Rabbi Hara Person is the Chief Executive for the Central Conference of American Rabbis.
Hara Person
By Hara Person
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Opinion We still have time to resist Amy Coney Barrett’s confirmation — and we must
Like many of my fellow Reform rabbis, I am deeply concerned about what the pending confirmation of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court might mean for our country. Barrett has historically stood against many of the fundamental rights and freedoms that the Reform Movement has supported for decades. Among those, and at the…
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Opinion What will the rabbinate look like after COVID?
In many ways, rabbis serve as the first spiritual responders for Jewish communities; we are often the first place people turn in moments of crisis. As the leader of the organization that represents Reform rabbis worldwide, I’ve seen firsthand the key role rabbis have played in leading Jewish communities nationwide as they adjust to radically…
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Life The Reform Movement Is Struggling With Gender Equity, Says First Female Leader Of CCAR
I owe a major part of my Jewish identity to the generations of strong, rebellious women in my family. From a young age, I was guided to Jewish feminism by my grandmother Augusta and my great-grandmother Lina, who never accepted the limitations placed on them as women. Lina ran away from an arranged marriage in…
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Community What Jews Should Watch For In The Kavanaugh Confirmation Hearings
In the Torah, Jews are repeatedly commanded to prioritize the cause of justice, most famously in Deuteronomy 16:18-20 (“Justice, justice shall you pursue”). In modern America, perhaps no institution embodies this concept more than the Supreme Court, which makes crucial decisions about our nation’s moral and constitutional standards. For this reason, next week’s hearings on…
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Community A 2018 Manifesto For The Woke Jewish Woman
The past year has been a dramatic whirlwind of change and uncertainty for Americans, and for American women in particular. A year that began with the largest protest in modern history — led, organized and overwhelmingly attended by women — ended with earth-shattering conversations about the harassment, abuse and systemic inequities faced by women across…
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Life Why Women’s Torah Commentary Matters Today More Than Ever Before
This has been the year of women claiming agency. We began 2017 marching for our rights in Washington, D.C., and we end the year shifting the national dialogue on sexual harassment and assault. We’ve made it clearer than ever before that our voices must be heard, while asserting our right to hold positions once belonging…
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Opinion The Choose-Your-Own-Adventure High Holidays Prayer Book
At the Central Conference of American Rabbis, we have to wrestle with the question “What does it mean to be Jewish in America today?” beyond the theoretical. In our charge is the basic structure and tone of worship for the largest group of Jews in the country, the Reform Movement. And when we took a…
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