LJ Today July/August 2012

July/August 2012 VOL. XXXIX No. 4

Liberal Judaism is a constituent of the World Union for Progressive Judaism

www.liberaljudaism.org

ljtoday

The Biennial was just the start...

By Rabbi Pete Tobias

T

HE Liberal Judaism 2012 Biennial Weekend was a huge success with 261 people in attendance, representing 36 different Progressive synagogues and organisations. It was an opportunity to look back at critical moments in Judaism’s rich and varied history and explore the contributions made by different individuals and groups.

But the Biennial was just the start. We must now continue to explore, challenge and develop in order to move Liberal Judaism forwards. The future requires a constant re-evaluation of which elements of our Judaism can bring meaning and purpose to the lives of Jews in the 21st Century and which, while fascinating from a historical perspective, are best left in the past. We must contemplate our relationship with Judaism’s extraordinary history and consider our contribution to carry our religion to its next stage.

That was the challenge set by the Biennial - and by Liberal Judaism. We need always to move forwards, taking with us those elements of our heritage that can help us to preserve, shape and transmit our wonderful Judaism. We need to give it a new vitality, in a form that will work in our often baffling, sometimes frightening and seemingly godless 21st Century.

Liberal Judaism will dedicate its efforts to bringing a dynamic, vibrant, creative and meaningful Judaism to our members. We will do this by creating a new approach to Judaism, to God and to belief – or lack of it. We will work on a new prayer book. We will encourage members of Liberal communities to study their heritage, embrace its contradictions and its challenges and find a place in it with which they feel comfortable.

Rabbis Pete Tobias and Shulamit Ambalu light the Shabbat candles to start the 2012 Biennial

Reni Chapman receives a Chairman’s Award for 60 years of service, as toddlers enjoy play time

We will also visit congregations, offering to study and discuss how to shape a Judaism that is worthy and worthwhile, that acknowledges its past and offers hope for its future.

This is not an overnight process. It will involve consultation with Liberal Judaism’s communities and members at every stage. A one-day event for all Liberal Jews next spring will be the first such milestone on this journey; the Biennial Weekend in 2014 an opportunity to carry it further.

In addition to these national events, there will be activities occurring regularly in individual communities, where discussions about the future of our congregations, our Jewish heritage and our belief in God can take place. Watch out for your chance to become part of the debate about the future of Liberal Judaism in the months and years ahead.

• Thank you to Rabbi Ariel Friedlander, Phyllis Alden, Bryan Diamond and all who provided Biennial photos for this issue.

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Chairman’s Actions

July/August 2012

Celebrating leadership Lucian J Hudson on the reasons he created the Chairman’s Award for our unsung heroes DEPENDING on your perspective, leadership has come a long way since the days of the Torah, or not changed very much at all. As a die-hard believer in progress, I am an optimist about leadership. I see everyday examples of good and poor leadership. But I can testify to how strong, subtle and sophisticated it is becoming in the right hands. What truly excites me is how most people grow when they have an opportunity to exercise leadership.

When I became chairman of Liberal Judaism three years ago, I resolved to introduce two main changes on leadership matters, based on the very strong foundations laid by my predecessor Nigel Cole. First, I wanted to encourage a more collaborative form of leadership to complement Rabbi Danny Rich’s and mine. This included developing the role of the Board of National Officers, and the other main constituents of our movement - the Rabbinic Conference, our council and our group of vice presidents.

The investment of energy and thought that went into the Biennial Weekend 2012 was a source of great joy.

The contribution of our vice chairs, Simon Benscher and Jackie Richards, has been exemplary, as was Amanda Grant’s when she was deputy chair.

The dynamic leadership supporting our Rabbinic Conference, in the form of Rabbis Aaron Goldstein and Shulamit Ambalu, could not be more important.

The second change is more gradual, and will take time. It is to make every one of our members feel that Liberal Judaism gives them a taste of leadership. I would like everybody to experience the joys and tribulations of taking a lead. I can find no better description of leadership than the ability to take people or inspire them to get to a place where they need to be, even though that’s not always what they want.

Difficult, frustrating, often disappointing but we know when it has to be done.

That’s why I created the Chairman’s Award. We now have two groups of winners, from this year’s Biennial and the one in 2010. Read their stories, told by them or those who nominated them, at www.liberaljudaism.org and you will recognise that good leadership resides in any one of us who hears the call and rises to the challenge. This is what I take to mean by a “kingdom of priests”.

