Rabbi Rick Jacobs

Press Release

URJ President Rabbi Rick Jacobs Responds To Death Threats, Hate Vandalism At Reform Synagogue In Israel

Rabbi Rick Jacobs, President of the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ), issued the following statement in response to personal death threats against him and the Reform Movement in Israel: The vandalism of our Reform congregation in Ra’anana—and murderous threats against me and my Israeli colleagues Rabbi Gilad Kariv and Anat Hoffman—are reprehensible. They are deplorable. But, alas, they are far from surprising.

Statement Of URJ President Rabbi Rick Jacobs On The Death Of Shimon Peres

Rabbi Rick Jacobs, President of the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ), released the following statement after learning of the death of former Israeli President Shimon Peres:

In his final speech before the Knesset, as former Israeli President Shimon Peres ended his term in office, he said “I have come to bid you farewell as a citizen, as a man whose dream is still alive.” And indeed, not only did his dreams—and his extraordinary steadfastness, brilliance, and ingenuity—make him an integral part of the nation of Israel from its founding until today, his hope was infectious and his optimism was an inspiration.

Shimon Peres understood that the greatness of Israel lies in its embrace of our better selves, and he spent his life challenging himself and others to reach for the impossible. Often, he achieved it.

Press Release

URJ President Responds To Supreme Court Kotel Statement

Rabbi Rick Jacobs, President of the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ), issued the following statement today in response to Israel's Supreme Court statement addressing the Israeli government's failure to implement its earlier decision to create an egalitarian prayer space for non-Orthodox worship at the Western Wall in Jerusalem.