Ruchot

Thirty-six high school students gathered in Washington, DC in early February for the inaugural Ruchot program.  Ruchot meaning “winds” in Hebrew, conjures up images of “winds of change.” This program, the first ever advocacy and lobbying training program for Conservative / Masorti teens, is a new initiative co-sponsored by Adas Israel Congregation, USY, the Rabbinical Assembly, USCJ, Ramah, and the JTS Hendel Center for Ethics and Justice.  It was significant not only because it was the first time we ran it but because so many institutions of the Conservative Movement and alumni leaders in the field came together to make it possible.  

During the four-day program, students experienced Shabbat at Adas Israel, explored Jewish texts about the obligation to be civically engaged, learned how to lead an advocacy and lobbying meeting, and lobbied their elected officials on Capitol Hill. They met with both Republican and Democratic staffers and elected officials, including Representatives Jim McGovern and Jamie Raskin.  

Congressman Raskin challenged them to think about how one brings their faith tradition to their work as a public servant in meaningful and effective ways.  He charged them to study Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s work and leadership as an example of faith in action for the common good. JTS Slifka Nadich Rabbinical School students and alumni rabbis in the field served as staff, offering the opportunity for the teens to experience a variety of examples of religious leadership. We were fortunate to have expert issue leadership about climate change, immigration, and reproductive rights with Dayenu, Bend the Arc, and the National Council of Jewish Women. 

“Teens from all over the country, from as far away as Seattle, WA and Lexington, Kentucky joined us to learn how to organize and act on important issues in their lives,” said Rabbi Stephanie Ruskay, associate dean of The Rabbinical School and executive director of The JTS Hendel Center for Ethics and Justice. “We prayed together and rooted our learning Jewishly because the importance of this program is that we are embodying fully engaged Jewish life that includes civic engagement, rather than separating them.  We don’t leave our faith at the door when we engage in the democratic process.  Judaism requires us to care for people who are marginalized by society and struggle economically. Participating in democracy is a Jewish obligation.  We were teaching ourselves and the teens how to do it as a model we hope will last throughout their lives. 

Click here to read more about Ruchot from Rabbi Stephanie Ruskay.