Chairman’s Award winners • Bryan Diamond of The Liberal Jewish Synagogue • Brenda Dombey of Kingston Liberal Synagogue • Adam Francies of LJY-Netzer and Northwood & Pinner Liberal Synagogue (pictured above) • Gillian Raab of Edinburgh Liberal Jewish Community • Nick Silk of Edinburgh Liberal Jewish Community • Rabbi Pete Tobias of The Liberal Synagogue Elstree • Reni Chapman of Leicester Progressive Jewish Congregation • Phil Stone of Northwood & Pinner Liberal Synagogue • Gerald and Hilary Fox of Bedfordshire Progressive Synagogue (pictured below with Award presenter Naomi Fellerman)

• I would like to pay tribute to all the organisers of this year’s Biennial, who even managed to surpass my high expectations. The weekend was a success on every given measure and left me with an exciting sense of unfinished business.

Spiritually spot on!

‘There is no greater mitzvah than saving life’ Rabbi Margaret Jacobi on why all Jews should sign up to become organ donors ONE OF THE highest duties of a Jew is ‘Pikuach Nefesh’, saving life. Such is its importance, the rabbis of the Talmud ruled that all but three commandments – those of murder, idolatry and adultery – could be turned aside in order to save life.

In reality few of us, unless we work in one of the medical professions, have the direct opportunity to do this. But one thing we can all do is give consent for our organs to be donated in the event of our death. There is a desperate need for organ donors in this country. There are currently more than 10,000 people in the UK who need a transplant and 1,000 patients die every year while waiting for an organ to become available.

Liberal and Reform Judaism, as well as many Orthodox Jews, are clear that organ donation is not only permitted, but a positive mitzvah.

There has been disagreement among the Orthodox as some, including Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, have chosen to follow a more conservative ruling which uses the definition of death as the cessation of heartbeat and respiration. This means that heart and lung transplants are usually not possible. However, Rabbi Moshe Feinstein, one of the greatest halachic authorities of the last century, was persuaded by his son-in-law, who was a doctor, that brain death was in fact acceptable as a definition of death,

and so heart and lung transplants were permitted.

July 9-15 has been designated National Transplant Week to raise awareness of the urgent need for donors. There will be information at your synagogues. Please take the opportunity to register, if you have not already done so, so that you will be able to give life after death. You can also register as a donor on the internet at www.organdonation.nhs.uk or by calling the NHS Donor Line on 0300 123 23 23.

Talk to your relatives and friends about your decision so that they are aware of what you would like to do should the need sadly arise. And remember that there is no greater mitzvah than saving life.

Events

July/August 2012

Jerusalem and Back LEO BAECK COLLEGE’S Department of Jewish Education (DJE) gathered 114 people, from nine Reform and Liberal communities, to ‘explore’ Jerusalem at Menorah Synagogue in Manchester. The programme started with Jerusalem and Back, a short play by Debbie Freeman, which proved to be a colourful and thought-provoking trigger for the day.

Rabbi Margaret Jacobi reflected on Jerusalem in our prayers, a workshop that participants found restorative and stimulating. Rabbi Laura Janner-Klausner led sessions on current developments in Israel and Jerusalem in the Talmud. Ruti Worrall then inspired a group of 30 adults to sing Jerusalem songs.

Fifty children and young people enjoyed a ‘Jerusalem Experience’, led by Debi Penhey from DJE. They were enchanted by a visit to ‘Machane Yehuda’, where Meir Vardi taught them enough Hebrew to request and taste the delicious foods

on offer. They built a model Kotel, made Hebrew-lettered jewellery and created a peace path. Young people engaged in debate on the governance of Jerusalem, in a challenging programme led by Sam Grant from LJY-Netzer and RSY-Netzer’s Rhea Wolfson. Professional photographer Howard Barlow and the BBC’s Northern correspondent Judith Moritz facilitated a media workshop for teenagers, who ran their own press conference and produced a slideshow of the event.

Organiser Ann Angel was delighted by the response of participants.

She said: “People from smaller communities valued the opportunity to network and study together in a Progressive Jewish framework.”

Elstree win annual quiz

LJ rabbis get on their bikes

THE LIBERAL SYNAGOGUE ELSTREE (TLSE) are the 2012 Liberal Judaism Annual Inter-Synagogue Quiz champions.

