Eternal Jewish Family’s Blog

Posts Tagged ‘outreach’

World’s Largest Jewish Outreach Organizations Join Eternal Jewish Family in New Major International Effort Against Intermarriage

Written by admin on August 24, 2009 – 10:56 am -

The Eternal Jewish Family International (EJF) has launched a major initiative on three continents to stem the tide of soaring intermarriage in Jewish communities in the US, Israel and Europe.  Eternal Jewish Family is partnering with the largest and most successful kiruv (outreach) organizations, such as Ohr Somayach — Jerusalem, Hidabroot, Lev L’achim and Nefesh Yehudi in reaching out to large numbers of Jewish youth “with a direct message on the threat of intermarriage to themselves, their families, and the Jewish future”.  In the US, Eternal Jewish Family will team up with Gateways in reaching vulnerable youth.  “This epidemic of intermarriage can only be confronted with ‘straight talk’ about the  dangers of intermarriage”,  said Rabbi Leib Tropper, Rosh Yeshiva of Kol Yaakov/Horizons and the chairman of the Rabbinical Board of Eternal Jewish Family.  “We can no longer afford to beat around the bush in the hope that the anti-intermarriage message will somehow penetrate”.  In many instances, Eternal Jewish Family will be cosponsoring seminars and Shabbatonim for the Jewish youth where special sessions will be devoted to the dangers of intermarriage. The first such Shabbaton in March was held in Baden, Austria in a joint program with Nefesh Yehudi for more than 100 Israeli medical students in Central and Eastern Europe.  Eternal Jewish Family will be joining the outreach (kiruv) organizations in many similar seminars in the coming months.

Tags: Eternal Jewish Family, intermarriage, outreach, rabbi tropper
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Morristown Seminar Reaches Out to Mechanchim and Kiruv Professionals

Written by ejf on August 18, 2009 – 8:55 pm -

Eternal Jewish Family Holds a 2 Day Seminar for Outreach Organizations

ON MAY 24th, Eternal Jewish Family responded to the spiritually devastating impact of intermarriage and assimilation on many Jewish communities around the world by hosting a two day interactive seminar for educators and professionals from leading kiruv (outreach) organizations. Renowned lecturers and leading gedolei yisroel presented practical advice and concrete ways to face the fallout of improper conversions to Judaism, such as families who suddenly discover they are not Jewish, broken engagements and denied citizenship in Israel.

Rabbi Tropper and Harav Reuven Feinstein Speak about Challenges in Outreach and Jewish Conversion

The lecturers called upon the rabbanim to recognize their responsibility of ensuring that each geirus in klal yisroel is halachically valid. Rabbi Leib Tropper, Chairman of Eternal Jewish Family’s Rabbinic Committee, mentioned Eternal Jewish Family’s accomplishments in the US, Europe and Israel, whose office is flooded with requests for help from numerous individuals regarding issues in intermarriage and Jewish conversion. He stressed that, while geirus (Jewish conversion) is a complex and often controversial concept, klal yisroel has an obligation to meet its challenges. Harav Reuven Feinstein, chairman of Eternal Jewish Family’s Halachic Committee, expressed the hope that while the kiruv movement has responded to the need to provide each Jew with the opportunity to learn about their Jewish heritage and identity, much more needs to be done to head off potential intermarriage. “All Jews count. Klal Yisroel is obligated to utilize all of its resources to be mekareiv baalei teshuva and ensure the proper lineage of every Jew,” said Rav Feinstein. He noted that Eternal Jewish Family has filled a need in the world of kiruv, which regularly confronts issues regarding the yichus of baalei teshuva.  Harav Feinstein and others mentioned the psak that permits one to be mekarev the non-Jew in intermarriage for the sake of simultaneously being mekarev the Jewish spouse.

Harav Kaminetsky Gives Eternal Jewish Family a Brocho

Harav Shmuel Kaminetsky, Rosh Yeshiva of the Philadelphia Yeshiva, gave a brocha to Eternal Jewish Family for its work and mentioned the “vast problem we are dealing with here in America because of intermarriage and Jewish conversion.  To illustrate the accomplishments of a proper geirus, Harav Kaminetsky used the example of Ruth, whose Jewish conversion (geirus) escorted her to the pinnacle of greatness among the Jewish people. Other presenters included Rabbi Nota Schiller, Rabbi Nachum Eisenstein, Rabbi Yonasan Rosenblum, Rabbi Dovid Shochet, Rabbi Dovid Gottleib, Rabbi Mordechai Fishberg, Rabbi Mordechai Neugroschel, and Rabbi Doron Kornbluth.

Tags: Eternal Jewish Family, intermarriage, Jewish conversion, outreach, rabbi tropper
Posted in EJF Seminars | No Comments »