#3500

I was number 3500 to sign this petition. I forwarded it to some of you. I think it is very important. Please go to http://www.irac.org and sign the petition yourself.

Here was the letter that I received, via Facebook:

Dear friends,
We are astonished that 24 hours after inviting 100 people to this event/petition we now have 1500. Please do continue inviting people to this global effort.

If you are anything like us you may care about an issue but don't always get round to signing the petition. Please visit www.irac.org http://www.irac.org and sign it now - it really only takes a minute.

The aim is to get 10,000 signatures to present to President Peres and get this stagnated process moving. So far there are 3500 signatures, 3000 from the diaspora 500 from Israel. Please do sign and pass the word on.

We finish below with a message from Rabbi Miri Gold
Thanks for your support,
Charlie Gluckman and Daniel Needlestone
Co-Chairs Pro-Zion www.prozion.org.uk

Shalom,

I was heartened to learn that over 3,500 people have signed the www.irac.org petition demanding recognition for Reform rabbis in Israel. Our court case, which began in September, 2005, reflects the resolve of the Israel Movement for Progressive Judaism to be pro-active on issues of religious pluralism in Israel. The Israel Religious Action Center has brought our case to the court and raised awareness among Israeli citizens who believe that Israel must be a democracy.

There is another facet that I'd like to call to your attention. I was picked as the "test case" because Peter Weiss, the "mayor" of our Gezer Regional Council, to which my home, Kibbutz Gezer, belongs, was willing to stick his neck out, risk the wrath of the Orthodox (and it has rained down hard!), and come to bat for us. He wrote to the Prime Minister's Office, to the person managing the Department of Religious Affairs (in the short oasis of time when there was no Ministry of Religious Affairs), asking that Kibbutz Gezer, populated by liberal Jews, be assigned a liberal rabbi. He pointedly added that there IS a liberal rabbi at Gezer, who de facto serves the community, and that rabbi, Miri Gold, be recognized and salaried by the State, just like the sixteen Orthodox rabbis who serve other communities in the region.

I believe that Peter Weiss' willingness to write this letter of advocacy stems from his connections with the Kansas City Jewish Community, which "partners" with the Region. This partnership shows that our connections to progressive Jewish communities outside of Israel and the influence that they can make will make the difference.

We need your support to bolster this fledgling turning point, by sending a clear message to the government of Israel that the majority of World Jewry will not sit idly by while intolerance reigns in the Jewish homeland. We're looking for at least 10,000 signatures. Please take an active role as Jewish leaders in winning this battle.

Bivracha,
Rabbi Miri Gold
Kehilat Birkat Shalom, Kibbutz Gezer, Israel