The host team scored a stunning 114 points, out of a maximum 130, to walk off with the coveted trophy. Last year’s winners Kingston Liberal Synagogue finished second in the competition, which dates back to 1975.

The winning TLSE team members were Peter Ellinger, Mike Rebak, Michael Reibscheib, Rosita Rosenberg, Leone Samson, Anthony Scott-Norman, David Steinberg and Sue Woolf.

Nine teams competed in the quiz, which was compered by Richard Elman with the questions set by Stephen Monk. Next year’s event will be hosted by Woodford Liberal Synagogue, who finished third.

• Leo Baeck College would like to thank UJIA, Liberal Judaism and the Movement for Reform Judaism for their sponsorship of this event.

RABBIS Aaron Goldstein and Anna Gerrard are currently taking part in the cross-communal Rabbi Relay Bike Ride from Land’s End to John O’Groats. The two Liberal rabbis are cycling 55 miles from Weston-super-Mare to Gloucester, with Aaron then repeating the feat by continuing on to Birmingham.

The event is organised by Gefiltefest, in conjunction with the Big Green Jewish Website. It forms part of their Year of the Bicycle, a programme focussing on sustainable transportation.

Rabbis from all the major British Jewish denominations are taking part to raise money for their chosen charities.

Aaron is supporting Leket Yisrael, Progressive Jews in the Ukraine and Water Aid, while Anna will be using her sponsorship to buy books for a Bedouin village school she visited recently with the UK Task Force. See page 9 of this copy of lj today for more on Anna’s trip.

You can support our Liberal Rabbis on their ride by sponsoring them. Go to www.rabbirelayride.org/rabbis to find out more and make a donation.

LJ Today Page 3

Highlights from Amsterdam

By Jeromé Freedman THE LARGEST ever conference of the European Union for Progressive Judaism (EUPJ) was held in Amsterdam in March and was opened by its president, Leslie Bergman, in the impressive Nieuwe Kerk.

The delegates heard two more opening addresses; first from the city mayor, Eberhard van der Laan, and then from Willem Koster, Chair of the Dutch Union for Progressive Judaism.

The Nieuwe Kerk (‘the New Church’) is an old 15th Century church in the heart of the city on Dam Square and next to the royal palace. It is no longer used for services but houses many exhibitions and concerts and was presenting an outstanding exhibition entitled ‘Judaism: A World of Stories’, created in close co-operation between the Nieuwe Kerk and the Jewish Historical Museum.

The services, keynote addresses and workshops then all took place in Amsterdam’s superb new synagogue.

There were 64 delegates from the UK at the EUPJ conference, which had a total of 300 participants from 25 countries including the US, South Africa, Australia, Israel, Russia, Belarus and Ukraine.

If I had to pick one item that most impressed me, it would be at the special presentation on the Sunday morning of the EUPJ in Spain. One of the speakers was a young man, Haim Casas, who was born in Córdoba. When Haim heard about the opening of the Jewish Museum, he went to work there with the aim of re-building his Jewish heritage. He started services for High Holy Days and gradually developed the nucleus of a new Jewish community for the first time since 1492. He is very much involved with the foundation of a new congregation in Seville and will become its first president.

I met Haim Casas again at the recent Leo Baeck Kaufmann Memorial Lecture and he told me that he will be entering the College as a rabbinic student this autumn. It made my day!

A full report of the conference, which was titled Generations 2012, can be read at www.eupj.org/events/last-conference.

However, for real inspiration and to experience the pleasure of linking up with hundreds of Progressive Jews from around the world, why not attend a future EUPJ or World Union conference? They are held every year alternately so the next one is the WUPJ’s Connections 2013 in Jerusalem. Louise and I have attended almost all of them for the past 20 years so we look forward to seeing you there.

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Comment

July/August 2012

Locating the ‘lost generation’ Remembering Sam Cohen on the ‘missing’ Jews in their 20s and 30s Harriet Karsh (1953 - 2012) BEING a young active Liberal Jew in my 20s the question I am asked most frequently, when visiting synagogues or at events like the Biennial Weekend, is “where are the rest of you?”

Many people seem obsessed with this ‘lost generation’ of Jews and how they can be brought into communities and kept engaged with Liberal Judaism throughout their 20s and early 30s. It is true that at our events, this generation is notably absent. We always see lots of under-12s and enjoy brilliant attendance from all age groups over 35, but the only people in between tend to be Liberal Judaism staff and LJY-Netzer leaders.

