Rescue Committee. Filled with shoes, books, school supplies, soap and toothpaste (all obtained as locally as possible), the backpack allows each child to make the most of school under the most difficult of circumstances.

Backpacks are $36 each. Every dollar donated to the JWW Backpack Project will be matched dollar for dollar, up to $100,000, through the generousity of a local family foundation.

For for more information on Bet Am Shalom's Giving Program, e-mail Fran Heyman at franheyman@msn.com, and visit www.JewishWorldWatch.org

Bet Am Shalom's flyer and donation form are attached below.

Click here for a full listing of JRF's resources and response to the ongoing genocide in Darfur.