Jewish Reconstructionist Federation

Please join the Western Region of JRF in celebrating our Morei Derekh Reconstructionist Trailblazers. These outstanding individuals have been chosen by their congregations for the Western region’s distinguished leadership award. Whether through building community, tikkun olam (social action) or hesed (acts of service), their volunteerism stands as a model for inspirational values in both the Jewish world and broader secular society.

Honor your congregation’s trailblazer and purchase a tribute ad in the 2010 Western Region Moreh Derekh tribute book!   read more »

CONGRATULATIONS to Rabbi Seth Goldstein of Temple Beth Hatfiloh in Olympia. He has been named one of the top 10 Jews under the age of 40 in Washington state who are making a difference in their communities. In bestowing the honor, the JTNews, a Seattle-based Jewish newspaper, said that New York-born Goldstein never planned on becoming a rabbi. But after visiting Temple Beth Hatfiloh, Olympia’s Reconstructionist synagogue, as a student rabbi, he couldn’t resist an opportunity to pull this region’s Jewish community together. Read the article.

Modeled on the successful program of Camp JRF, founded in the Midwest and now in its fourth summer on The Aaron and Marjorie Ziegelman Campus in Pennsylvania's Pocono mountains, JRF WEST Mini Camp at Camp JCA Shalom will bring a taste of Camp JRF to Reconstructionist youth in the Western Region.

JRF WEST Mini Camp provides campers in grades 3-7 with strong connections to Reconstructionist Judaism and positive human values in a beautiful, fun, safe environment.Campers will also live and learn the Values of Spiritual Peoplehood, a cornerstone of our Reconstructionist community.

This year's camp session will run August 17-23, 2010.

Register now!

Check out this year's Mini Camp brochure: Click here for the Western Mini-Camp Brochure

North American Solar and Renewable Energy Campaign in the Jewish Community

The year 5769 (2008-2009) will be the little known Jewish year of “Birkhat HaHammah” the “blessing of the sun.” Every 28 years, the ancient rabbis demarked a time in the Jewish calendar that celebrates the ceremonial return of the sun to its original place in the cosmos during creation.

JRF, as part of a national coalition participated in this rare event to focus on solar power and energy stewardship. Our commitment to a dynamic Judiasm on a Sustainable Planet will continue!  read more »

Rabbi Arnold RachlisRabbi Arnold Rachlis of University Synagoge in Irvine, California, was honored with an invitation to deliver the invocation at President Obama's appearance at the Orange County Fairgrounds on Wednesday, March 18, 2009.

Read Rabbi Rachlis’s invocation and connect to a CNN I-report interview that followed the meeting plus additional coverage.

Rabbi Jane Rachel LitmanRabbi Jane Rachel Litman has been hired to serve as the Jewish Reconstructionist Federation's Western Region Director. She is the first rabbi to hold the position since 1996. Rabbi Litman was ordained by the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in 1989. During her student years, she was an intern in Los Angeles organizing Reconstructionist havurot in the San Fernando Valley. One of those havurot recently celebrated its twentieth anniversary. Since graduation, Rabbi Litman has served four California synagogues ranging in size from eighty to two thousand families. She also taught at California State University Northridge and Loyola Marymount.

Temple Beth Hatfiloh in Olympia is scheduled to finish its remodeling project this month. The 7,000-square-foot addition on the left houses offices, meeting space and classrooms to better serve members of the congregation. (Steven M. Herppich/The Olympian)by Lisa Pemberton

This article originally appeared in The Olympian and is reprinted with permission.

Members of Temple Beth Hatfiloh in Olympia have envisioned a new synagogue for about 15 years.

"At one time, the (new building) committee was called TBH 2000," said Beth Halpern of Olympia. "When we first started, it seemed realistic."  read more »

The dream soon will come to fruition as workers put the final touches on the 18,000-square-foot temple at Eighth Avenue and Washington Street, formerly the home of a Christian Science church.

RABBI DAVID TEUTSCH AS SCHOLAR-IN-RESIDENCE AT DOR HADASH
APRIL 4-6, 2008

LIVING A JEWISH LIFE: SPIRITUAL JOURNEY AND MORAL CHALLENGE

Rabbi David Teutsch serves as Director of the Center for Jewish Ethics at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in Wyncote, Pennsylvania, where he has been a professor of Contemporary Jewish Civilization since 1997. For 25 years, he has been active as a private consultant for Jewish organizations nationwide.
He is the author of numerous books, including Spritual Community: The Power to Restore Hope, Commitment and Joy (2005), and several volumes in the series, A Guide to Jewish Practice, on the topics of Bioethics, the Ethics of Speech, Kashrut and Tzedaka. An additional volume, on Economic Justice and Organizational Ethics, is forthcoming.

Rabbi Teutsch is also the author of a forthcoming textbook on Jewish Leadership and Not-for-Profit Management. He served as editor of the Daily and High Holy Day prayer books published by the Reconstructionist Press (1996 and 1999).

Rabbi Teutsch received his Ph.D. from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, and was ordained by Hebrew Union College in New York.

THE SCHEDULE OF EVENTS IS AS FOLLOWS:

CONGREGATION TO COMMUNITY: A SPIRITUAL JOURNEY
Rabbi Teutsch has played a central role in shaping the Reconstructionist movement. He will tell his personal story in a way that will explore key episodes in the development of the movement and its philosophy and practice.

Shabbat Service, Friday, April 4, 7:00 pm. Oneg reception following.

THE MARCH OF HISTORY AND THE CYCLING OF RITUAL: PASSOVER, PURITY AND THE POWER OF REDEMPTION
An interactive study session devoted to the week’s Torah portion, Parshat Tazria.

Torah Study, Saturday, April 5, 10:00 am. Refreshments provided.

FAMILY VALUES AND POSTMODERN INDIVIDUALISM: NEW ISSUES IN JEWISH SEXUAL ETHICS
It is not easy to maintain a balanced view of our sexual and gender identity choices. Rabbi Teutsch uses a values-based approach that draws on awareness of contemporary scientific and social scientific data in exploring how we can shed light on these moral challenges.

Saturday Evening, April 5, 8:00 pm. Dessert reception following.

COMMITMENTS OF HEART AND ACTION: THE OBLIGATIONS OF PARENTS TO CHILDREN AND CHILDREN TO PARENTS
We will examine biblical and rabbinic texts as we explore ethical responses to the contemporary challenges that face families.

Sunday Morning, April 6, 10:00 am. Refreshments provided.

All events are free and open to the public. For more information, contact Congregation Dor Hadash at 858-268-3674.

Ozi, the son of Rabbi Seth Goldstein, dressed as a zombie from the dream scene in Fiddler on the Roof at the 2004 sing-along. What are your shul’s Christmas-day traditions? For the past few years, the members of Temple Beth Hatfiloh in Olympia, Washington, have gathered for a fun-filled Christmas-day Jewish movie night. Their premiere event in 2004, which featured a showing of Fiddler on the Roof, included a sing-along, costume contest, and a potluck, as well as the now-traditional food and blanket drive benefitting the Olympia Food Bank and other local organizations that support the community.