Everyone has different ideas on how to get this group of people ‘back into the fold’, whether it’s cheaper rates for synagogue membership and events, putting money into running more activities like Routes or even trying to ensure a much younger presence on the decision-making bodies of Liberal Judaism and our communities.

As a young Liberal Jew who is engaged, I disagree. The reason we are not seeing many people in their 20s and early 30s in our congregations and at our events has nothing to do with the price or type of activities on offer. It is because people are settling down at a far later age and do not want to be tied to one synagogue.

Right now I live in London, last year I was in Bristol and the year before that I was in Israel. I don’t know where I will be when I finish my second year with LJYNetzer. With this kind of lifestyle, joining a synagogue feels pointless.

• DO YOU want to learn more about leading Shabbat services in your community? Then why not join Liberal Judaism’s Ba’alei Tefillah 5773 course.

The programme includes in-depth study and practical projects on Shabbat evening and morning services, liturgy, service choreography, writing sermons, music and reading Torah.

The course consists of five modules, which are completed over the academic year via correspondence. Each participant is assigned a tutor who can assist with questions and there are three occasions during the year where everyone gets together, one of which is a residential weekend. For more details, please call 020 7631 9830 or email a.wakely@liberaljudaism.org

This does not mean that this ‘lost generation’ is not on the map or engaging with Judaism. LEAPP standing for ‘Learning, Eating And Praying Progressively’ - is a thriving non-denominational pop-up community, which gets together monthly for an evening of prayer and food. Here young Progressive Jews can meet up, lead services, eat and socialise. Liberal Judaism’s Routes project is also doing well, most recently putting on a very successful Friday Night Dinner.

It seems obvious that most people attending these events, who have drifted away from mainstream Liberal Judaism, will come back as and when they settle.

This generation is not lost, but simply taking time out for some breathing space.

Should Liberal Judaism be worried?

To some extent, the answer is yes. The majority of the young people at these events were heavily involved in either their synagogue or a youth movement as children. If we really want to make sure that the people who drift away in their 20s come back, then we need to be doing more for them at a younger age.

There are not enough regular youth clubs at our big synagogues and not enough youngsters encouraged to attend LJY-Netzer events or national Liberal Judaism get-togethers. The earlier in life that people are engaged with what it means to be a Liberal Jew, the more likely it is that one day they will return.

Sam Cohen is a movement worker for LJY-Netzer

• NORTHWOOD AND PINNER LIBERAL SYNAGOGUE (NPLS) held a very special Czech Memorial weekend in June.

NLPS welcomed representatives from 18 congregations – Liberal, Reform and Orthodox – together with the Czech ambassador for a service, seminar and parade of 15 Czech Torah Scrolls. Look out for a full report in the next lj today.

• LEO BAECK COLLEGE’S Kaufmann Memorial Lecture saw 180 guests pledge a total of £100,000 to help fund future activities and programmes.

• RABBI CHARLEY BAGINSKY has become acting co-chair of Liberal Judaism’s Rabbinic Conference while Rabbi Aaron Goldstein is on sabbatical.

By Rabbi Rachel Benjamin HARRIET KARSH, who was interim operations director of Liberal Judaism before Rabbi Danny Rich became chief executive, lived her life to the full and gave us all an example to live up to.

Harriet had the ability to help people confront important issues and attempt to resolve them in a positive way. She literally and metaphorically broke down walls, making the Liberal Judaism offices open plan and enabling more effective communication between people.

Harriet was also a chair of South Bucks Jewish Community (SBJC), and her death has left a huge void in our lives.

Her major fundraising effort for our 21st Birthday Party was one of the highlights of the last few years in SBJC’s life.

Harriet was not afraid to tell you what she thought - and it was not always comfortable hearing. However, you always knew that she had your best interests, and the best interests of the community, in her heart. She was a steadfast friend, as well as a mentor and confidante to many.

Strong, creative and determined, Harriet was extraordinarily active, even when she was debilitated by the cancer that would eventually claim her life.

In her last few months, Harriet – together with the music therapist at her hospice in Cleveland and her musician brother Kenny – made a CD for friends and family of music that was especially meaningful to her. The title of that CD is Invictus, the same as the well-known poem by William Ernest Henley that sums up Harriet so well. I would like to conclude my words with its words: Out of the night that covers me, Black as the Pit from pole to pole, I thank whatever gods may be For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance I have not winced nor cried aloud.

