Union for Reform Judaism

Union for Reform Judaism

Founded	Cincinnati, Ohio (1873)
Website	http://www.urj.org/

The Union for Reform Judaism (URJ), formerly known as the Union of American Hebrew Congregations (UAHC), is an organization which supports Reform Jewish congregations in North America. The current President is Rabbi Richard Jacobs, and the Chairman of the Board is Stephen Sacks.

The origins of the URJ began with the founding of the UAHC by Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise in 1873, based at Cincinnati, Ohio. At the time it consisted of 34 congregations. In 1950, the UAHC relocated its headquarters to New York City. In 2003, the UAHC was officially renamed the Union for Reform Judaism by the General Assembly at the organization's Biennial Convention. The former name was dropped because it reflected Wise's unrealized expectation that the whole of American Jewry would eventually affiliate with the Reform movement, and also because it failed to acknowledge the Reform-affiliated congregations outside the United States. Today, the organization is often referred to simply as "the Union." As of 2005, some 900 synagogues were affiliated with it.

In 1875, the Union created Hebrew Union College (HUC) in Cincinnati, the Reform movement seminary to train rabbis and later cantors and other Jewish professionals. In 1950, the college merged with the Jewish Institute of Religion, a Reform rabbinical college founded in 1922 by Rabbi Stephen Samuel Wise, and located in New York City. Rabbis in URJ member temples are members of the Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR).

Youth (NFTY)

The North American Federation of Temple Youth (NFTY) is the Reform Jewish youth movement and exists to supplement and support Reform youth groups at the synagogue level. About 750 local youth groups affiliate themselves with the organization, comprising over 8,500 youth members. NFTYites convene at local, regional, and North American events throughout the year with a focus on community building, worship, social action and experiential youth-led Jewish educational programming.

The URJ Camp & Israel Programs offer summer camp and Israel travel experiences to youth.

Camps

The URJ Camp & Israel Programs is the largest Jewish camping system in the world, comprising 13 summer camps across North America, including a sports specialty camp, teen leadership institute and programs for youth with special needs. Campers observe Shabbat, engage in programming about Jewish values and history, and partake in recreational activities including athletics, creative arts and color war. Many of the camps have long provided the opportunity for high school aged campers to travel to Israel during the summer.

When not in use as camps, some of these facilities are often used by other community groups, including NFTY events.

The summer camps are:

• URJ 6 Points Sports Academy, sports specialty camp in Greensboro, North Carolina
• URJ Camp Coleman in Cleveland, Georgia
• URJ Crane Lake Camp in West Stockbridge, Massachusetts
• URJ Joseph Eisner Camp in Great Barrington, Massachusetts
• URJ Camp George in Toronto, Ontario, Canada
• URJ Greene Family Camp in Bruceville, Texas
• URJ Myron S. Goldman Union Camp-Institute (GUCI) in Zionsville, Indiana
• URJ Camp Harlam in Kunkletown, Pennsylvania
• URJ Henry S. Jacobs Camp (HSJ) in Utica, Mississippi
• URJ Camp Kalsman in Arlington, Washington
• URJ Kutz Camp, NFTY teen leadership camp in Warwick, New York
• URJ Camp Newman in Santa Rosa, California
• URJ Camp Olin-Sang-Ruby Union Institute (OSRUI) in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin

URJ Camps that have closed or are no longer running:

• URJ Camp Swig, closed in 2008
  

Israel Programs

The URJ Camp & Israel Programs offer a number of Israel and Europe international travel programs for youth and teens, some of which offer high school and college credit.

Programs include:

• NFTY in Israel summer travel adventures
• NFTY-EIE High School in Israel
• URJ KESHER Taglit-Birthright Israel trips
• Netzer Year gap-year program
• Kibbutz Lotan environmental sustainability program
• Tikkun Olam volunteer program for college graduates

Hava Nashira

Hava Nashira is an annual Jewish songleading workshop held every spring at URJ Olin-Sang-Ruby Union Institute camp. The workshop is open to URJ camp songleaders as well as to temple music specialists and all those with a serious interest in Jewish songleading and music.

Hava Nashira drawn the prominent modern Jewish musicians, including Debbie Friedman, Craig Taubman, Dan Nichols, and Josh Nelson to lead specialty tracks. Examples of creative tracks offered in previous years: "URJ Camp Songleading" by Dan Nichols and Rosalie Will Boxt, "Repertoire Renewal" by Debbie Friedman, and "Music for Young Children and Families" by Peter and Ellen Allard.

Political Outreach

Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism located in Washington, D.C.

The political and legislative outreach of the URJ is performed by the Religious Action Center (RAC), operated in conjunction with CCAR. The RAC advocates policy positions based upon religious values, and is generally associated with political progressivism.

External links

• Union for Reform Judaism − Official website
• RJ.org - The Blog of the Reform Movement
• Reform Judaism Magazine Home Page
• URJ Camping
• North American Federation of Temple Youth
• Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism