Reconstructing Judaism

10/16/2026

ICYMI: We launched a new newsletter!

Jewish ideas. Meaningful learning. A movement evolving for today.

Rooted & Relevant brings you timely stories, learning opportunities, events and resources from across our movement.

Check the links in the comments below to subscribe for free and to read the latest issue!

10/16/2026

We’re thrilled to share that Reconstructionist Rabbinical College has received a $15,000 grant from AAAS Dialogue on Science, Ethics and Religion to bring climate science into the education of future rabbis.

The grant will support “Putting the Olam in Tikkun Olam,” a new course led by Rabbi Daniel Swartz at Temple Hesed on responding to climate change through Jewish wisdom, science, ethics and action. It will culminate in a public program open to the whole community. Stay tuned!

Congratulations to our third cohort of Climate Science in Theological Education (CSTE) grantees! These 11 theological institutions are working with DoSER to meaningfully engage forefront climate science in their curriculum and activities.

The cohort includes Huffington Ecumenical Institute, Latter-day Saint Earth Stewardship, LEMA Theological Seminary, McCormick Theological Seminary, New Brunswick Theological Seminary, Reconstructionist Rabbinical College, Seattle Pacific Seminary, Seminario Evangelico de Puerto Rico, St. Sophia Ukrainian Orthodox Theological Seminary, Tabora Anglican Training Center, and World Mission University.

Learn more: https://sciencereligiondialogue.org/resources/cste-expands-climate-science-engagement-around-the-world/

10/15/2026

How did a small movement founded on once-radical ideas come to have an outsized influence on modern Jewish life?

Adventures in Jewish Studies, the podcast of the Association for Jewish Studies, recently devoted an episode to the Reconstructionist movement. Featuring insights from Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D., Deborah Dash Moore, and Jenna Weissman Joselit, the episode explores questions that continue to shape Jewish life today: What do we inherit from tradition? What do we reimagine? How do we balance peoplehood, democracy, belonging, and religious practice in a changing world?

From Kaplan's effort to reconcile rationalism and religion, to Reconstructionism's early commitment to egalitarianism and the concept of Jewish peoplehood, the conversation examines both the movement's history and how it is navigating difficult conversations about Israel and Zionism today.

We'd love to hear what stands out to you after listening. Link in the comments below.

10/15/2026

“When I talk to prospective students about the program, I often find myself saying ‘I feel like my teachers are supporting me to become the most me Rabbi I can be.’” —Rabbi Josie Boskoff, RRC ’26

Curious about the rabbinate? Register for Reconstructionist Rabbinical College's Online Institute for Prospective Students. Check out the link in the comments to learn more!

10/13/2026

You don't have to know that you want to be a rabbi. You might simply be wondering.

Could I see myself doing this? What is rabbinical school actually like? What kind of rabbi could I become?

The Reconstructionist Rabbinical College Online Institute for Prospective Rabbinical Students is a place to explore those questions without having all the answers.

Join us November 8-9 to learn, meet students and faculty, ask questions and get a feel for life at RRC.

Come curious.

10/12/2026

What does fundraising look like when it’s grounded in Jewish values?

The Guide to Fundraising for Reconstructionist Congregations pairs practical fundraising resources with sacred texts and Jewish values, helping congregational leaders approach this work with greater confidence.

Rabbi Shira Singelenberg of Shir Hadash Reconstructionist Community shares:

“It offers practical resources that can help congregational leaders feel more confident and excited about fundraising, while also grounding the work in sacred texts and Jewish values.”

This November, put that approach into practice with Rabbi Maurice Harris in Fundraising Without Fear, a six-session online course for congregational leaders.

The guide is available as a benefit to affiliated Reconstructionist communities.

🔗 Find access and registration links in the first comment.

10/09/2026

In a new op-ed for RNS, Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D. looks back on 13 years leading Reconstructing Judaism and shares seven convictions she is carrying forward:

1. Non-Orthodox religion matters
2. Community matters
3. Clergy matter
4. Democracy matters
5. Coalitions matter
6. Complexity matters
7. Joy matters, even when our hearts are breaking

She also offers advice for Jewish communal leaders and funders: invest in progressive Judaism, value rabbis, get curious about what younger Jews care about and remember that Jewish safety is bound up with the well-being of others.

Give it a read and tell us which conviction speaks to you most! Link in comments.

10/09/2026

“Fundraising is one of the hardest things we do in our synagogue communities.”

Rabbi Alex Lazarus-Klein of Congregation Shir Shalom-Buffalo, NY knows how challenging it can be to generate new ideas and effective strategies. His take on the Guide to Fundraising for Reconstructionist Congregations?

“The guide really holds your hand and offers concrete solutions to any of your fundraising challenges. I highly recommend checking it out.”

And you don’t have to tackle those challenges alone.

Beginning Nov. 4, Rabbi Maurice Harris will lead Fundraising Without Fear, a six-session online course where congregational leaders can develop skills, work through challenges and put resources from the new guide into practice.

The guide is available as a benefit to affiliated Reconstructionist communities.

🔗 Links to request access to the guide and register for the course are in the first comment.

10/08/2026

What does it mean for Israel to be both Jewish and democratic and what happens when those values come into tension?

With Israel’s national election taking place on Oct. 27, these questions are especially timely.

Join Elliot Vaisrub Glassenberg for “Jewish and/or Democratic? On Judaism and Democracy in Israel”, a three-session Reconstructionist Rabbinical College Beit Midrash course exploring the evolving relationship between Judaism and democracy in the State of Israel.

Through key texts, including Israel’s Declaration of Independence and Basic Laws, we’ll examine contemporary debates over Israel’s Jewish and democratic character — and what they mean for liberal Jewish movements, Diaspora Jews and the current election.

📅 Sundays, Oct. 18, Oct. 25 & Nov. 1
🕒 12–1 p.m. ET (EST Nov. 1)
📍 Online via Zoom
🎟️ $118 individual | $36 prospective RRC students | Congregational rates available

Learn together. Ask difficult questions. Explore what’s at stake.

10/07/2026

Today is a day to pause, grieve and remember. May we find comfort in one another, and hold close a vision of peace for all.

This reflection, "Interfaith Prayer for Comfort, Connection, Hope and Peace" by Rabbi Haviva Ner-David, comes from Ritualwell, Reconstructing Judaism's online home for contemporary Jewish ritual and creativity:

https://loom.ly/V0h9Qo4