Under the bludgeonings of chance My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears Looms but the Horror of the shade, And yet the menace of the years Finds, and shall find, me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate, How charged with punishments the scroll.

I am the master of my fate: I am the captain of my soul.

Patrons

July/August 2012

LJ Today Page 5

Polite Liberals to become more pushy Rabbi Danny Rich delivered this speech at Liberal Judaism’s Patrons’ Dinner

Rabbis Dr David Goldberg, Miri Lawrence, Janet Burden, Danny Rich, Dr Deborah Kahn-Harris and Anna Gerrard at the House of Lords event

I HAVE just returned from what I can only describe as an inspirational Biennial Weekend. The Biennial saw 261 people, young and old alike, gather for a weekend of inspiration, study and fun. That followed last year’s Day of Celebration, which saw 500 people come together at The Liberal Jewish Synagogue.

It is fair to say that the last couple of years have not been easy ones. There have been financial challenges, personnel difficulties and the request to do more with less. And yet, having just examined our latest membership statistics, I’m pleased to tell you that virtually all of our communities have grown.

That tells me that between us – the constituent communities of Liberal Judaism and our staff team at the Montagu Centre – we must be getting something right. Because if people sign on the dotted line, pay a subscription and join a Liberal shul, then we must be doing something they like.

I’d like to remind you of some of our recent achievements. Our youth movement LJY-Netzer entertained more than 400 young people during the last year, 85 people converted through our Beit Din, we assisted families at some 120 bereavements, we extended our land at Edgwarebury by more than an acre and acquired 1,000 new spots at Cheshunt.

We also spoke out on a number of issues – including Zionism, equal marriage, assisted dying, a living wage, organ donation and many other matters which might be of interest to our members – and continued to play our role in the Leo Baeck College.

Now let me tell you how we spend the Patrons’ money. We agreed early on that one of the areas we would concentrate on was community development and we have added new congregations in Wessex, North Herts and Crouch End.

You also told us that we were to spend money on young people and so it is that we launched Routes, our new project for adults in their 20s and 30s, and appointed Rabbi Ariel Friedlander as our university chaplain. And I’m delighted that our students are receiving Chanukkah and Pesach packs from Liberal Judaism.

Without the support of our Patrons, all of this simply would not have happened.

That’s the good news, but we’re still not as far ahead as I’d like us to be.

Finance is a challenge to us and that is why, most recently, we have launched our Friends of Liberal Judaism scheme. This is for people who feel they are not able to become Patrons but might be able to afford £500 a year, which is about £40 a month, to become a Friend. You can find out more about this great initiative at www.liberaljudaism.org/friends There is one other thing I’d like to draw your attention to, which is not about finance – but is something that is holding us back. It is about our understatement and undercelebration of our achievements. At the end of the Biennial I was asked by our PR team what headline I’d like to see in the Jewish Chronicle about the weekend. There are many I wouldn’t want, but I think I’d like them to use this one – ‘Polite Liberals to become more pushy’.

What do I mean by that? I mean we have to stop being apologetic, we have to stop looking over our shoulders, we have to remember that we’ve got 200 years of Progressive Jewish practices, 110 years of Liberal Jewish ideology, inspiring rabbis and teachers, creative and hardworking lay leaders and volunteers and a motivated staff at the Montagu Centre.

All of these things are because we want to bring the values and practices which we hold dear, first to our members, second to Jews who’ve not

yet experienced our way of doing things and third to the opinion-formers and wider public. I also want to be able to offer our values, ideals and practices to those men and women who have yet to find a spiritual communal home, which combines their concern for society with a desire for belonging.

That means we’re not interested from whence they’ve come, but in where they want to go. And if they want to join our mission and programme – which is to do the very best that we can to create Liberal Jewish values in Liberal Jewish communities and as a voice in wider society – then we intend to try and find ways of making them welcome.

I’d like to end by saying this. My staff at the Montagu Centre, the Board of National Officers, the constituent synagogues which make up our movement – with the support of you, our Patrons – will do our very best to make sure that Liberal Jewish values and practices and a Liberal Jewish way of life are open and available to anybody who wants them. Long may that be the case!

LIBERAL JUDAISM’S Eighth Annual Dinner of the Council of Patrons was held at the House of Lords in April, in order to thank those who provide long-term stable funding for the movement’s development plans.

