Archive 2013

NEW YORK – In response to today’s announcement that Women of the Wall’s leadership has agreed to enter into discussions with the Israeli government regarding the proposal to establish an egalitarian section at the Western Wall Plaza, in keeping with...

NEW YORK – Upon hearing the news of the death Sephardi Chief Rabbi of Israel, Haim Ovadia Yosef z”l, Julie Schonfeld released the following statement: "We are saddened today to hear of the passing of a prolific Torah scholar, Rabbi Ovadia Yosef z”l.

NEW YORK – In response to the U.S. State Department’s announcement today that Secretary of State John Kerry has brought Israeli and Palestinian leadership together to meet in Washington to resume peace talks, scheduled to begin Monday, July 29, we...

RA, URJ, RAC rabbinical leadership renew call for immediate commutation of Pollard’s sentenceNEW YORK – On Thursday, July 11, Rabbi Rick Jacobs, president of the Union for Reform Judaism, Rabbi David Saperstein, director of the Religious Action...

NEW YORK – In response to the Supreme Court’s landmark decisions today calling the Defense of Marriage Act unconstitutional and dismissing an appeal supporting an anti-gay marriage law in California, the Rabbinical Assembly released the following...

NEW YORK – In response to President Obama’s announcement today naming U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice as his new National Security Advisor, the Rabbinical Assembly released the statements below: Julie Schonfeld said, On behalf of...

NEW YORK – In response to the death today of Senator Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey, Gerald Skolnik and Julie Schonfeld released the following statement: During his almost 30 years in the Senate, Senator Frank Lautenberg was a true advocate for...

Also calls for official, non-Orthodox administration of Robinson’s ArchNEW YORK – In response to the announcement by Israel’s Ministry of Religious Services that it will develop criteria enabling communities to select rabbis of their own choosing...

NEW YORK – In the wake of rioting by extreme, ultra-Orthodox segments of the Israeli population, resulting in violence against women seeking to pray according to their understanding of Jewish tradition and in accordance with Israeli law, Gerald...

NEW YORK – In response to Wednesday’s failure in the Senate to pass an amendment supporting a compromise on stricter background checks on firearms for private-party gun sales at gun shows and online, Gerald Skolnik and Julie Schonfeld issued...