.Upcoming Events

People’s Climate March and Shabbat
April 28-29, 2017
Washington, DC
On Shabbat morning in Washington, DC, there will be a major “People’s Climate March,” similar to the 2014 New York City march, to urge the new administration to build a more sustainable future and energy economy that focuses investments on helping improve the lives of low-income people and people of color. (For the full platform go to https://peoplesclimate.org/). This is a great opportunity for Reconstructionist communities to get involved in an important effort.
 
There are several ways that Reconstructionist communities can get involved:

• Sign on along with other Jewish communities to either directly attend the march or to organize a solidarity activity in your community (e.g. sermon, text study, discussion, speaker, ritual) during that Shabbat on 4/28-29. Here is the link to register with the Jewish organizing hub where Jewish communities can sign-on.
• Sign your community up with the overall march as a partner organization: People's Climate Mobilization.
• Spread the word of your community’s involvement on the “Jewish Communities Support People’s Climate March & Shabbat” Facebook page.
• Join in the organizing! There is a weekly conference call for the national Jewish organizing hub comprising participating Jewish organizations from over 10 cities – and the list is growing! To join the organizing calls and get more information email jewsforcleanenergy@gmail.com.

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Pacific Northwest Shabbaton
May 5-7, 2017
Camp Solomon Schechter (near Olympia, WA)
Register now to celebrate Shabbat with us in the Pacific Northwest!

We’ll explore how Judaism gets passed on within communities, how to teach and learn, and what changes are needed to nourish Jewish life. There will be programming for adults, children and young adults. For infants to age four, childcare will be provided by pre-registration.

For more information, visit our website or contact Jackie Land at jland@rrc.edu.

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March On Harrisburg
May 13-25, 2017
Harrisburg, PA

Reconstructionists and an interfaith coalition are marching from Philadelphia to Harrisburg this spring! Organized by RRC student, Michael Pollack, the demonstration will focus on ending gerrymandering, instating automatic voter registration and imposing a state gift ban. After meeting with all Pennsylvania state legislators, participants can join a march from Philadelphia to Harrisburg from May 13 - May 21. From May 22 - May 25, the group will perform targeted nonviolent civil disobedience.

If you are a Pennsylvania resident, you can participate in any part of the walk or the protest in Harrisburg. If you are not in Pennsylvania but would like to support, there are other ways to participate.

To learn more and to sign up, go to www.MarchOnHarrisburg.org
 

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Hevreh is back for a third summer for adults wanting to broaden their Jewish experience through study, prayer, spiritual renewal and growth with leading Jewish scholars including Rabbi David Teutsch, Ph.D. and Rabbi Jacob Staub, Ph.D. 

Participants will study with master teachers of Judaica; reflect and rejuvenate; pray, sing and dance, reconnect with friends and make new ones; encounter nature; and celebrate Shabbat!

For more information, visit Hevreh's website.

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Camp JRF 2017
Camp JRF is all about the joy of summer camp with the freedom to be who you truly are. We’re a lively, welcoming, and diverse community where kids explore Judaism in their own ways and become the best versions of themselves. It’s no wonder that so many campers call us home!
 
Learn more about this extraordinary place at CampJRF.org and then sign up for a magical summer—your kid will feel part of something bigger than themselves, and they’ll want to experience that magic year after year.

.Reconstructionists in the News
 

The American Values Religious Voices organization writes: “'American Values Religious Voices: 100 Days. 100 Letters' is a national nonpartisan campaign that has brought together a diverse group of 100 scholars of religion to write letters about core American values connected to our different faith traditions. Since Inauguration Day, a letter written by a different scholar has been sent to the President, Vice President, and every member of the 115^th Congress and posted on our website for a broader public audience. The letters have responded in a timely manner to current events captivating our nation, in a way that reaffirms who we are as Americans and models how we can learn from one another and work together for the common good. Elsie R. Stern, Vice President for Academic Affairs and Associate Professor of Bible at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College is a letter writer and a member of the Advisory Committee. S. Tamar Kamionkowski Professor of Biblical Studies at RRC is also one of the letter writers.

Clergy from different faiths are using Values and Voices letters in religious school classrooms, youth group retreats, and various adult education settings. Quotations from the letters can be used in sermons and read as iyyunim in t’fillah; and the letters make a perfect resource for interfaith dialogue. People report reading their daily Values and Voices letters like a morning prayer and describe the letters as an “anchor,” a “beacon of level-headedness and morality,” and an “archive of compassion and democracy.”
 
Subscribe to the letters on their website and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram (@ValuesandVoices).

Join members of other Reconstructionist congregations on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for wisdom, news and special announcements.

 

The Jewish Reconstructionist Communities in association with the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College (RRC) provides services for more than 100 congregations and havurot where members help create the Judaism they want to live. RRC is a progressive rabbinical school­­ where people of all backgrounds engage intensively with Jewish texts, thought and practice. As a combined organization, RRC / Jewish Reconstructionist Communities make up a unique kind of entity in the contemporary Jewish landscape.
 
Email is a crucial way to stay in contact, and we appreciate your continued engagement and support of the RRC / Jewish Reconstructionist Communities. Contributions to the RRC / Jewish Reconstructionist Communities supports our faculty, underwrites scholarships and student internships, provides specialized training and mentorship opportunities, and creates unique learning experiences in Israel.  Donations to RRC help us to prepare the next generation of Jewish leaders. Click here to donate now.

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