As the grinding war in Gaza and the emerging fighting in Lebanon have tested ties between liberal American Jews and Israel, Stephen Free Wise Synagogue Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch has emerged as perhaps the Reform movement’s most vocal critic of the dangers of young Jews pulling away from Zionism. Now, armed with a $250,000 grant from the Jewish National Fund-USA’s Boruchin Center, Hirsch’s synagogue will launch a program to try to stem the tide.

The grant, which is contingent upon the synagogue’s ability to find matching donors, will support the Reform Movement Alumni for Israel (RAFI), a leadership program for American Reform Jews ages 22-35. RAFI is an extension of SWFS’ Amplify Israel Initiative, “an education and advocacy initiative aimed at healing the fractured relationship between American liberal Jews and Israel,” according to its website. 

Capitalizing on the leadership potential of young Reform Jews is a big component of the program, according to Hirsch, the synagogue’s senior rabbi. “They will be, in the coming years, some of the important volunteers in the American Jewish community, and some of the important donors,” Hirsch told eJP.

The Amplify Israel Initiative was started by Hirsch in 2023 with the intention of addressing a distancing that he had observed between North American liberal Jews and Zionism, Rabbi Tracy Kaplowitz, SWFS’ Marilyn and Joseph Schwartz Israel Fellow, told eJP. 

“We couldn’t wait for someone else to address the problem,” Kaplowitz said. 

Through its annual rabbinic fellowship, Amplify Israel has provided its first cohort of 12 early-career Reform rabbis with the opportunity for professional development and mentorship as well as the opportunity to travel to Israel for a seven-day symposium. 

According to the Boruchin Center’s chair, Scott Schreiber, this model is part of what stood out about the Amplify Israel Initiative. “Here’s Stephen Wise saying we’re going to appeal to people where they are, not where we want them to be,” Schreiber told eJP. 

The RAFI program’s inaugural cohort will follow a similar model, as 25 Reform movement alumni across nine different cities are provided with educational opportunities and a trip to Israel. 

Hirsch is excited to see the program expand. “It means we’re going to be able to reach substantially more people with more geographical diversity than we otherwise would have, and it also leverages the successes of other parts of the program,” said Hirsch.  

RAFI is among the 13 recipients of JNF-USA grants for this coming year, which total $4.4 million. The grantees include: Academic Engagement Network, the Alexander Muss High School in Israel, Caravan for Democracy, Club Z, Heroes to Heroes, Israel on Campus Coalition, Sinai Temple Israel Center Rabbinic Fellowship, Students Supporting Israel, Stand With Us and Yavneh on Campus.