The keynote speaker at the dinner was Simon Baron-Cohen, a professor at Cambridge University and author of books including Zero Degrees of Empathy. Dignitaries attending included event host Lord Simon Haskel, Lord Stanley Fink and Brooks Newmark MP. The evening was organised by Joan Shopper, with John Bernard taking photographs.

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July/August 2012

Liberal Judaism Biennial W

The hard-working Biennial Committee get ready to welcome guests

Rabbi Harry Jacobi as Abraham Geiger in a fun Friday night activity

Young Artur Sakhnovich lights a Havdalah candle as Shabbat ends

Woodford Liberal Synagogue’s 18 attendees in the lush hotel lobby

LJY-Netzer members and movement workers lead a huge Saturday night Ha

Cantor Gershon Silins leads one of the many excellent sessions

Daniel Cainer gets a hand from Rabbi Pete Tobias on Saturday night

July/August 2012

LJ Today Page 7

Weekend 2012 in pictures

Reform’s Rabbi Laura Janner-Klausner joins the Shabbat festivities

Delegates try to save Jewish heritage in a communal board game

Four generations of the Shotts family enjoy a Biennial breakfast

avdalah ceremony for all 261 of the Biennial Weekend participants

Rabbis David Goldberg, Danny Rich and Elli Tikvah Sarah on Sunday

Jenni Harrison and Helen Marks flew in from Dublin to take part

The rabbis of Liberal Judaism end the weekend united in song

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July/August 2012

Creating a community youth strategy Sam Grant introduces his new role working with Liberal Judaism’s congregations

Sam Grant (left) at a recent LJY-Netzer event

I AM EXTREMELY excited that I will soon be taking up my position as the inaugural of communities youth coordinator for Liberal Judaism. For those who don’t know me, I grew up as a member of Birmingham Progressive Synagogue and have spent this year working in the Montagu Centre as an LJY-Netzer movement worker.

I am very proud that LJY-Netzer has carried out more community visits than ever before over the last 12 months – and this new role is an acknowledgement that we could be doing even more. My aim is to provide a vital link between LJY-Netzer and Liberal Judaism’s many congregations, working on a cohesive community strategy for youth provision up and down the country.

Every community is different, and every community requires something different. I want to work closely, and in co-operation, with each community, to find out what has worked in the past and what hasn’t – building a structure that LJY-Netzer can feed into and one that also feeds into LJY-Netzer.

What we all share is a passion to make sure that our young people are being energised and having positive Jewish experiences, whether this is through cheder, youth clubs or LJY-Netzer events.

I want to increase the quality and quantity of youth provision across our movement. Educating and invigorating our youth is essential to a strong, passionate and ideological Liberal Judaism for the long-term - as my colleague Sam Cohen writes on page 4.

However I cannot do this without help and guidance from people within our communities. I need to know what you want and what you need. The foundations are being laid now, so please get in touch by emailing s.grant@liberaljudaism.org or calling me in the office on 020 7631 9825.

I am happy to discuss any ideas and take on board all suggestions. I want to move towards a better, more creative, more joined up, more dynamic, more challenging and more adventurous brand of youth provision.

Together we can move forward and give young people incredible Liberal Jewish experiences and memories.

Israel Mattuck’s war newsletters

By Rosita Rosenberg AS REGULAR READERS of lj today will know, Pam Fox and Rabbi Danny Rich are currently working on a biography of Rabbi Dr Israel Mattuck, the first rabbi in British Liberal Judaism and an enormous influence on our movement.

Helping them with research has been a pleasurable occupation for me and I’ve particularly enjoyed delving into some of the material in the archives of The Liberal Jewish Synagogue (LJS).

One such exploration has led me to discover the Lithuanian-born and American-educated Mattuck’s love of English literature, his interest in British politics and his strong anti-Zionist views. All these and much more can be found in the (mostly) monthly issues of his newsletters to members of the LJS serving in the British Armed Forces during the period from January 1940 to June 1945.

Mattuck’s aim was clearly to make his congregants still feel part of the LJS family, in a chatty and easy-to-read style.

Each issue contains news of postings, promotions and inevitably, occasionally, sad events. As he writes: “One of the chief aims of this newsletter is to serve as a clearing house between friends.”

The very first issue reports that: “The Chairman of our Council, Captain Louis H Gluckstein MP, was in France with the British Expeditionary Forces and had a narrow escape from being taken prisoner by the Germans.” Sadly, the issue of July 1943 reports the death in India of Desmond Marks, who had been studying for the Liberal Jewish Ministry.

