JEWISH ORTHODOX UNION EXPRESSES APPRECIATION TO PRESIDENT OBAMA

The Orthodox Union is the world's largest Jewish resource, working to support Israel and promoting the values of the Orthodox Jewish community in the public square

Today, in the wake of scores of rocket attacks launched by Palestinian terrorists in the Gaza Strip against innocent civilians in Israel, the leadership of the Orthodox Union – the nation’s largest Orthodox Jewish umbrella organization – wrote to President Barack Obama to express appreciation for his Administration’s support for Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system – which has, to date, prevented the terrorists’ rockets from claiming innocent lives, and for the President’s recent statements of support for Israel’s right of self defense.  The Orthodox Union leadership sent a similar letter of appreciation to the leaders of the U.S. Congress as well.
The text of the Orthodox Union’s letter to the President is as follows:
March 12, 2012
President Barack Obama
The White House
Washington, DC
Dear President Obama,
We hope this letter finds you well.
As recently as last week, you publicly spoke of your unshakable commitment to the security of the State of Israel and your Administration’s proactive efforts to strengthen that security.  Among those efforts, you cited the financial support the United States has provided for Israel’s “Iron Dome” missile defense system.
In the space of but a few days that have passed since your statements, we now see terrorists in the Gaza Strip launching scores of rockets at innocent Israeli communities forcing schools to close and men, women and children to spend the day crouching in fear near bomb shelters.  Thankfully, the Iron Dome has performed remarkably well and, to date, prevented civilian casualties from the terrorists’ attacks.  We write to express our appreciation to your Administration for providing the material support that is saving lives today.
Last week, Mr. President, you also strongly endorsed the State of Israel’s sovereign right of self defense.  As we watch on with concern in our eyes and prayers in our hearts for the success of the Israel Defense Forces as they act to defend the innocent, we express our appreciation for your Administration’s call for the rocket attacks to cease and anticipate your support for Israel’s actions.
Sincerely,
Dr. Simcha Katz          Rabbi Steven Burg
President                     Managing Director
Yehuda Neuberger          Nathan Diament
Chair, Public Policy           Exec. Dir., Public Policy

Contact: Nathan Diament  202-513-6484

History
In 1898, Dr. Henry Periera Mendes, the spiritual leader of the Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue in New York, established the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America. More readily known today by its shorter name, the Orthodox Union, or simply by its initials "OU," the nascent organization was founded with 50 congregations from across the United States and Canada with several formidable goals: to unify the fragmented traditional ranks of Jews, to provide a strong political voice for Torah Judaism and to halt the frightening trend of assimilation among New World Jews. The OU's early concerns – advancing Shabbat observance, battling missionaries who preyed on Jewish public school students in the pre-Yeshiva days, and struggling to effectively transmit Jewish heritage to a new generation of youth – reflected the then fragile condition of American Orthodoxy.
As American Orthodoxy stabilized, the OU pioneered programs to assist in the Orthodox synagogue and community, easing the path for the flood of Jewish immigrants who would arrive in the ensuing decades. In 1924, the OU undertook a monumental, unprecedented endeavor: the creation of the first nonprofit, communally sponsored kosher certification. In the years to come, the OU symbol would become renowned throughout the world and ultimately the revolutionize the kosher food industry.
The World Wars caused the OU to organize relief undertakings, cater to the religious needs of the Jewish servicemen in the American army and work with other Jewish organizations to awaken the American public to the menace of Nazi Germany. With the miraculous birth of Israel, the OU committed itself to strengthening and protecting Israel's spiritual, political, and economic well-being. In the decades since the founding of the Jewish State, the OU has been involved with issues such as the peace process, international terrorism and Israeli MIAs and POWs.
Addressing the ever-challenging threats of intermarriage and assimilation, the OU created the National Conference of Synagogue Youth (now known simply as NCSY), an innovative and dynamic outreach movement for teenagers. Reorganized in 1959, NCSY spurred the birth of the North American Teshuva Movement, reversing the fate of thousands of individuals, hundreds of synagogues and communities and of American Jewry in general.
Underscoring the responsibilities to the disabled segment of the Jewish community, the OU created Yachad and Our Way, the only national Jewish programs offering religious, educational and social opportunities for youth and adults with developmental disabilities or who are deaf or hearing impaired.
Expanding its international agenda in the 1970s and 1980s, the OU served as a pivotal force in the epic struggle to free Soviet Jewry and set out to ensure the safety and security of Jews throughout the world. With the collapse of communism, the OU was among the first to provide an outreach infrastructure in the Ukraine, bringing hundreds back to their Jewish roots. On the domestic front, the OU, through the Institute for Public Affairs (IPA), continued to defend Jewish civil rights and vocalize the concerns of Orthodoxy in Washington.
During the past century, the Orthodox world has been guided and enriched by the OU, an organization that is today the world's foremost leader in kashrut supervision, Jewish outreach, advocacy for the disabled, synagogue services, adult education and political action. As the face of Orthodoxy continues to change, the OU is ever-committed to its original goals of unifying, representing and strengthening traditional Jewry.