Jewish Small Communities Network

One year on after Israel’s confrontation with Hezbolah, Lisa Goldman entered Beirut via Jordan to make this report for Israeli TV.

Noam Galit is the father of Gilad Shalit, a corporal in the IDF, who has been a captive of Hamas for the last six months.
Noam Galit could be said to represent Israel’s silent majority. Israeli journalist Lisa Goldman has published a fascinating interview with Noam, which you can read on her web site On The Face

A new synagogue has been opened in the heart of the German city of Munich, 68 years after Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler ordered its predecessor torn down.

The sacred Jewish scrolls of the Torah were paraded through the streets to the cubic building in the city centre.

The new synagogue is seen as a symbol of the rebirth of Munich’s Jewish community, which was all but wiped out by the Nazis in World War II.

The ceremony came 68 years after the Nazi Kristallnacht anti-Jewish pogrom.

Kristallnacht - “night of broken glass” - was a nationwide wave of assaults on Jews and their property in Germany that preceded the Holocaust.

New synagogue is on Jakobsplatz in the heart of Munich. The design is a reminder of the Jewish temple in Jerusalem and the building is a symbol of rebirth for Germany’s Jews.

German President Horst Koehler was among hundreds of officials and religious leaders at the synagogue inauguration on Thursday.

The synagogue bears the name of its predecessor - Ohel Jakob (Jacob’s Tent).

Construction of the synagogue, along with a Jewish community centre and museum, cost 71.5m euros (£48m; $91.4m).

Some 9,300 Jews now live in Munich - the country’s second largest Jewish community.

At the ceremony President Koehler warned that “still today our dream of a normal Jewish life in Germany clashes with the reality that there is open and latent anti-Semitism and the number of violent acts motivated by right-wing extremism is rising”.

“It is the duty of all of us to get involved and act to prevent people being abused, injured or even murdered due to their religion, origin or appearance,” he said, quoted by Reuters news agency.

(source: bbc.co.uk/news)

Picture legend:
1. Main synagogue
2. Jewish museum
3. Community center

The complex includes a Jewish museum, a meeting centre, offices, school, kindergarten and kosher restaurant, combining facilities previously scattered across the city.

Non-Jewish Germans donated funds for the building and Bavaria’s government contributed 12 million euros, while the municipality of Munich provided 14.5 million euros for the museum and is to pay its running costs. The museum is due to open in late spring 2007.

The front of Oslo’s synagogue was sprayed with bullets on Sunday 17 Sept. No one was injured. Police said more than 10 shots were fired, probably from an automatic weapon, at the synagogue’s faade early Sunday morning.
Bullet holes were clearly visible in the walls of the synagogue after the attack, which was deplored by Joav Melchior, who’s only been rabbi in Oslo for a month.
On Tuesday 19 Sept four men of mixed origins were arrested in connection with the attack.
Despite being a small community, of around one thousand, the shool has heavy security when services are held. Newcomers are only permitted entrance if they show formal identification and armed police patrol the street.
Sunday’s shooting came less than a week after an Italian based Al Qaida plot targeting the site was uncovered.
The Bishop of Oslo, Ole Christian Kvarme, visited the synagogue on Monday along with Justice Minister Knut Storberget, who promised immediate security improvements at the synagogue at state expense.
An unattributed Muslim organisation in Oslo also told Norwegian Broadcasting (NRK) on Tuesday that they had sent a letter of sympathy and support to the DMT, claiming they are all minorities in Norway and also should stand together.

Arnside Road Synagogue have created a beautiful set of cards. Each card features one of three beautiful stained glass windows from the choir stall above the Ark in the shool.
Photography and design were commissioned from one of the congregants who is a professional designer, and they have been produced on the highest quality art finishes at one of the county’s top printers.
The rear of the card also features a view of the alabaster interior of the shool.
Cards are available in sets of six (£2.50 per set, two of each window) from the synagogue office.

[We occasionally get requests to send card orders by mail. As a rough guide - UK p&p for cards & envelopes - for up to 2 packs  +£1.50, 3 packs +£1.75, other quantities on request, prices subject to change]

Dr Stacey Daniels has become the first Jewish mayor of Whitby, the small fishing port in North Yorkshire - the Jewish Chronicle reports.

Dr Daniels and his wife are believed to be the only practicing Jews in the town, but still maintain a full Jewish way of life and attend Hull synagogue as well as being members of synagogues in Nottingham. The Daniels say that the internet is also imortant in helping them keep in touch with all things Jewish.

Dear Brothers and Sisters!

Shalom Alechem! It has been my deep desire, during my first visit to Germany since my election as the Successor of the Apostle Peter, to meet the Jewish community of Cologne and the representatives of Judaism in Germany.

By this visit I would like to return in spirit to the meeting that took place in Mainz on 17 November 1980 between my venerable predecessor Pope John Paul II, then making his first visit to this country, and members of the Central Jewish Committee in Germany and the Rabbinic Conference. Today too I wish to reaffirm that I intend to continue on the path towards improved relations and friendship with the Jewish People, following the decisive lead given by Pope John Paul II (cf. Address to the Delegation of the International Jewish Committee on Interreligious Consultations, 9 June 2005: L?Osservatore Romano, 10 June 2005, p. 5).

