By Rabbi Ellen S. Wolintz-Fields, WLCJ Executive Director
Our Bond with Israel
As early as I can remember, I felt a special bond with the State of Israel, and the people of Israel. Since October 7, 2023, this bond has increased and grown even stronger. My sense is that many of our WLCJ Sisters agree with those statements. Daily, I ask myself what I can do to help the State of Israel, and the ongoing difficult situation the citizens of Israel are enduring. As we pray for the hostages, and to bring them home now; and pray for all those who live in Israel and the IDF, here are two tangible action items to help the people in the State of Israel.
Women’s League for Conservative Judaism’s Giving Tuesday was for the Masorti Women’s Days of Study, which will be held virtually on Sunday, February 23. The Masorti Women’s Days of Study are organized by Diane Friedgut, Women’s League Israel Liaison, and a large committee of women representing the kehilot. In 2000, the Masorti Women’s Days of Study were created and directed by Women’s League for Conservative Judaism in cooperation with the Schechter Institute of Judaic Studies and the Masorti Movement. There are usually multiple Masorti Women’s Days of Study held in three different regions in Israel. However, this year, because of the situation in Israel, the Days of Study will be all virtual, so no one in Israel needs to travel. Furthermore, many of the synagogues where the Days of Study would take place, do not have large enough safe rooms for the participants to gather in the event of a Red Alert – the siren that goes off when a missile is launched towards Israel. Therefore, the Day of Study will be all virtual, and our sisters in North America and throughout the diaspora will be able to study alongside our Israeli sisters for the learning sessions which will take place in Hebrew, English, Spanish and Russian.
Registration for this event will be in a future edition of our WL Week e-blast. Although we cannot all go to Israel, and physically be with our sisters in Israel, virtually attending the Masorti Women’s Days of Study will be a way to visit and bond with our Israeli sisters. We are very grateful for continual donations to the Masorti Women’s Days of Study, which can be made at: https://wlcj2.org/u/?D1c6470d.
Another way to continue and nurture our bond with Israel is to be a member of MERCAZ USA or MERCAZ Canada.
MERCAZ USA/Canada is the United States/Canada branch of MERCAZ Olami, the Zionist organization of the Masorti (Conservative) Movement. MERCAZ represents Masorti Judaism within the World Zionist Organization and Congress, the Jewish Agency for Israel, the American Zionist Movement, and the Jewish National Fund. We are living through a critical time in Israel’s history. As Jews living outside the State of Israel, we may feel that we have little to say that can change lives for so many in Israel, but there is a way to have our voices heard: by voting for the MERCAZ slate in the upcoming World Zionist Congress election. The World Zionist Congress (WZC), founded by Theodor Herzl in 1897, is the only democratic body with representatives of all of world Jewry: all countries, all denominations. In the WZC, diaspora Jews not only have a voice, but a vote!
Elections to the World Zionist Congress are held every five years and are open to permanent residents of the United States and Canada who are over 18 and did not vote in the last Knesset election. The results of these elections determine who governs the boards and the policymaking of the Jewish Agency, KKL/JNF, and Keren Hayesod, organizations in Israel that allocate billions every year. Your vote can help influence how these organizations operate and spend their money.
MERCAZ is the only slate in this election that represents Conservative/Masorti Judaism, its values and its communities worldwide. When you vote MERCAZ, you are voting to: help rebuild Israel after October 7; help safeguard Israeli society with Jewish and Democratic values; and support the right of Jewish pluralism in the Jewish state, central to energizing Israel viability and the practical vision for Zionism—one that renews the “startup nation” mentality, a thriving economy, and strong defense forces, and strengthens global Jewish communities.
MERCAZ representation at the World Zionist Congress determines our representation on the boards of the Jewish Agency and KKL/JNF. These institutions allocate over $2 billion annually to Israeli and other Jewish causes, including over $30 million in funding that could support our Masorti congregations, Ramah camping and its summer shlichim (emissaries) program, youth groups like USY and NOAM, outreach to grieving families at Hostage Square, Jewish education for children with disabilities, and so much more. Furthermore, Women’s League for Conservative Judaism will be represented on the MERCAZ slate and we will also have representation of WLCJ leadership at the World Zionist Congress in Israel, which will be held in the fall of 2025. With more MERCAZ seats at the World Zionist Congress, we can secure more funds. We can also secure more for other national priorities that promote our pluralistic and democratic values.
In the last World Zionist Congress elections in the United States, only 14,000 out of nearly a million Conservative Jews voted. The next WZC election will take place from March 10 to May 4. Voting is open to all Jewish people who are permanent residents of the United States or Canada, are over 18 and who did not vote in the last Knesset election. A $5 fee for voters helps to cover the cost of running the election and shows that you are invested in the future of the Jewish people. The election is held online, and you can sign up to get a reminder when voting opens by visiting www.MERCAZusa.org/voteMERCAZ2025 and entering the community code 268. Please join me in supporting MERCAZ USA/ MERCAZ Canada by registering to vote today.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Ellen S. Wolintz-Fields
WLCJ Executive Director
ewolintz-fields@wlcj.org
