Ometz: Maryland's home for Traditional-Egalitarian Judaism
“Ometz, is the Egalitarian community based in Conservative Judaism at the University of Maryland. We endeavor to provide interested Jewish students with meaningful opportunities to connect religiously, intellectually, and culturally with Judaism.
We are an egalitarian community, respecting Jewish tradition and law, while simultaneously striving to create a welcoming and accepting environment for students from all backgrounds, including traditional, religious, unaffiliated, and secular Jews. We encourage the honest exploration of what it means to be a Jew on our college campus. We promote this exploration by fostering a strong, meaningful community comprised ofstudents of all ages and backgrounds, based on the framework of Conservative Judaism. Our goal is to make our community a welcoming, inclusive, passionate and fun environment for all who want to join.
There are three central aspects to this community: prayer, learning, and social programming. We are committed to creating a passionate, energetic prayer environment that provides both men and women the opportunity to participate in all aspects of the service equally. Complimenting the prayer opportunity, we provide forums for students to ask and discuss difficult, complex questions about traditional and modern Jewish practice. Lastly, we sponsor activities in which students are afforded the opportunity to engage with each other in more relaxed, social settings.”
As featured in CJ: Voices of Conservative/Masorti Judaism (page 37)
The University of Maryland Hillel
Our Vision: "Every Jewish Student is inspired to make an enduring commitment to Jewish life, learning and Israel."
Our Mission: "To enhance the lives of Jewish undergraduate and graduate students so that they may enrich the Jewish people and the world. Hillel actively seeks to engage uninvolved Jewish students on their own terms and to provide them with Jewish opportunities that are meaningful and appealing to them. Students are empowered to take responsibility for their Jewish identity, whether they wish to participate in a community service project, express themselves artistically, participate in a social event, engage in informal Jewish learning or attend religious services. Any student may participate with Hillel – no membership is required. Hillel is committed to a pluralistic vision of Judaism that embraces all movements."
Home to:
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6,000 Jewish students
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35 active student groups
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3 student-led religious communities
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7 Israel groups
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6 social justice, Jewish learning, and community building student fellowships