“Is Reform Judaism Going Orthodox?” screams the headline on the June 1999 cover of New York magazine. "Reform Jews See G-d in Old Ways," is the title of an article written by Reform Rabbi Steven M. Wylen of Temple Beth Tikvah in Wayne, NJ. Even the Orthodox Jewish Observer asks the question, "Is Reform Jewry coming home?" All of this commotion has been stirred up in response to the new platform that the members of the Central Conference of American Rabbis, the Reform rabbinic organization, approved by a vote of 324 to 68, that reasserts traditional values, including Hebrew literacy, Torah study, the observance of Shabbat and Kashrut. While the platform and the resolutions are not binding on its membership, the declaration is a sea-change of major proportions for the movement and an attitudinal change of great import.

Certainly, the attitudinal change did not happen in a vacuum. America is rife with people searching for spirituality and renewed commitment to the “Old Time Religion.” At the same time the American Jewish community is in a profound state of crisis, documented by astounding assimilation statistics of the 1990 CJF Jewish Population Study. Something had to give, something had to change. Clearly American Jewry just couldn't continue down the path of oblivion, addressing internal problems by simply “defining down” Judaism in a way that left little of what was essential and authentic.

Soon after NJOP was founded, a number of meetings were held with the Commission on Jewish Outreach of the UAHC, whose chairman at that time was Mel Merians, a dedicated and insightful leader of the Reform movement who went on to become the Chairman of the Board of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations. We had a frank and open discussion about the future of the movement. Over the years, we worked closely with our friends in the Reform movement, introducing our programs to synagogues and temples that were extraordinarily receptive. Our message was clear. Young Jews are walking away from Judaism, not because they are disenchanted, but out of ignorance. Our Jewish brothers and sisters, sons and daughters must be given positive, joyous Jewish experiences and exciting educational opportunities. Without rituals and Jewish learning, we argued, the decline of Jewish life in America would be inexorable. No doubt, the Reform movement understood the challenge even before we spelled it out for them, but we like to think that our relationship and the extraordinary success that NJOP programs had in the Reform movement’s synagogues and temples, underscored the fact that Reform Jews were indeed seeking a stronger relationship with Jewish ritual and tradition.

Over the past 11 years, more than 22,000 Reform Jews have been taught to read Hebrew through NJOP programs, and more than 70,000 have attended NJOP Shabbat programs, many for the first time. Reform Rabbis were delighted by the success of the NJOP programs they had run, and began offering programs even more frequently than the NJOP schedule. Under the guidance of Dru Greenwood, the Reform movement started its own “Taste of Judaism” project, modeled after NJOP’s Basic Judaism Crash Course, and the UAHC is now planning to organize its own intensive Hebrew Reading campaign within the movement.

NJOP applauds the decisions made by Rabbi Eric Yoffe and the Reform lay leadership to enrich the Reform movement and its membership. We hope that we can remain partners with them as they continue to flourish.

Equally exciting, is the response of the so-called right wing, Orthodox Agudath Israel movement to the new Reform proclamation.
Under the leadership of the Novominsker Rebbe, Rabbi Yaakov Perlow, Agudath Israel has issued a number of remarkable statements, applauding the new Reform proclamation. In fact, a spokesman for Agudath Israel, Rabbi Avi Shafran, wrote: "But only a heart without hope, could fail to be moved by the Reform rabbis remarkable about-face.”

Here too, NJOP has been intimately involved. Over the years we have met with Orthodox Jewish leadership, imploring them, not to criticize, but rather to find sparks of holiness in the non-Orthodox community and to help ignite them, by praising and nurturing them.

We are very proud of these two precedent setting events, and the role that National Jewish Outreach has played in them. And we are deeply grateful to all of you, our friends, members and supporters, for making our efforts possible.

NJOP Beginner's Services

Make Great Strides

Congregation Shaare Zedek in Hicksville, Long Island, was a struggling synagogue. On most Shabbat mornings, the members could hardly gather enough bodies for a minyan.
That is until Rabbi Yossi Korngold of the Queens, New York-based Jewish Heritage Center responded to the synagogue’s desperate plea for help. The rabbi immediately implemented a broad range of NJOP programs, starting with the High Holiday Beginners Service.

