Central Conference of American Rabbis Responds to Massive Fires in Israel

Monday, November 28, 2016

The Central Conference of American Rabbis has watched with concern as much of Israel has burned. For the better part of a week, raging fires threatened not only forests and wildlife, but homes, lives, and property. We are grateful that, as Shabbat came to a close, these fires had largely been brought under control.

Reliable reports indicate that at least some of these fires were the result of arson, acts of terror against all citizens of Israel — Jews, Muslims, Christians, Druze, and others. Reform rabbis are confident that Israel’s security forces will bring the perpetrators to justice.

The CCAR applauds the ultimately-successful firefighting efforts of Israelis working in concert with teams and equipment dispatched from around the world. We join Prime Minister Netanyahu in particularly noting, with gratitude, the assistance of the Palestinian Authority and a number of Arab and Muslim countries, fighting the fires alongside Israel and its allies, including the United States.

We express gratitude and send strength to our Israeli colleagues who quickly took leadership roles in dealing with rapid response efforts. Now that these terrible fires are under control, they face the aftermath, which will include relief efforts in a myriad of ways, including providing emotional support and pastoral counseling to their traumatized communities.

The CCAR urges its members and the communities we serve to support victims of these devastating fires, donating through ARZA to benefit Congregation Or Hadash in Haifa and its members, as well as other Reform Movement institutions whose facilities and/or constituencies have been affected by the fires, through IMPJ’s Keren B’kavod fund, or through the Jewish Federations of North America’s emergency fund.

Rabbi Denise L. Eger                         Rabbi Steven A. Fox
President                                          Chief Executive

Central Conference of American Rabbis