ARZA Canada (the Association of Reform Zionists of America – Canada) is affiliated with the Reform Jewish Community of Canada and the Union for Reform Judaism North America.
ARZA 2024 • Now More Than Ever
With over 4,400 members, our mandate is to connect with Reform communities throughout Canada, foster connections with and strengthen our ties to the Reform Movement in Israel, and work to realize the vision of Reform Zionism.
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Judith Wiley and Jeff Denaburg
Co-Chairs, ARZA Canada
Vote Reform – for your grandchildren
You may have never heard of the Jewish Agency For Israel, but you and your grandchildren have a stake in it. The Jewish Agency is responsible for Aliyah – they determine who is eligible to move to Israel through the Right of Return.
Ultra-nationalist and religious extremist groups want to exclude anyone from Aliyah who doesn’t meet ultra-Orthodox standards. If they succeed, it would mean that someone you love who wants to move to Israel could be denied citizenship – because their family includes an interfaith marriage, a same-sex marriage or a Reform conversion.
Leadership of the Jewish Agency is determined by the World Zionist Congress (WZC). Voting for ARZA Canada in the upcoming WZC election will help to protect you, your grandchildren and the Jewish people.
The Jewish Agency also funds programs that benefit Diaspora Jews, such as youth study programs and work programs in Israel. And we all love the Israeli shinshinim who have become part of our synagogue communities, schools and Reform summer camps. This is all at risk if the Reform voice in the WZC is reduced.
So please plan to vote for ARZA Canada in the WZC election – June 5 to 15. If you’re a Canadian Jew 18 years or older, you can vote. (There are no automatic votes if you belong to a synagogue or ARZA Canada. Everyone must vote.)
Learn more
To learn more about the WZC and why voting is so important, you can watch powerful explanations by Rabbi Michael Dolgin of Temple Sinai (here) and Rabbi Samuel Kaye of Holy Blossom Temple (here).
L’Shalom
Judith Wiley and Jeff Denaburg
Co-Chairs, ARZA Canada
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Upcoming Events
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Digital Leaders for Progressive Judaism
The World Union For Progressive Judaism is offering a program to develop “Digital Leaders”, who will learn about the values of progressive Judaism and how to share them on social media. The program includes leadership training with time in Israel.
Click here for more information.
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Hope and Strength – Finding Resilience in Community and Song
Concert in support of Peace of Mind Canada
Saturday, June 7 at 7:30 pm ET
Temple Har Zion, Thornhill
Temple Har Zion and Temple Emanu-El are jointly hosting a unit of Israeli soldiers from the Peace of Mind program.
This critical initiative makes an enormous impact on the lives of the brave veterans who have so selflessly given of themselves to defend Israel. Hosting a unit of released soldiers will provide much-needed therapy for these exceptional young men as they begin their journey towards healing their emotional/psychological battle wounds. This experience will also enrich the lives of our community as we come together in love and support for Israel's heroes.
To register – click here or here
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Israel Dialogues
Holy Blossom Temple – all sessions 12 PM ET
Thursday, May 29 – Prof. Gabriel Ben-Dor, Professor of Political Science at the University of Haifa
Topic: Israel in a New and Uncertain Regional Strategic Environment: a Conversation
To register, click here
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Podcasts
Miriam Pearlman, immediate past president of ARZA Canada, discusses the impact of Israel’s new government with fellow leaders in a Canadian Jewish News Daily podcast:
About ARZA Canada
Travel to Israel
Arza Canada Privacy Policy
The Privacy Commission of Canada states the following:
Non-profit organizations are not subject to the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) when they do not engage in commercial activities.
The following activities are not considered commercial and are not subject to PIPEDA:
- collecting membership fees
- compiling a list of members’ names and addresses/email addresses
- mailing out newsletters
As you know, ARZA Canada represents Canadian Reform Zionists with members in all of Canada’s Reform congregations. Though independent of the sister organization, ARZA, in the United States, it is an affiliate of the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) and Reform Jewish Community of Canada (RJCC). We are writing to address how ARZA Canada maintains its membership records, and in particular its commitment to the privacy of our members.
Accurate membership records are important to the entire Reform Jewish Community of Canada given that the size of our membership determines our influence on Zionist policies in Canada and in Israel. ARZA Canada members come through congregational solicitation and activism, and so annually it is provided lists of its members from Canadian Reform congregations such as yours in order to confirm individual memberships. This is deeply appreciated.
ARZA Canada has strong privacy practices to ensure the confidentiality of this membership information. It is used by ARZA Canada to communicate with our members and engage them in the activities of ARZA Canada, including joint programs with RJCC and our congregations.
For more please click here.
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