In a new op-ed for Religion News Service, Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D., president emerita of Reconstructing Judaism, reflects on her 13 years leading the movement. Rabbi Deborah Waxman, Ph.D. Waxman was the first woman and first out lesbian to lead a Jewish congregational movement. Rabbi Waxman shares seven convictions she
Thriving Communities is excited to share a new online Guide to Fundraising for Reconstructionist Congregations, designed to support congregations in building sustainable fundraising strategies and engaging donors more effectively. Explore practical tools, ideas, and guidance created specifically for congregational leaders.
Elaine Leeder, president of the board at Ner Shalom, a Reconstructionist synagogue in Cotati, California, calls herself “a memorial candle” for the family she lost in the Holocaust. Her own story, “The Daymare,” traces a fear that took root when she was 11 — decades before she would learn that her
Reconstructing Judaism has joined a broad coalition of Jewish organizations in endorsing the Jewish American Security Act, bipartisan legislation introduced in May 2026 by U.S. Senators Jacky Rosen (D-NV) and James Lankford (R-OK) to strengthen federal protections for Jewish communities across the country. The bill takes a comprehensive approach to
Longtime Reconstructionist Rabbi to Lead Movement Organization into Its Next Chapter [Wyncote, PA] — Reconstructing Judaism, the central organization of the Reconstructionist Jewish movement, today announced the selection of Rabbi Elliott Tepperman as its next President and Chief Executive Officer. Rabbi Tepperman brings to the role a distinguished record of
Join us this Sunday, May 17, 2026 at 2:30 PM ET as we celebrate the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College’s Fifty-Fourth Graduation Ceremony via livestream. This year’s graduating class — Josie Boskoff, Alana Krivo-Kaufman, Noah Dor Lind, Léah Miller, and Maria Pulzetti — will be ordained alongside the presentation of honorary degrees
Editor’s note: Marc Overbeck has been a member of Reconstructing Judaism’s Board of Governors since October 2020 and twice served as president of Temple Beth Sholom in Salem, Oregon. In this piece, recently published on The Blogs at the Times of Israel, Marc writes as a Diaspora Jew wrestling honestly
Dear friends,  We are entering Passover at a fragile time, when fragmentation feels close to the surface.  Public discourse is ever more brittle. Democratic norms are strained. Antisemitism has become more visible and more volatile. Within the Jewish community, divisions grow increasingly wider about what matters to prioritize. Passover does not ignore fragmentation. It reframes it.  The Exodus story is not preserved so we can rehearse our  victimhood. It is preserved
Reconstructing Judaism President and CEO Rabbi Deborah Waxman is among more than 1,100 Jewish clergy from 45 states who have signed a statement affirming their support and solidarity with immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers in the United States. The statement, released by HIAS on March 11, 2026, is also accompanied
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