Rabbi Vernon H. Kurtz

[I am pleased to share with you the following “View from Jerusalem” by Dr. David Breakstone, MERCAZ Olami representative on the Executive of the World Zionist Organization and Jewish Agency, and Rabbi Joe Wernik, MERCAZ Olami Executive Vice-President.]

Chaverim, shalom –

It is our pleasure to congratulate our American colleagues on their successful campaign in the American Zionist Movement elections for delegates to the Zionist Congress. We want to extend our heartfelt thanks to all of those who worked so long and so hard on these elections.

We also want to acknowledge with great satisfaction all the reports we have received over the past several months regarding the unity of purpose with which all of our constituent organizations and institutions worked together so seamlessly. We are confident that this cooperative effort is a harbinger of even greater things to come after the Congress, and we look forward to building on this together with you in pursuit of our common goals.

There are too many who contributed to this effort to name all of the names here, but we do want to acknowledge the inspired leadership of our president, Rabbi Vernon Kurtz, the devotion of campaign chairs, Dr. Marilyn Wind and Rabbi Richard Hammerman, the ongoing efforts of the members of the Election Committee who served as liaisons on behalf of their respective organizations, the spirit of cooperation demonstrated by the lay and professional leadership of the arms of our movement represented in the Leadership Council for Conservative Judaism as well as the heads of all of our Israeli institutions which united behind the campaign, and, last but not least, the dedication of MERCAZ USA director, Rabbi Bob Golub, and the MERCAZ staff who held the whole thing together. To them and so many others who contributed to this effort, please accept this expression of appreciation collectively.

To those affiliated with MERCAZ chapters outside of the United States, our achievement within the AZM – holding our own in the face of stiff competition – should serve as an inspiration to all of you who are now involved in electoral processes of your own. Every single delegate makes a very real contribution to our ability to influence the agenda of the WZO and JAFI and to access resources, and we are sure all of our colleagues in America who are now taking a deep breath, join me in wishing you much success in your own efforts.

Collectively we are in a position to significantly increase our strength worldwide. There are promising prospects for new representation in countries where until now we have had none, and to increase our representation where our activities and communities have grown over the past four years. The democratization of the WZO, which we are proud that MERCAZ has played such an important role in bringing about, is good not only for the Zionist Movement in general, but for us in particular, as our constituency continues to grow and assert its rightful place around the decision-making tables of the Jewish community throughout the Diaspora. Yeshar Koach to all those who are out in the field making this happen.