It has been a year marked by the appearance of many notable speakers such as author Laurel Leff, social activist Al Vorspan, and Pulitzer Prize Winner Ron Suskind.  It has included a variety of memorable events such as a “Shabbat around the World” to celebrate diversity, an alumni reunion weekend, and April’s Gala Dinner Dance. 

            On the morning of May 27, 1905 a small group of men met at the Young Men’s Hebrew Association rooms located at the corner of Fourth and Shipley Streets in Wilmington.  That May meeting established the Temple of Truth, later called Beth Emeth.  Naturally, the month of May is very special in the history of Congregation Beth Emeth, and so Temple leaders are especially pleased to have secured Rabbi Yoffie for the final celebratory weekend.

            Rabbi Yoffie was installed as President of the Union for Reform Judaism, the congregational arm of the Reform Jewish Movement in North America, in June 1996.  The Union represents 1.5 million Reform Jews in more than 900 synagogues across the United States and Canada.  He has led the Reform Movement toward greater attention to Torah study and adult literacy, giving special emphasis to religious school education and youth.  In addition, he has spearheaded a major expansion of the Union’s summer camping program, adding three new camps and increasing the number of participants to more than 15,000.

            Rabbi Yoffie has also been deeply involved in issues of social justice and community concern.  A prominent spokesperson for sensible gun control, he was the only religious leader to appear at the Million Mom March in May of 2000.  He has been a strong voice for new directions and a warming of relations between the Catholic Church and the Jews.  He has also worked tirelessly on behalf of the Jewish state and the rights of Reform Jews in Israel, and meets frequently with Israel’s elected officials to present the concerns of the Reform movement and North American Jewry.

            A firm believer in engagement, last month Rabbi Yoffie became the first rabbi ever to address a Liberty University convocation.  Rabbi Yoffie’s appearance on the Lynchburg, Virginia campus was at the invitation of the school’s founder Reverend Jerry Falwell.  In his address, Rabbi Yoffie called upon evangelicals to work with the Reform Movement on those areas in which they have agreement, including world poverty, AIDS and sex and violence on television and in media.  At the same time, he called for tolerance and mutual respect regarding areas of disagreement such as abortion, civil rights for gays and lesbians, and the role of religion in public life.

            Before becoming President of the Union for Reform Judaism, Rabbi Yoffie served as Union Vice-President, as the Executive Director of ARZA (the Association of Reform Zionists of America), and as Director of the Union’s Midwest Council.  A product of the Reform Movement, he once served as a regional president and national vice-president of NFTY (National Federation of Temple Youth).

            Raised in Worcester, MA, Rabbi Yoffie is a Phi Beta Kappa, magna cum laude graduate of Brandeis University.  He was ordained at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New York in 1974, and served congregations in Lynbrook, NY, and Durham, NC before joining the Union in 1980.  Rabbi Yoffie’s reputation as a charismatic speaker and outspoken advocate for the principles of Reform Judaism make his visit to Beth Emeth a warmly anticipated event.