On Sunday, I'm heading back to Texas: first for a few days with my family in San Antonio, then for the URJ Biennial, the 68th General Assembly of the Union for Reform Judaism, which will be held in Houston late next week. Some five thousand Reform Jews will gather in the Houston convention center for three and a half days of workshops, browsing Judaica merchandise in the exhibit hall (I expect to come home with a few new kippot, and probably some books as well), davvening, and schmoozing.

Frustratingly, they've frontloaded the program with a bunch of great things at the same time on day one. How will I choose between "Defining the Role of the Non-Jew in Our Congregations: Policies of Mutual Respect and Invitation," "Blogs, Chat Rooms, and LiveJournal: What the E-Generation Is Doing Online," "Desexing the Text: Translating Sacred Text Today," and "Are Dietary Laws Kosher for Reform Jews?" Assuming there's wifi in the convention center, I intend to blog the panels I attend; I guess I can hope that somebody else will blog the ones I don't make it to.

Speakers will include Ruth Messinger, president of the American Jewish World Service; Rabbi Joseph Telushkin; and, according to the URJ site, King Abdullah II of Jordan via satellite. (Though after yesterday's suicide bombings in Amman, it's possible he may have other things occupying his attention...)

Somewhere in there, a ton of resolutions will be voted-upon. Some are broad-reaching: opposing the politicization of science, ending global poverty, denouncing the use of torture. Others are smaller in scope: support for Reform Jewish college students, assorted bylaw changes.

I've never been to a major denominational convention, so I'm not entirely sure what to expect, but on the whole I think this is going to be fun. I'm particularly curious about what Shabbat is like there. Thanks to Elat Chayyim I'm no stranger to gloriously immersive Shabbat experiences, but I can't imagine kabbalat Shabbat in a crowd of five thousand!

If any of you will be there, comment and let me know -- I'd love to find a way to connect.

Technorati tags: religion, Judaism, URJBiennial.