— The men’s clubs of the Reform and Conservative movements agreed on a “historic” collaboration.

The agreement between the Men of Reform Judaism and the Federation of Jewish Men’s Clubs, announced last month on the blog of the Union for Reform Judaism, emphasizes that the agreement is not a merger. But the groups have agreed to collaborate in various ways, including sharing data and training materials, attending each other’s meetings and missions, leadership development and promoting successful programming to the two memberships.

In the memorandum of understanding, the groups said the collaboration was “in the spirit of klal Yisrael,” the entire Jewish community, and was intended “to more effectively involve men in Jewish life.”

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

“This is not a merger; each organization will continue to maintain its own identity,” the agreement said. “It is our joint belief that this inter-Movement cooperation between men’s groups will enhance our understanding of, and enable us to involve, Jewish families.”

The Federation of Jewish Men’s Clubs is the umbrella group for over 250 affiliated Conservative organizations across North America. Men of Reform Judaism, founded in 1923, is its Reform counterpart and approved the memorandum at its June convention in New Orleans.

“Despite our cultural differences, which each group has pledged to respect, there is much that unites us and, in fact, MRJ has been working together with FJMC on a limited basis for a few years,” Steven Portnoy, the president of the Reform group, wrote on the movement’s blog, calling the collaboration “historic.”

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a gift today!

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

$90 $180

$360

Other amount