Media coverage of Stephen Wise Free Synagogue has included feature articles and highlights in the many local, national and international news outlets. Below is some select coverage that highlights the synagogue.
Press inquiries may be directed to Communications Director Ryan Greiss at rgreiss@swfs.org or (212) 877-4050, ext. 267.
The Media Line: Israel Parade Demonstrations
Jun 24, 2023
Not everyone was in favor of the Celebrate Israel Parade, and alongside the huge gathering, a few hundred demonstrators marched against the Israeli government, ostensibly to protest legal reform but actually to contest the existence of the elected government. Reform Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch, one of the leading figures in America’s liberal Judaism movement, warned that protests against Israeli ministers and Knesset members might be misconstrued by the American public as a form of resistance against the State of Israel as a whole.
Haaretz: (Opinion) We Can Reignite Zionism in America Right Now. By Opposing Israel’s Government
Jun 20, 2023
Disagreeing with our Rabbi Ammi Hirsch’s assertion at the Re-CHARGING Reform Judaism conference that commitments to Israel, Zionism and Jewish peoplehood are weakening among Reform Jews, Eric Yoffie argues that the best way to reignite Zionism in America is by opposing the current Israeli government.
JNS: Reform movement takes time to re-evaluate goals amid ‘inflection points’
Jun 19, 2023
JNS reported on the Re-CHARGING Reform Judaism Conference, where clergy and lay leaders addressed concerns such as the growing distance between the movement and Israel, declining synagogue attendance and the need to prioritize Jewish education for young members.
i24 News: NYC Conference Addresses Challenges Facing Reform Jews
Jun 11, 2023
For a report on the Re-CHARGING Reform Judaism conference, i24 News’ Mark Wagenheim spoke with our Rabbi Ammi Hirsch and Union for Reform Judaism President Rabbi Rick Jacobs about the challenges facing the Reform movement.
Mosaic Magazine: Reform Judaism Will Lose Its Soul if It Forsakes Its Commitment to Jewish Peoplehood and Zionism
Jun 8, 2023
According to a 2020 study, 2.1 million American Jews describe themselves as Reform, making the denomination—as it has been historically—the largest in the U.S. Yet Ammiel Hirsch, the rabbi of Manhattan’s Stephen Wise Free Synagogue, believes the movement stands at a crossroads.
Jerusalem Post: Terror attacks depress Israel, but don’t demoralize – opinion
Jun 8, 2023
In an opinion piece for The Jerusalem Post, Gil Troy writes “Israel is more than terror attacks and judicial reforms…Last week, Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch challenged his movement to recharge Reform Judaism… and articulated a spiritual and moral challenge that Identity Zionism addresses.”
RNS: We asked hard questions about Reform Judaism
Jun 6, 2023
In his Religion News Service column “Martini Judaism,” Rabbi Jeffrey Salkin gives an overview of the Re-CHARGING Reform Judaism conference held at Stephen Wise Free Synagogue May 31–June 1, 2023.
Israel Hayom: Senior Reform rabbi warns of ‘devastating’ rift because of anti-Israel sentiment
Jun 6, 2023
Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch, the senior rabbi of Stephen Wise Free Synagogue in New York City, delivered the keynote address at the Re-CHARGING Reform Judaism Conference, urging the movement’s leaders to be “proactive” in countering those who attack Israel.
Israel Hayom (Hebrew): A senior Reform rabbi with an unusual warning: ‘the movement will split because of anti-Israel trends’
Jun 5, 2023
Rabbi Ammi Hirsch initiated a conference at New York’s Stephen Wise Free Synagogue attended by about 300 Reform Jewish leaders from around the U.S. According to Hirsch, the purpose of the conference was to reverse the anti-peoplehood and anti-Zionist drift in the movement, which may destroy it.
The Jerusalem Post: Protesting Israeli officials abroad sends the wrong message to the world – analysis
Jun 4, 2023
“Hundreds of thousands of people have taken to the streets each Saturday night over the last 22 weeks to protest the judicial reform and the current government in Israel. But do these protests need to be exported and transplanted to cities abroad?” asks Herb Keinon in an analysis in The Jerusalem Post. He quotes our Rabbi Ammi Hirsch: “To critique decision-makers is what Jews do. To turn against Israel; to join our ideological opponents and political enemies in castigating Zionism is a sign of Jewish illness, an atrophying of our intellectual and emotional commitment to our people.”
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