By now, hopefully you have heard about the need to Vote Reform in the World Zionist Congress Elections before June 15. We’ve sent out emails, we had a voting station on Shabbat, and the Canadian Zionist Federation election has been all over social media. But perhaps you’re not sure what’s at stake, or why all of this matters.
Last Yom Kippur, I told the story of visiting the Western Wall on a Friday night as a high school student, and struggling to find “my” prayebrook amidst the various Orthodox prayerbooks on the shelf. Based on that bookshelf, Reform Judaism, our Judaism, was erased from the visible ways to be Jewish, to pray Jewishly. Unfortunately, not much has changed. Earlier this week, in a Knesset subcommittee meeting about Jewish content in school curricula, specifically about including time in school for students to lay tefillin, MK Rabbi Gilad Kariv, a proud Reform rabbi, argued for the need to allow this ritual equally for students of all genders, for students like his daughter. MK Galit Distel-Atbaryan, who was chairing the committee, compared Rabbi Kariv’s daughter’s tefillin practice to “having a bar mitzvah for a dog” and then threw out Rabbi Kariv from the meeting, saying, “get the enlightened Reformi out of here, we Jews wish to continue.” This is what we’re dealing with – with the elected officials of the Jewish state refusing to see Reform Judaism as Judaism, rejecting the notion of egalitarian Jewish practice, and denigrating and mocking Reform Jewish practice.
The Israel Movement for Progressive Judaism, our Reform sister movement in Israel, stated unequivocally, “We share this clip not to amplify hatred, but to highlight a kind of rhetoric that has no place in our democracy. Pluralism, mutual respect, and Jewish diversity are not threats — they are the very foundations of our strength as a people.” The ADL drew an equally clear line, saying that an attack against a central stream of Judaism is an attack against the entire Jewish people – and is unacceptable.
The World Zionist Congress is the voice of the global Jewish people, and it is our opportunity to have our voices be heard loud and clear, as Reform Jews who care about pluralism, Jewish diversity, and equality. Voting is not enough. Every Canadian Jew over the age of 18 is eligible to vote – reach out to your friends, your family, encourage your young adult children to reach out to their friends and classmates. The clock is ticking – we only have 4 days left. Vote Reform today.