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On November 7-8, 2013, Typhoon Haiyan, the equivalent of a Category 5 hurricane, made landfall in the Philippines. The storm came on the heels of an October earthquake that had affected more than 3 million people and disrupted life for more than 14 million Filipinos (nearly 15% of the total population). According to UNICEF, nearly half of the 3.9 million people who were displaced were children. In the wake of the storm, the Union for Reform Judaism, its congregations, and their members rallied to support the storm’s victims.

This d’var was given by Rabbi Jonah Pesner, Senior Vice President of the URJ, on Friday night at the 2013 URJ Biennial.

I grew up in Southern California, just a few hours from here, and believe it or not, I spent a chunk of my early teens surfing waves on the beaches of Orange County. A flat, calm Pacific Ocean spelled disappointment, even boredom.

But most weeks, there were

This Biennial is almost over but we’re just getting started.  What a humbling responsibility you have placed on my shoulders; what a tremendous opportunity we have to shape the Jewish future with imagination, courage and commitment.

News coverage about Israel over the past few months has focused mostly on foreign policy: the Arab Spring, Iran's growing nuclear program, the crumbling diplomatic relationship between Israel and Turkey, and most recently, the possibility of a vote for