“We put up NJOP posters and took out some ads in local papers using NJOP materials,” he explains. “In three months time we not only have a minyan every Saturday morning, but 50 people showed up for the High Holiday Beginners Service, which we ran simultaneously with our regular service.”

It’s a success story that is being repeated throughout the nation, with religious and lay leaders giving full credit to NJOP’s cutting-edge marketing techniques, publicity efforts, free teaching materials, and other services.
“There is a great product that Jews have -- it’s called Torah,” declares Steven Eisenberg, a prominent young Wall Street professional and active NJOP volunteer, who travels to different synagogues throughout the United States to help set up NJOP programs.

“The only problem is that the marketing of Torah has been virtually non-existent,” he adds. “And that’s where NJOP comes in. It exposes Jews to Torah and Judaism in a positive, intellectual, and stimulating way. Its marketing and publicity efforts really work!” Rabbi Yitzchak Rosenbaum, NJOP’s Program Director, estimates that there are approximately 150 active Beginner’s services across North America. During the High Holiday season that number may swell to 250.

Beginners Services are “user friendly” services designed for those with little or no synagogue background. The service consists of analysis, discussions and slow reading of the prayers in Hebrew and English, a survey of the weekly Torah portion, and the opportunity to ask any question at virtually any time. Beginners Services have been remarkably successful in mainstreaming neophytes into the “main” services, and making that passage less traumatic for the Beginner.

Of course, establishing a Beginners Service can be daunting, that’s where NJOP’s acclaimed marketing talents come into play. The importance of proper marketing is echoed by Rabbi David Silverman of Congregation Beth Jacob, in Atlanta, Georgia. “The materials that NJOP provides free of charge -- prayer charts, Hebrew primers, teachers’ guides, videos -- help us to spread a net to attract unaffiliated Jews, bringing unaffiliated Jews into the synagogue.

“The response has been so phenomenal that most synagogues here in Atlanta don’t consider themselves a functioning synagogue if they don’t offer a Hebrew Reading Crash Course.”
At New York City’s Manhattan Jewish Experience, a year-old outreach program which operates out of The Jewish Center and The Fifth Avenue Synagogue, Rabbi Mark Wildes credits NJOP flyers, posters, and other publicity and advertising materials for the success of his Beginners Service and a recent Friday night Shabbat dinner which attracted 235 people.
“The following Saturday night we had a sing along, and about the same amount of people showed up. We also have about 200-300 people registered for our Crash Course in Basic Judaism.”

When the Westchester, New York, branch of “The Flame,” a 20-year-old national organization of unaffiliated Jews dedicated to the intellectual exploration of Judaism, decided to hold its first High Holiday service, they were at a loss as to what to do. Rabbi Mat Hoffman, leader of the Westchester branch, which boasts a membership of 650 families, turned to NJOP for assistance.
“NJOP provided all the necessary materials in terms of what prayers should be said and how they should be said,” he recalls. It provided the groundwork without which we could never have provided this service to our members.”

At Connecticut’s Fairfield Jewish Outreach Program, Rabbi Shalom Baum of Congregation Ahavath Achim praises NJOP’s radio promotions and credits the ads for the success of its flourishing Hebrew Reading Crash Course and Beginners Service.

“There’s a tremendous amount of follow-up work required to promote these programs,” says Rabbi Baum. “But because most people have heard those “Read Hebrew America” promotions on radio or have seen the ads, our link with NJOP gives us credibility. It makes it easier for us to attract more and more people and to keep them coming.”

Another big NJOP admirer is Rabbi Elly Krimsky of the Beth Sholom Congregation in Potomac, Maryland. “We use a lot of NJOP materials for the Hebrew reading classes we offer twice a year and the Rosh Hashanah Beginners Service,” the rabbi says.

“When I began at this synagogue five years ago, we decided to begin an educational program that had an outreach component. One of the first things I did was get in touch with NJOP.
“It’s worked out very nicely for us. Now we’re running four High Holidays beginners services and many of those who attend are giving serious thought about becoming knowledgeable and conscientious Jews.”

At Minneapolis’ Congregation Knesseth Israel, which offers Hebrew Reading Crash Courses and a Beginners Service among other NJOP-inspired programs, lay leader Stuart Fishman says NJOP source materials have made it all possible.

