The World Union’s Beit Shmuel Conference Center in Jerusalem was recently scheduled to host a conference by Israel’s Ministry of Health. Within 24 hours of the conference’s scheduled opening, MK Yaakov Litzman, Minister of Health and member of the Ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism party, cancelled the conference because of its association with Reform Judaism. The World Union, with our partners the Israel Movement for Reform and Progressive Judaism (IMPJ) will continue to fight their ongoing campaign to deride Reform Jews and Judaism in Israel and around the world.
Eyal Ronder, Vice President of the WUPJ, issued the following statement on behalf of the World Union and Beit Shmuel:
The World Union for Progressive Judaism is sad to report the cancellation of the Ministry of Health’s conference at Beit Shmuel on short notice. Beit Shmuel is open to a variety of audiences and groups without prejudice. We deeply regret that the reason for cancelling the event is because of Beit Shmuel’s connection to the Reform movement and find this unacceptable behavior by a government official or agency. Beit Shmuel will continue to serve the entire Israeli community as a pluralistic cultural and educational center that welcomes diverse populations without exception.