April 28, 2023, 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm
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Rabbi Eric H. Yoffie will be our guest speaker for Israel Shabbat. He is a bold, inspiring and passionate speaker on Israel, interfaith dialogue, church-state issues and American religious life. He will speak on the topic of embracing Israel in difficult times. This session is part of our celebration of Israel at 75. Other events celebrating Israel include a TBE Reads session of “The Lemon Tree,” and our spring event “Celebrating Israel at 75.”
Rabbi Yoffie is the President Emeritus of the Union for Reform Judaism, the congregational arm of the Reform Jewish Movement in North America. The URJ represents 1.5 million Reform Jews in more than 900 synagogues across the United States and Canada.
Rabbi Yoffie has been a pioneer in interfaith relations and launched Movement-wide dialogue programs with both Christians and Muslims. In 2005, he was the first Jew to address the Churchwide Assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America. In 2006, he accepted the invitation of the Rev. Jerry Falwell to address the students and faculty of Liberty University, where he spoke frankly of areas of agreement and disagreement. In 2007, Rabbi Yoffie was the first leader of a major Jewish organization to speak at the convention of the Islamic Society of North America.
Rabbi Yoffie has also been deeply involved in issues of social justice and community concern. A prominent spokesperson for sensible gun control, he was the only religious leader to speak at the Million Mom March in Washington, DC. He has also worked tirelessly on behalf of the Jewish state and the rights of Reform Jews in Israel, and meets frequently with Israel’s elected officials.
Raised in Worcester, MA, Rabbi Yoffie was ordained at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New York in 1974, and served congregations in Lynbrook, NY, and Durham, NC, before joining the Union in 1980. He and his wife Amy Jacobson Yoffie reside in Westfield, NJ, and have two children, Adina and Adam.
Rabbi Yoffie is a regular blogger for the Huffington Post and the Jerusalem Post. His writings can be found on his website, EricYoffie.com.
