There were many fantastic learning opportunities at the Second North American Conference on Judaism and Human Rights, December 7-9, 2008, in Washington. Read on for David Gushee's words on human rights in the Christian tradition, Rabbi Arthur Green's provocative talk "Religious Jew, Secular Zionist," and more! Recordings of the Conference sessions are also available for purchase.

Rachel Barenblat is the author of The Velveteen Rabbi, one of the most thoughtful Jewish blogs out there. RHR-NA was blessed with her attendance at the conference and her prolific blogging during the conference. Click on "Read More" in order to see the list of the posts she has crated for the conference.

Last week we read parshat Lech Lecha. God tells Avraham, Go forth from your land, your birthplace and the home of your family to the land that I will show you.

This week Rabbi Tirzah Firestone and I led a group of 40 Americans on a Rabbis for Human Rights Mission to Israel. Our mission, Nurturing Justice, is a campaign in honor of Israel's 60th birthday and the 20th anniversary of the founding of Rabbis of Rabbis of Human Rights. We have come to Israel in solidarity with Rabbis for Human Rights and all Israelis working to fulfill the vision of Israel's Declaration of Independence to create a Jewish State based on the prophetic vision of justice, freedom and equality.

A group of forty people, including several rabbis, begin a ten-day human rights mission to Israel and the West Bank sponsored by Rabbis for Human Rights North America on Monday, November 10. The mission is part of RHR-NA's yearlong In Pursuit of Justice Campaign marking the 60th anniversary of the founding of Israel and the 20th anniversary of the founding of Rabbis for Human Rights. The trip and the campaign is dedicated to supporting the efforts of Rabbis for Human Rights and others in Israel who are working to fulfill the vision of Israel's Declaration of Independence of a state that embodies the prophetic values of "justice, freedom and peace."

Despite earlier denials from the White House, recently released memos from 2003 and 2004 demonstrate that approval for CIA interrogation techniques--including waterboarding--came from the upper levels of the current Administration.

We are excited to share with you the 2008 RHR Israel newsletter, which contains updates on their activities over the past year, as well as important information about human rights in Israel. It is in pdf form for viewing on your computer or printing for you to read at your leisure offline.

Every year, RHR Israel publishes a powerful modern vidui (confession). We are pleased to present this year's version and we hope you will use it in your community.

Taxi to the Dark Side, an award-winning documentary about the murder of an innocent Afghani in U.S. detention, has been released on DVD. Jared Feldman, Senior Policy Associate at the Jewish Council on Public Affairs, wrote the following moving piece after the film's initial release. It was originally posted on the JCPA blog. The NRCAT Action Fund has developed a discussion guide with information about candidate voting records, which is available on their website.

On Monday, the Second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ordered the release of 21 photos that are said to depict the abuse of prisoners in Iraq and Afghanistan. Human rights groups argue that the photos demonstrate that the abuse of prisoners in Abu Ghraib was not an isolated incident. The U.S. Department of Defense had argued against the release, claiming both that soldiers would be endangered and that it would violate the privacy of the prisoners pictured.

On September 11-12, a delegation from Rabbis for Human Rights North America attended the National Summit on Torture, an interfaith conference organized by Evangelicals for Human Rights and the National Religious Campaign Against Torture. Rabbi Brian Walt spoke on a panel, and Rabbi Charles Feinberg and Rabbi Rachel Kahn-Troster offered prayers. Read more about Rabbi Kahn-Troster's experience at the conference. Complete video of the Summit is available online now.

The Second Raphael Lemkin Human Rights Awards Evening 

honoring:

• Marian Wright Edelman, Founder & President - Children's Defense Fund
• Peter Edelman, Past President - New Israel Fund
• Rabbi Gerry Serotta, Founding Chair - RHR-NA

will be held on Monday, December 8, 2008. 

In honor of Israel's 60th birthday and the Yamim Noraim (High Holidays), Rabbi Ellen Lippmann has shared some of her thoughts from her recent congregational trip to Israel. She writes, "What we did was grapple with the many issues and emotions that arose as we traveled and learned and cried and laughed and --maybe-- came to love a place that is unbearably beautiful and unbearably frustrating and unbearably complicated, the place God promised to our ancestors." We invite you to share her journey.

On August 13, California became the first state to condemn the use of torture, as the State Legislature passed Senate Joint Resolution 19. The resolution both condemns torture and protects health care professions from pressure to assist in prisoner abuse. Rabbis for Human Rights North America was part of a group of leading human rights organizations that supported this critical effort.

The Senate Armed Services held the first of a series of hearings on the use of SERE interrogation techniques on Guantanamo detainees. Also, Physicians for Human Rights issued a major report on evidence of torture in former detainees.

On Thursday, the Supreme Court voted 5-4 to allow detainees held at the Guantanamo Bay naval base in Cuba the right to challenge their detentions in American civilian courts. The ruling rebuffs Bush Administration attempts to denies rights such as habeas corpus to those held on foreign soil, and overturns key aspects of the 2006 Military Commission Act, which stripped the federal courts of jurisdiction to hear habeas corpus petitions filed by detainees challenging the bases for their confinement. The ruling is a key step in ensuring the moral treatment of detainees held in U.S. custody.