“The NJOP video tape explaining the Beginners Service has been very effective in helping us and Congregation Bais Yisroel, our partner in outreach, organize this service. At Bais Yisroel, NJOP’s materials got the “Shabbat Across America” event up and running.”
At another Midwestern synagogue, Rabbi Ze’ev Smason of Nusach Hari-Bnai-Zion Congregation in St. Louis, Missouri, says he has been taking full advantage of NJOP’s publicity and materials for nearly six years.

“We’ve been running everything from Hebrew Reading Crash Courses to “Turn Friday Night Into Shabbat” programs,” he declares. “The booklets, the flash cards, and the other materials that NJOP has provided us with really work. People are really learning to read Hebrew and, as a result, the Shabbat experience has become a more meaningful and enjoyable one for them.”
At Congregation Ahavath Achim in New Bedford, Massachusetts, Rabbi David Hartman applauds NJOP for helping the synagogue launch its Hebrew Reading Crash Course and Shabbat Beginners Service. “For Succoth, we even ran a Beginners Service on Sunday” notes the rabbi. “It was very successful.”

Rabbi Hartman proudly points out that at the synagogue’s Beginners Service the entire congregation worships together. “It’s one big happy Beginners Service family with our regulars and the new people all praying together.”

Perhaps summing it all up best is Rabbi Daniel Alter of Ahawas Achim B’nai Jacob and David synagogue in West Orange, New Jersey. “One of the hardest things for a synagogue to do is get people to come inside,” he explains. “But with NJOP doing the publicity, and with their materials helping to make the services understandable, it’s a method that has been very successful for us. It’s a tremendous tool for attracting unaffiliated Jews.”

READ HEBREW AMERICA/CANADA

November 1999 marked the Second Annual READ HEBREW AMERICA/CANADA, bringing together 20,000 students in 1400 classes across the country, to participate in NJOP’s heralded “Hebrew Reading Crash Course.” That number represents a 33% increase over last year’s inaugural RHA/RHC program, in which 15,000 Jews across the United States and Canada learned to read Hebrew! Read Hebrew America/Canada is the only continent-wide program designed to introduce a generation of Jews to the Hebrew language. The following vignettes are samples of the tremendous impact NJOP is having on so many formerly unaffiliated Jews.

New Jewish Group Finds HRCC
Is Great Way to Attract Members

Highland Park, New Jersey
A recently formed Jewish organization in Highland Park, New Jersey, is finding no better tool to attract new members then by offering NJOP’s Hebrew Reading Crash Courses.
The Jewish Enrichment Center of Raritan Valley [JERV], co-chaired by Dr. Larry Tiefenbrunn and Zelda Wildman, and governed by a community board comprised of rabbis from five synagogues in Edison Park and Highland Park, New Jersey, was organized last March under the auspices of the Board of Rabbis of Raritan Valley.

“The purpose of the program is to bring our Jewish neighbors closer to their Jewish roots,” explains Dr. Tiefenbrunn. “We’ve offered four rounds of the HRCC over the summer, with about 120 participants – not bad for a fledgling organization.”

Dr. Tiefenbrunn adds that the Hebrew Reading Crash Course is an “excellent springboard” for leading non-affiliated Jews and Jews with only a minimal knowledge of Judaism deeper into their own religion and to a greater interest in their Jewish heritage and roots.

“This program is a spark to help accomplish this goal. There’s a yearning among Jews today to know more about who they are. Learning how to read Hebrew is one of the best ways to start.”
Dr. Tiefenbrunn adds that once a person completes the HRCC, “we follow up with a program in which we try to pair up people who have been in these courses with more knowledgeable Jews in the community for one night a week of one-on-one Jewish study.
“We’ve also sponsored Succoth and Hanukkah parties this past year for people enrolled in the HRCC program, and we offer everything from basic Judaism programs to courses on Jewish single life.” JERV is also planning to participate in NJOP’s Shabbat Across America/Canada campaign on March 31, 2000.

South African Jews Have Better
Hebrew Reading Skills, Says Rabbi

Chicago, Illinois

It’s a long way from Port Elizabeth, South Africa, where Rabbi Zev Kahn was born and raised, to Chicago, Illinois, where the rabbi now works as community outreach director at the Chicago Community Kollel.
In the course of his world travels, Rabbi Kahn says he has noticed a number of significant differences between the Jews of his homeland, and those of America.