In the first issue, Mattuck also writes about the bomb that destroyed part of the LJS building. The censor does not allow him to give details, only to explain that the sanctuary itself is unusable and a temporary synagogue is being set up in part of the Montefiore Hall. He is touched with the offers of help from local churches and particularly by Lord’s Cricket Ground.

I was most fascinated by his comments on the progress of the war and life at home in wartime. These include questioning why Rudolf Hess flew to Britain (March 1941), clothes rationing (June 1941), the Vichy government in France (May 1942) and D-Day (June 1944).

Mattuck’s final issue covered both VE Day and the death of Franklin D Roosevelt (June 1945).

Equally absorbing are his comments on the British political scene. Several times, he muses on what Britain would

be like after the war and the clear need for a better social order. He is delighted with the appointment of Dr William Temple as Archbishop of Canterbury, as he feels Temple is an advocate for social change (March 1942), and welcomes the Beveridge Report – “the abolition of want by the redistribution of the nation’s income” (Nov 1942). I have not yet discovered the reaction of his lay leadership to his strong socialist views!

Most issues contain news and comment on Jewish national or international matters, as well as readings from both Jewish and non-Jewish sources. In the spirit of true Liberal Judaism, Mattuck prefaces an excerpt from II Kings with the comment: “The stories in the Bible containing details which we cannot accept as historical, have to be interpreted by us not historically but psychologically.”

Mattuck was assisted in the production of these newsletters by his secretary Joe Foreman, who many of us remember with affection. Joe typed them on to the old style wax stencils – which many of us also remember, though not with affection – and produced them on the LJS duplicator.

Joe’s inking prowess was clearly not the best, but the content is superb. It reveals not only the world of the 1940s, but also Mattuck’s outstanding intellect.

Israel

July/August 2012

LJ Today Page 9

‘We are the custodians of an independent nation’ Rabbi Anna Gerrard on her study trip to Bedouin villages in the Israeli Negev IN THE BEDOUIN VILLAGE of Abu Guidar, ramshackle dwellings are topped with satellite dishes, donkeys share the unpaved roads with pickup trucks and goatherds usher their flocks past piles of rubbish and photovoltaic solar panels.

The school there is one of the best in the region. Classrooms are brightly decorated and full of smiling faces, but the teachers are underqualified and the library has yet to be filled with books.

Abu Guidar is one of 33 unrecognised Bedouin villages in the Israeli Negev.

Recognition would mean a sign from the main road, mains electricity, running water and sewerage for 1,000 Israeli citizens who have lived on this otherwise unused land for several generations.

In an annexed area east of Be’er Sheva, 190,000 Israeli Bedouin live in government-planned towns, recognised villages and disputed villages. Earlier this year, I joined the 2012 Study Trip of the UK Task Force on Issues Facing Arab Citizens of Israel to learn more about what is happening.

After 1948, 11,000 Negev-dwelling Bedouin – who migrated from the Arabian Peninsula in the 1850s – were annexed into an area east of Be’er Sheva. Faced with limited pastoral opportunities, a clash of cultures, rapid population growth and pressure from the State, the Negevdwelling Bedouin have all but given up their nomadic lifestyle.

The majority now live in planned towns, such as Rahat, which has 33 neighbourhoods around a town centre with reasonably modern facilities, including schools. However scratching beneath the surface of Rahat’s successes, one can find resentment from which the government could learn as it plans further urbanisation. Rahat’s mayor said: “I only hope they will not have to go through what we went through in order to get to where we are today.”

Change has got to come from within in order to be effective but a disempowered, disadvantaged community cannot bring about such changes alone. Interestingly, our group met mostly Bedouin women who are rising to this challenge. These are young adults who are tired of dwelling on their problems and arguing with the government over land. They are not giving up on their struggle for civil rights and full recognition, but want to construct a better reality in the meantime.

Amal El Sana Alh’jool runs the Arab Jewish Centre for Equality, Empowerment and Cooperation (AJEEC).

