October 28, 2025 STAY INFORMED – TALKING POINTS – ACTIONS TO CONSIDER – STORIES MAKING NEWS When Anti-Jewish Hate Becomes Routine, Rhetoric Replaces Responsibility Gunshots rang out and moments later 11 American Jews lay murdered in their Pittsburgh synagogue. Now, seven years after the deadliest massacre of Jews in the U.S., hate against the American […]
October 28-30, 2025, MERCAZ delegates will participate in the 39th World Zionist Congress in Jerusalem. They will be the voice of millions of Masorti/Conservative Jews around the world in shaping how the Jewish world’s largest institutions – WZO, KKL/JNF, the Jewish Agency, and Keren HaYesod – will work to shape Israel’s and the Jewish people’s […]
“From the darkness, we plead — to arise tomorrow morning and start again from ‘In the beginning.’” ~ from a popular song by the late Israeli songwriter Naomi Shemer Over the past two weeks, we have finally been privileged to witness the return to Israel from Gaza of the remaining living hostages. Not all of […]
October 21, 2025 STAY INFORMED – TALKING POINTS – ACTIONS TO CONSIDER Protecting Students, Confronting Hate: California’s Step Toward Improving Unbiased Education Most teachers in America remain deeply committed to helping students think critically. The U.S. public education system has always been held to high standards and played an important role for generations of students. However, troubling […]
Join our Congress Updates WhatsApp group! The last few days have been some of the most emotional and memorable in Israel’s history. The return of our living hostages and the first steps towards an end of this war and historic change in the region is not only a tremendous moment for Israel. While much remains […]
October 14, 2025 STAY INFORMED – TALKING POINTS – ACTIONS TO CONSIDER – STORIES MAKING NEWS Jubilation: The Return of Israel’s Living Hostages Every living Israeli hostage seized on Oct. 7 has been freed from Gaza to the jubilation of the nation. Families torn apart by terror are embracing once more, marking a moment of […]
הוֹד֣וּ לַיהֹוָ֣ה כִּי־ט֑וֹב כִּ֖י לְעוֹלָ֣ם חַסְדּֽוֹ Give thanks to God for God is good; God’s steadfast love is eternal Psalm 136:1 A Message from Rabbi Hillel Skolnik, President, MERCAZ USA These sacred words, chanted multiple times this morning as we mark the final day of Sukkot, were expressed with extra gratitude and thanks as we […]
A Thought Before Shabbat from MERCAZ USA’s President Rabbi Hillel Skolnik For two years, we have prayed, we have hoped, we have shouted, we have begged, we have demanded, and we have wished for all of the hostages to be brought home from Gaza and for God’s canopy of peace to once again be our […]
October 5, 2025 STAY INFORMED – TALKING POINTS – ACTIONS TO CONSIDER – STORIES MAKING NEWS The Final Hostages: Hidden, Not Forgotten Negotiators for Israel and Hamas were poised for indirect negotiations to release the hostages and end the war in Gaza, as this edition of The Focus Project was set for publication. The talks […]
September 30, 2025 STAY INFORMED – TALKING POINTS – ACTIONS TO CONSIDER – STORIES MAKING NEWS America’s Plan, Hamas’ Choice and the World’s Response The war in Gaza has entered a pivotal moment. For decades, American and Israeli peace efforts have been met with rejection and violence. A new U.S. proposal now puts an ultimatum […]