The first, he quips, is that most American Jews don’t enjoy rugby as much as South African Jews do. In fact, the rabbi himself, participated in the Macabbee Games in Jerusalem in l985 and l989 as a member of the South African rugby team, and is still somewhat of an athlete.

On a more serious note, Rabbi Kahn maintains that South African Jews are a much more traditional community than their American counterparts. He notes, for example, that approximately 90 percent of South African Jews know how to read Hebrew.

“Something like 80 percent of South African Jews have visited Israel and feel a very strong connection to the country,” he says. “They’re very Zionistic. As a result, a lot of them are interested in learning how to read Hebrew.”
On the other hand, Rabbi Kahn sees American Jews as being more interested in remaining part of the so-called melting pot. “They’re spread out all over the place and don’t have that same strong identity as Jews as in my country. They haven’t stayed as much in touch with the Hebrew language.”

This is a situation which Rabbi Kahn and his organization hope to change. Toward this goal, the Chicago Community Kollel, where Rabbi Kahn has worked since last June, is now coordinating fifteen Hebrew Reading Crash Courses throughout the Chicago area.

“A week after I arrived at my job here I received a post card from NJOP asking our organization to run a crash course in Hebrew. I thought it was bashert (fate) that I should get this card just when I sat down at my desk.”

So Rabbi Kahn and his associate, Rabbi Yehoshua Karsch, initially decided to test the HRCC program at five separate locations in the city to see which areas drew the best response.
“They all did,” Rabbi Kahn laughs. “The response was overwhelming. All five locations were attracting people who wanted to learn how to read Hebrew. For Read Hebrew America we’re offering fifteen classes throughout the Chicago area.”

The courses, he adds, are being attended by everyone from businessmen in Chicago’s downtown Loop district to high school students in the city’s Lake View area.
According to the rabbi, the Hebrew Reading Crash Courses are vital to his organization as a way of introducing non-affiliated Jews and Jews with minimal knowledge of Judaism to their heritage.

“Our classes are getting about 20 students each,” he explains. “We’re running beginner and intermediate classes. But what’s important to us is not the size of the class, but the follow-up. A big part of our job is to work with these people after the crash reading course to get them more involved in the beauty and joy of a Jewish way of life.”

Millennium Fever No Big Deal To Jews In San Jose –
But Hebrew Is !!

San Jose, California
There isn’t much concern about Y2K, or the world coming to an end in the year 2000 among San Jose, California’s Jewish population, according to Dottie Miller, Director of Education for the local Jewish Federation.
But Dottie says what is on the minds of local Jews is learning how to read Hebrew so that they become more in touch with their spiritual roots.
“We started this program last year almost as a throwaway,” Dottie explains. “We thought, let’s do it. It won’t hurt. The response was so overwhelming, it was almost unbelievable. We ended up with over a hundred people finishing the course.”
To keep up with the response, the Federation decided to offer the program this year almost around the clock. “We have programs Sunday mornings, Monday nights, Tuesdays during lunch, and Wednesday and Thursday evenings,” Dottie chuckles. “Now nobody has an excuse not to take it and learn a little Hebrew.”
Dottie insists that all this renewed interest in Hebrew and Jewish spirituality has little to do with the millennium fever now sweeping the nation. “From talking to people in our community, there’s a monumental non-interest in all the hoopla about the dangers we may face in 2000.
“What I do see is a real search for spirituality –- not only here, but all over the country,” she declares. “There’s a thirst for Jewish knowledge -- especially here in San Jose. That’s why people want to learn how to read Hebrew. They want to be able to read prayers and Hebrew text in the original.”

According to the Jewish Federation leader, another reason for the sudden interest in reading Hebrew is that the 20 something generation has matured and is beginning to raise families.
“They want to help their children with their Hebrew school studies. That’s a big issue with many of the parents I talk to. They want to get involved with their kids’ Hebrew education.”
Dottie adds that the crash courses are also serving as a catalyst for instilling harmony among various Jewish denominations in the area. “That’s another nice thing about this program. All the synagogues are opening their doors to anybody.

