Israel/Palestine Group

This group provides a safe place to learn, talk, listen and share our feelings, focusing on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, with respect for different opinions. Our emphasis is on achieving civil rights and human rights for all Palestinians, Israelis, and other groups living in the area, based on Jewish values and the humanity of all people. […]

If Not Now is a movement that believes Palestinian and Jewish safety are intertwined. It organizes American Jewish communities to oppose occupation. Members of the Philadelphia chapter will join on Wednesday, May 21 at 6:30 p.m. to share their analysis of the current situation in Israel/Palestine and to discuss the group’s work advocating for freedom, […]

In February 2025, Catherine Fischer, former Director of Membership and Philanthropy at RS and current principal and spiritual director at Sacred Practices, and Rabbi Sue Levi Elwell, Professor of Jewish Spirituality at the Graduate Theological Union and visiting Rabbi at RS during Rabbi Maderer’s recent sabbatical, travelled to Israel and the occupied West Bank. They were on a […]

Religiously orthodox, politically radical, CUNY journalism professor and commentator Peter Beinart has written a short book that tells a bracing story. Being Jewish After the Destruction of Gaza: A Reckoning describes Beinart’s journey from a mild critic of Israel for its failure to live up to the ideals of liberal Zionism to a man who is unsure […]

Maya Pindyck, an Israeli-American poet and RS congregant, will share poems from her book Impossible Belonging, which won the Philip Levine Prize for Poetry and was a finalist for the National Jewish Book Award. The book explores questions about Jewish identity, statehood, diaspora, and cultural belonging. She will also share a few recent poems, written after the book's publication […]

Many narratives are used to justify war. We will look at how the invasion of Gaza is told to the American people, the Israeli people, and the world on Tuesday, November 11 at 6:30 p.m. We will examine pro-war narratives and consider how to respond to them. Join us for an engaging session that may […]

"What Was the Gaza War and What is the Kushner Peace Plan?" Tuesday, December 9 at 6:30 p.m. There are many ways to look at the war Israel waged against Hamas in the aftermath of the October 7 atrocities. Professor Ian Lustick, Emeritus Professor of Political Science at the University of Pennsylvania, returns to RS […]

"Gaza Women: Resilience and Hope Under Catastrophic Conditions" Join on Tuesday, January 13 at 6:30 p.m. for a discussion with Cindy Sousa, Professor of Social Work at the University of Washington, Tacoma, who will Zoom in to present work she has done with international colleagues on the life of women in Gaza. Discussions are for […]

Discussions are for congregants and invited guests. RSVP to Heshie Zinman.

With all eyes focused on the Persian Gulf, it is too easy to lose sight of the unfolding crisis on the West Bank. RS congregants Maya Pindyck, poet, and Catherine Fischer, former RS Director of Membership and Philanthropy, recently visited the region. We will hear them report on their separate experiences on Wednesday, May 27 […]