March 21st: Vayakhel and Para
THIS WEEK IN THE TORAH
Rabbi David E. Ostrich
“Moses then convoked the whole Israelite community and said to them: ‘These are the things that the Lord commands…” (Exodus 35.1) The Lord commands, and Moses organizes: if we are to make the world habitable for God’s Presence, there is a lot of work to do. We need to gather together and get busy.
A few weeks ago, I wrote about the upcoming World Zionist Congress—a modern day convoking of the Jewish people—and the importance of voting for delegates to the Congress. This is the continuation of the gathering called by Theodore Herzl almost 130 years ago in Basel, Switzerland. It was there that the World Zionist Organization—the Zionist movement – was founded. The Zionist movement, of course, led to the creation of Medinat Yisrael, The State of Israel, and the WZO continues as a non-governmental organization that is a major player in Jewish life in Israel and the rest of the world. In Israel, the WZO operates as the Sochnut, The Jewish Agency, an umbrella organization that funds and influences a host of cultural, religious, charitable, and education efforts. Though the government of Israel rules the country, the Jewish Agency plays a leading role in the civic life and social fabric of Israel—and, as such, its make-up is extremely important for Israeli society.
In an effort to be democratic, the World Zionist Congress invites from all Jews in the world to vote for delegates, and the groups electing the most delegates have significant influence. Enter the decades old conflict between and among the various interpretations of Judaism. For years, Israeli society was divided between “Religious” (Orthodox) Jews and “Non-Religious/Secular” Jews. This stark divide was always a bit overstated for there are many varieties of Traditional Judaism under the rubric of “Religious,” and there are many varieties of Judaism under the rubric of “Non-Religious/Secular.” In fact, there is a lot of traditionalism and religiosity among the “Non-Religious.” Often their point is more that they are not Orthodox than that they have no feeling for or practice of Judaism. Funding the variations of “Non-Religious” Jewish religiosity in Israel has always been a challenge because the “Religious/Orthodox” have been so well represented in both coalition politics and the Jewish Agency.
That all began to change some 30-40 years ago when the Liberal Jewish movements (Reform, Conservative, Reconstructionist) began to organize and elect delegates to the World Zionist Congress—and thus to wield power in the Jewish Agency. Much progress was made in terms of offering Israelis Jewish religious options other than Orthodoxy. Synagogues and schools were funded, native Israelis were trained as Liberal Rabbis, and Israelis flocked to the more modern and liberal approaches to our ancient faith. It was still a struggle, but we were moving forward.
Then there was pushback. Since every Jew in the world is eligible, some of the Orthodox movements started encouraging their people—including thousands of Yeshiva students—to vote for Orthodox delegates to the World Zionist Congress. At the last Congress, Liberal Judaism lost ground, and we are trying to regain that ground and influence in this election.
The presence and influence of Liberal Judaism in Israel is dependent on Liberal Jews voting for Liberal Jewish delegates to the World Zionist Congress, and the time to vote is now. While the congress will be held in October, the voting goes only from March 10th to May 4th.
To vote, go to this website: www.vote4reform.org
Click the link to bring you to the American Zionist Movement Voting Website.
There you need to register.
(When I voted last week, I had trouble registering on my computer. However, it sailed right through using my iPhone. Apparently, there were some glitches on the website, but they have been addressed. So, hopefully there will be no glitches, but, if there are, please be persistent.)
Once you register, they’ll send you a voting PIN.
Follow the prompts to the ballot.
There will be a series of questions in which they ask about residency, whether you voted in recent Israeli elections, etc.
On the ballot, there are quite a few options.
Please vote for Slate #3: Vote Reform.
There is also a payment section in which they charge $5 for administration of the election.
They take credit cards or Venmo or PayPal.
Other than the false starts, the entire process took me less than five minutes.
Remember, this is a simple way to positively affect Jewish life in Israel. By choosing the Vote Reform, Slate #3, you’ll be helping to send Reform representatives to the World Zionist Congress who will help set policies and allocate a $1 Billion annual budget that affects Israeli society and Jews around the world.
It is also a way to make sure that our voices are heard as we reclaim Zionism as a Movement that champions equality, justice, freedom, and peace. Our Zionism is about protecting the body of the Jewish People and the State of Israel and about nurturing our souls.
Please vote now. Slate #3: Vote Reform
www.vote4reform.org