The Jewish community in Cologne can truly feel “at home” in this city. Cologne is, in fact, the oldest site of a Jewish community on German soil, dating back to the Colonia of Roman times. The history of relations between the Jewish and Christian communities has been complex and often painful. There were times when the two lived together peacefully, but there was also the expulsion of the Jews from Cologne in the year 1424. And in the twentieth century, in the darkest period of German and European history, an insane racist ideology, born of neo-paganism, gave rise to the attempt, planned and systematically carried out by the regime, to exterminate European Jewry. The result has passed into history as the Shoah. The victims of this unspeakable and previously unimaginable crime amounted to seven thousand named individuals in Cologne alone; the real figure was surely much higher. The holiness of G-d was no longer recognized, and consequently contempt was shown for the sacredness of human life.

This year marks the sixtieth anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi concentration camps, in which millions of Jews, men, women and children were put to death in the gas chambers and ovens. I make my own the words written by my venerable Predecessor on the occasion of the sixtieth anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz and I too say: “I bow my head before all those who experienced this manifestation of the mysterium iniquitatis.” The terrible events of that time must “never cease to rouse consciences, to resolve conflicts, to inspire the building of peace” (Message for the Liberation of Auschwitz, 15 January 2005). Together we must remember G-d and his wise plan for the world which he created. As we read in the Book of Wisdom, he is the “lover of life” (11:26).

This year also marks the fortieth anniversary of the promulgation of the Second Vatican Council’s Declaration Nostra Aetate, which opened up new prospects for Jewish-Christian relations in terms of dialogue and solidarity. This Declaration, in the fourth chapter, recalls the common roots and the immensely rich spiritual heritage that Jews and Christians share. Both Jews and Christians recognize in Abraham their father in faith (cf. Gal 3:7, Rom 4:11ff.) and they look to the teachings of Moses and the prophets. Jewish spirituality, like its Christian counterpart, draws nourishment from the psalms. With Saint Paul, Christians are convinced that “the gifts and the call of G-d are irrevocable” (Rom 11:29, cf. 9:6,11; 11:1ff.). In considering the Jewish roots of Christianity (cf. Rom 11:16-24), my venerable Predecessor, quoting a statement by the German Bishops, affirmed that: “whoever meets Jesus Christ meets Judaism” (Insegnamenti, vol. III⁄2, 1980, p. 1272).

The conciliar Declaration Nostra Aetate therefore “deplores feelings of hatred, persecutions and demonstrations of antisemitism directed against the Jews at whatever time and by whomsoever” (No. 4). G-d created us all “in his image” (cf. Gen 1:27) and thus honoured us with a transcendent dignity. Before God, all men and women have the same dignity, whatever their nation, culture or religion. Hence the Declaration Nostra Aetate also speaks with great esteem of Muslims (cf. No. 3) and of the followers of other religions (cf. No. 2). On the basis of our shared human dignity the Catholic Church “condemns as foreign to the mind of Christ any kind of discrimination whatsoever between people, or harassment of them, done by reason of race or colour, class or religion” (No. 5). The Church is conscious of her duty to transmit this teaching, in her catechesis and in every aspect of her life, to the younger generations which did not witness the terrible events that took place before and during the Second World War. It is a particularly important task, since today, sadly, we are witnessing the rise of new signs of antisemitism and various forms of a general hostility towards foreigners. How can we fail to see in this a reason for concern and vigilance? The Catholic Church is committed, I reaffirm this again today , to tolerance, respect, friendship and peace between all peoples, cultures and religions.

In the forty years that have passed since the conciliar Declaration Nostra Aetate, much progress has been made, in Germany and throughout the world, towards better and closer relations between Jews and Christians. Alongside official relationships, due above all to cooperation between specialists in the biblical sciences, many friendships have been born. In this regard, I would mention the various declarations by the German Episcopal Conference and the charitable work done by the “Society for Jewish-Christian Cooperation in Cologne”, which since 1945 have enabled the Jewish community to feel once again “at home” here in Cologne and to establish good relations with the Christian communities. Yet much still remains to be done. We must come to know one another much more and much better. Consequently I would encourage sincere and trustful dialogue between Jews and Christians, for only in this way will it be possible to arrive at a shared interpretation of disputed historical questions, and, above all, to make progress towards a theological evaluation of the relationship between Judaism and Christianity. This dialogue, if it is to be sincere, must not gloss over or underestimate the existing differences: in those areas in which, due to our profound convictions in faith, we diverge, and indeed precisely in those areas, we need to show respect for one another.

Finally, our gaze should not only be directed to the past, but should also look forward to the tasks that await us today and tomorrow. Our rich common heritage and our fraternal and more trusting relations call upon us to join in giving an ever more harmonious witness and to work together on the practical level for the defence and promotion of human rights and the sacredness of human life, for family values, for social justice and for peace in the world. The Decalogue (cf. Ex 20; Dt 5) is for us a shared legacy and commitment. The Ten Commandments are not a burden, but a sign-post showing the path leading to a successful life. This is particularly the case for the young people whom I am meeting in these days and who are so dear to me. My wish is that they may be able to recognize in the Decalogue a lamp for their steps, a light for their path (cf. Ps 119:105). Adults have the responsibility of handing down to young people the torch of hope that G-d has given to Jews and to Christians, so that “never again” will the forces of evil come to power, and that future generations, with G-d’s help, may be able to build a more just and peaceful world, in which all people have equal rights and are equally at home.

I conclude with the words of Psalm 29, which express both a wish and a prayer: “May the Lord give strength to his people, may he bless his people with peace”.

May he hear our prayer!