MERCAZ Newsletter — Spring 2006
FROM AROUND THE CONSERVATIVE MASORTI WORLD

Masorti Olami: Masorti Olami/World Council of Conservative Synagogues held its annual tribute dinner this past November honoring, among others, Rabbi William H. Lebeau, Dean of the Rabbinical School and Vice Chancellor of the Jewish Theological Seminary. Also honored at the event were the outgoing and incoming Masorti Olami presidents, Rabbi Alan Silverstein and Alan H. Silberman.

Masorti Olami's responsibilities focus on the development and strengthening of Conservative communities outside of North America and Israel. Part of the organization's programmatic funding comes from the World Zionist Organization's Unit for Pluralistic Religious Services. Money from the Pluralism Unit goes to provide trained leaders to conduct High Holiday services and teach classes in new Masorti congregations, such as Beit Shalom in Alicante, Spain, and Kehillat Marom in Moscow, Russia. For more information about how to support its programs, contact Masorti Olami at (212) 280-6039 or email: worldcouncil@masortiworld.org.

Masorti Movement: This May, the Masorti Movement's Bar/Bat Mitzvah Program for the Special Needs Child will celebrate its tenth anniversary with a festive program in Jerusalem. During its first decade, the program has served more than 2,000 children throughout Israel. The program, under the direction of Zivah Nativ, includes a teaching staff of rabbis, cantors and educators from the Masorti Movement and MAROM (Masorti young adults) involved in preparing the children at some forty Israeli schools.

The Special Needs Bar/Bat Mitzvah Program is one of a half-dozen projects of the Masorti Movement that are funded in part through the Jewish Agency's annual "Streams" allocation. Other funded projects include "Rabbis Teaching Pluralism", congregational promotion, NOAM/Masorti Youth Movement, Ramah-NOAM Summer Camp and MAROM. For further information about how to support the Masorti Movement, contact the Masorti Foundation at (212) 870-2216 or email: info@masorti.org.

Fuchsberg Center: With Purim just a month away, the United Synagogue's Fuchsberg Jerusalem Center reminds you that one good way to fulfill the mitzvah of Mishloach Manot is through gift baskets prepared through the Center for Israeli friends and family, as well as for soldiers without family support and victims of terror. You can place your orders through the website: www.uscjisraelbaskets.com.

Among programs at the Fuchsberg Center receiving Jewish Agency funding are the Conservative Yeshiva and the USY Nativ Year Course. For further information about how to support the Fuchsberg Center, contact the United Synagogue at (212) 533-7800 ext 2522 or email: friedman@uscj.org.

Schechter Institute: The Schechter Institute celebrated its first graduation ceremony in Jerusalem this past November as a fully accredited Israeli academic institution of higher learning. Forty-six students received graduate degrees in various fields of Jewish Studies. At the same time, the Schechter Rabbinical Seminary ordained four new Masorti rabbis.

The Schechter Rabbinical Seminary also announced the election of Rabbi Hanan Alexander as the new Chair of the Executive Board and the appointment of Rabbi Einat Ramon as the Acting Dean of the rabbinical school. Dr. Ramon was ordained by the Jewish Theological Seminary and served as Spokesperson for the Masorti Movement. She is the first woman to head a rabbinical school in the Conservative Movement.

A number of Schechter programs, including rabbinical studies and the TALI Education Fund, are funded in part through the annual Jewish Agency Stream Funding. For further information about how to support the Schechter Institute, contact (866) 830-3321 or email: schechter@ehlconsulting.com.