The 46th annual convention of the Rabbinical Assembly of America opened tonight at the Jewish Theological Seminary with more than 250 rabbis from all parts of the country attending the first session of the four-day conference.

For the first time, the Assembly, consisting of Conservative rabbis, devoted its opening session to a discussion of Zionism. The guest speakers at tonight’s session, Dr. Israel Goldstein, former president of the Zionist Organization of America, and Dr. Harry Davidowitz, of Tel Aviv, both emphasized the interdependence and mutual importance of Zionism and Judaism to American Jewry.