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Learn more about the work of the Rabbinical Assembly, the global association of Conservative/Masorti rabbis, shaping and strengthening Jewish life worldwide through scholarship, leadership, and service since 1901.
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Explore our RA bookstore, articles on Exploring Judaism, teshuvot of the Committee on Jewish Law & Standards (CJLS), our Tzedek Center, holiday guides, and more.
Additional Piyyutim for Use on the Yamim Noraim
Although Mahzor Lev Shalem contains many more piyyutim than was true of the previous RA mahzor, several rabbis, cantors, and lay leaders have requested three additional piyyutim.
Home Observances: Shabbat
One-page sheets containing Shabbat rituals and blessings for the home.
Convention 2013: Recap
July 19, 2013
We are glad that many RA members joined us for the 2013 RA convention in Israel. Thanks again to co-chairs Mauricio Balter and Stuart Weinblatt as well as the entire Convention committee for their hard work in making this event such a...
RA Welcomes Announcement About Resumed Middle East Peace Talks
July 28, 2013
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...
Transforming Mid-Week Religious School: The Shaare Torah Story
October 11, 2013
By Jacob Blumenthal, Shaare Torah, Gaithersburg, MDThe Challenge:Over the past 18 months, Shaare Torah has been undergoing a "2020 Reflections" process, talking with our congregants as we determine the radical changes needed to become a 21st century...
Take Action - Leading Up to and On The Festival of Freedom
August 2, 2013
PREACH AND TEACH
To connect the plight of slaves today to the story of Jewish liberation:
Deliver a Shabbat Hagadol or Passover sermon(s) on the topic of modern slavery and Jewish responsibility. The Rabbinical Assembly has...
Slavery Today
August 2, 2013
This page was updated in 2020.
By Rachel Kahn-Troster (adapted from T’ruah’s Fighting Modern-Day Slavery: A Handbook for Jewish Communities; the first paragraph is adapted from www.FreeTheSlaves.net/Judaism)
Slavery is illegal...
Chicago Conversion Bet Din Not Endorsed by the RA
August 13, 2013
The Rabbinical Assembly, the international membership association of Conservative/Masorti rabbis has received numerous queries regarding an organization known as the “Chicago Conversion Beit Din.” The Chicago Conversion Beit Din, one of whose...
Body Image: What are We Ashamed of?
August 13, 2013
By Mark GreenspanParashat B’reishit, Genesis 1:1-6:8"Public Appearance and Behavior" by Gordon Tucker (pp. 373) in The Observant LifeDownload the Study...
White House Briefing on Peace Process
August 15, 2013
By Julie SchonfeldLast week I attended a small meeting with a number of Jewish communal representatives with Secretary of State John Kerry and the President's National Security Advisor Ambassador Susan Rice, who gave an update on the current...
Looking Towards 5774
August 16, 2013
By Gerry SkolnikAs an unrepentant (if older and wiser) child of the sixties, I have always considered it one of the sacred tasks of parenting to insure that my children -- all four of them -- know and appreciate the music that shaped my journey into...
The Faith Community's Role in Ending Modern-Day Slavery
August 21, 2013
By Julie SchonfeldModern-day slavery is a high-profit and low-risk endeavor that allows criminals, through their cruel enslavement of innocent people, to profit by $32 billion per year. Last spring, The President's Advisory Council on Faith-based...