“If you’re a Reformed Jew and can’t make the class schedule at your synagogue, you’re entirely welcome to walk into an Orthodox synagogue and study Hebrew there. This program is making for better relations all around.”

Hebrew Not an Endangered Species In Canada, Says Montreal Rabbi
Montreal, Canada
The Hebrew language is flourishing in Canada –- according to Rabbi Lionel E. Moses, president of Montreal’s Board of Rabbis.
“We have a culturally sophisticated day school program that teaches both Hebrew and Yiddish, so there is no danger of either language dying,” the Conservative rabbi emphasizes.
Rabbi Moses adds that it is not only the Chassidim who are keeping both languages alive in Montreal. “There are large numbers of young men and women who grew up in the suburbs who are conversant in both Hebrew and Yiddish.”
He says interest in Jewish life is currently at such a high peak in his city, that the Board of Rabbis decided to coordinate NJOP’s Hebrew Reading Crash Courses at nine different locations.

“These programs are being offered in Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, and Reconstructionist synagogues,” Rabbi Moses explains. “It’s a coordinated effort and it’s symbolic of the Jewish community working together on things that we an all agree upon.”

The excellent huge turnout for the Hebrew Reading Crash Courses, which are part of the NJOP’s Read Hebrew America/Canada program, is no surprise to Rabbi Moses or other members of the Board of Rabbis.
“Montreal Jews are very committed to Jewish education,” he asserts. “About 60 to 70 percent of our elementary school students are in Jewish day schools. And about 65 percent of our high school students are also in Jewish day schools.

“I run a beginners’ course in reading Hebrew three times a year, and we get anywhere from six to ten people taking that class -- and that’s with limited advertising and in just one synagogue,” he continues. “So imagine how many more people we’re able to attract with this coordinated effort and the advertising that NJOP is doing for the program.”

Rabbi Moses believes the Hebrew Reading Crash Courses has a special appeal to Jewish parents who want to “make a commitment to Jewish education for their children.”

GREAT MOTHERS

What do Alan Dershowitz, Senator Joseph Lieberman, Dennis Prager and Rabbi Joseph Telushkin have in common? They all have GREAT MOTHERS. On October 25th at 7:45pm hundreds of National Jewish Outreach friends and supporters joined to celebrate great mothers of outstanding Jewish children. The program, a combination of humor, wit and wisdom, offered a glimpse into the lives of these prominent Jewish families.

The mothers, Claire Dershowitz of Brooklyn,NY, Marcia Lieberman of Stamford,CT, Hilda Prager of Englewood,NJ, and Helen Telushkin of Brooklyn,NY, deftly fielded a variety of questions about sibling rivalry, parental support, grandchildren, Judaism, and motherhood. Dozens of memorable stories were shared. Marcia Lieberman proudly declared that “My son is the only Jew who can say the Vice President was his ‘Shabbos Goy’.” She proceeded to explain that once on a late Friday afternoon after a crucial vote, Senator Joseph Lieberman was stranded for Shabbat in the Capitol building. Vice President Gore not only offered his parents’ nearby apartment to Lieberman, but also volunteered to turn the lights on and off according to the needs of the Senator! Hilda Prager told the audience that while her son Dennis Prager was tall, he was not very athletic and once scored two points for the opposing team in a competitive basketball game! The mothers’ pride and love of their children and grandchildren filled the room with a warm, admiring feeling.

Hilly Gross, NJOP Board member, served as a provocative and witty moderator. His cleverness and humor made the crowd roar with laughter, while his patience and understanding made the mothers feel right at home, enabling them to deliver their words eloquently and confidently throughout the evening.

It’s not clear who enjoyed themselves more. The mothers relished sharing stories, and the audience was thoroughly entertained and enlightened. As the mothers concluded their stories, anecdotes and insights about their children, the audience got into the act by asking pointed, sometims passionate, questions to the mothers.
The evening concluded with a dessert reception, which provided an opportunity to mingle with the mothers and their families. Many who attended the Mothers program suggested that NJOP soon host a follow-up program: Great Fathers of Outstanding Daughters! Information about obtaining copies of the video of this memorable evening will be forthcoming shortly.
Special thanks to event chairs Raina & Neil Baim, and to the event committee, who helped plan and execute this special evening.