As the world becomes more accessible through technology, travel and geopolitics, Global Progressive Jewish leadership is not a luxury but rather a necessity. In the spirit of the original Reformers, we must evolve in the face of new challenges. We are Progressive because we want to progress and maintain spiritually inspirational and morally grounded communities in the new paradigms of our diverse societies. The WUPJ offers a global environment of connections and exchange for a Progressive/Reform Jewish agenda. With their different contexts, languages, cultures and contributions, the communities offer us the local practices.
What is Global Progressive Jewish leadership?
First of all, it is Leadership.
Leadership begins with commitment. Leaders stand up and declare their willingness to devote time and energy above and beyond what is required. They come to serve their communities and the greater good, putting their own personal needs and egos aside.
Leaders bring a vision to their communities for the short-term and long-term. They imagine the possibilities that lie beyond today’s reality into the future.
Leadership is a growth activity. Leaders seek constantly to learn – to research what has been done in the past, to see what similar organizations are doing, observe other leaders and leadership models.
Leaders are not afraid to make mistakes. They are constantly evaluating and re-evaluating. They are never fully content with the present situation. They seek to constantly improve themselves and the situation of their peers and community.
Leaders act as role models for ethical behavior and respectful debate. They are not afraid of difficult topics or disagreement. They work to ensure safe environments and open communication.
Secondly, it is Progressive Jewish Leadership.
Progressive Judaism asks leaders to engage tradition honestly, to honor the past and to embrace the future, and to shape communities that reflect Jewish values in contemporary life. Progressive Jewish leadership aspires to advance Progressive Jewish values and articulate them in everyday language. Progressive Jewish leaders create inclusive, egalitarian spaces for prayer, ritual and learning, infused with Jewish spirituality. They demonstrate how to both continue Jewish tradition while embracing modernity and innovation. They also work to translate values into action, with a special emphasis on the mitzvot bein adam l’chavero, the ethical commandments, and for the sake of tikkun olam, making the world a better place. They seek to engage with people of diverse backgrounds, ages, beliefs and opinions, based on the teaching that all humanity is created in the image of God. They act in the spirit of Jewish tradition to create safe spaces for machloket l’shem shamayim, debate about all aspects of Jewish life and geopolitics in the spirit of friendship and mutual respect. While leading their communities to make informed choices based on Jewish text study, they honor others’ choices through the rabbinic principle of “seventy faces to Torah,” believing that diversity of belief and practice enriches our Judaism.
Progressive Judaism aspires to relational leadership, rather than hierarchical leadership. When people learn together, pray together, and make decisions together, we build accountability, trust, and a sense of shared purpose.
Progressive Judaism has the capacity to create new spaces and the boldness to build new models of community, governance, education, and leadership. Progressive Jewish leadership require confidence, imagination, and long-term vision.
Finally, all of these qualities can be brought to the international arena through developing Global Progressive Jewish Leadership.
Progressive Judaism is lived across continents, cultures, and political contexts. Each community responds to its own local realities while remaining connected to a shared global vision. Global Progressive Jewish Leadership embraces the GLocal approach, acting locally while engaging in a global dialogue and actively bringing the global to the local and the local to the global. Global Progressive Jewish leadership is rooted in what binds us as Progressive Jews the world over – our Torah, the Hebrew language, engagement in Israel and its complexity, Jewish peoplehood, texts and traditions, and practicing values through concrete actions. This allows Progressive Judaism to both stay relevant, grounded, and responsive to the lives of real people, and to harness our collective resources and voices into a global force for the betterment of the entire Jewish people, humanity and our earth. While communities connect through a common base of practice, we are enriched by diverse rituals, melodies and approaches as well as a shared commitment to values expressed.
Leaders who are shaped through global exchange gain perspective beyond their immediate context. They learn to listen across differences, navigate complexity, and adapt with integrity. Rooted locally and informed globally, they are better equipped to build communities that are ethical, flexible, and responsive to a changing world. The world is our laboratory in which we interdependently create new proposals for Jewish innovation.
The Global Leadership Fellowship: Turning Vision into Practice
This leadership vision is not only aspirational. It is a living approach developed in the WUPJ Center for Education and Leadership Development.
The Global Leadership Fellowship connects established leaders from Progressive Jewish communities around the world, provides tools and models for personal leadership and project development, creates space for shared learning, reflection, collaboration and mentoring, and empowering them to bring their leadership to the global level. Rooted in Progressive Jewish values, it supports leaders who understand leadership as service, responsibility, and engagement with real communal challenges.
Through global connection and grounded practice, the Global Leadership Fellowship reflects a broader principle at the heart of Progressive Judaism: leadership is formed through action, learning, and responsibility.
Im lo achsav, eimatai? If not now – when? Click here to apply: https://forms.office.com/r/ng7Gtru9Kk Click here to nominate someone: https://forms.office.com/r/718AYMJ3Er
Click here to apply: https://forms.office.com/r/ng7Gtru9Kk
Click here to nominate someone: https://forms.office.com/r/718AYMJ3Er