As the fifth girl in her family, Amal was released from domestic duties and allowed to accompany her father and brothers into the desert as a goatherd. Perhaps this early experience empowered her to challenge gender stereotypes in her community and become an eloquent, confident, beautiful and warm-hearted leader. She told us that her eight-year-old daughter once asked about the Nakba (catastrophe), the Palestinian terminology for the events of 1948. Amal explained to her the Palestinian narrative of exile and persecution. Her daughter cried and cried. Amal then told her the Jewish narrative of creating a safe homeland and explained what had happened to the Jews in the Holocaust. Her daughter cried and cried. Then she stopped crying and said: “Me and Yaniv (her Jewish friend), we are going to stop all this pain.”

We met over a dozen young women who really are the proverbial ‘Women of Valour’, rising at dawn to provide for their families materially, emotionally, financially and spiritually. But there were words of warning ringing in my ears made louder by the fact that, while the women were being showcased as future leaders, the young men were serving us drinks. During our visit to Ben Gurion University, Dr Sarab Abu Rabia-Queder explained: “When women went out to study, they started to make changes straight away. The men do not really want these changes because they want to maintain the status quo of the patriarchal hierarchy.” Could there be a dynamic forming that results in a male backlash?

After hearing many varied perspectives, I was saddened to find myself making a strong analogy with the Exodus narrative.

When Pharaoh realises that the Israelites are becoming more numerous and more prosperous, he becomes fearful of their might and takes pre-emptive measures.

“Let us deal wisely with them, lest they multiply” (Exodus 1:10).

It feels that the annexing of the Bedouin population, the forced urbanisation and the lack of recognition has had similar goals in the past.

While cultural misunderstanding, poor forecasting and misplaced intentions may have contributed to the current mess, the Jewish State must surely take heed from the collective memory of our enslavement in Egypt. For better or for worse, we are now the custodians of an independent nation, inhabited by minority groups. They are the strangers in our midst and we have a moral and civil obligation to treat them justly and with respect.

The group I was part of had an opportunity to speak to Israeli Knesset Minister Benny Begin, who is currently responsible for Bedouin affairs. His eloquent speech left me deflated rather than satisfied. I wanted to ask how it can be that, as we sit and talk, children who are citizens of Israel are going without running water and plumbed sewerage; children who in the past may have grown up to volunteer in the Israeli army but are now becoming politicised and radicalised.

Instead we were left to reflect on ways in which we could act to change the reality of the Israeli Bedouin. Could we bring speakers to our communities?

Should we persuade our youth movement to reject the sanitised ‘experience’ visits that are so common and to opt for serious engagement with representatives of unrecognised villages instead? Could we work in partnership with some of the innovative social projects in the Bedouin community to create volunteering programmes for our young people that allow them to interact with the needs of both Jews and Arabs within Israel?

As it says in Leviticus 19:33-34, “When a stranger dwells within your land, do not vex him. The stranger who dwells among you shall be like a native to you and you shall love him like yourself for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.”

Page 10 LJ Today

July/August 2012

Spotlight on Manchester potentially misses out on hearing the Torah. We have therefore enriched our Friday night services by incorporating Torah readings and this has proved most successful.

What do you do outside of the community?

MLJC has a strong commitment to the welfare of others, holding a Fairtrade certificate. Members have raised funds for, and contributed to, World Jewish Relief and our local cancer hospital in Manchester. We also regularly take part in Mitzvah Day.

Rabbi Judith Rosen-Berry with a Torah Scroll the Manchester community purchased on eBay

How was your community formed?

Manchester Liberal Jewish Community (MLJC) was started by a small group of people in 2003-4. The founder members included James Eisen, Nick Davis and James Shirer Bromfield, but MLJC really came into its own with the arrival of Rabbi Aaron Goldstein in 2005. At that time Aaron was the outreach rabbi for Liberal Judaism. He was instrumental in the creation of regular monthly Friday night services, while also coming to Manchester twice a month to teach our adults and children and promote the community.

How did MLJC develop from there?

After Aaron obtained a post at Northwood and Pinner Liberal Synagogue, his involvement gradually reduced. Since then MLJC has enjoyed the services of several excellent student rabbis, growing slowly in numbers and strength. In 2010, Rabbi Mark Solomon was appointed as MLJC’s part-time rabbi. He comes once a month to lead Friday night services and to teach ‘access to Judaism’ courses for interested members and converts, as well as a stimulating and enjoyable Talmud class.

How many members do you have now?

MLJC boasts almost 40 members and is slowly evolving from an embryonic to an established congregation. The thing we are most proud of is the strong sense of community among the group.

Where do you hold services?

The community gets together at a wonderful Unitarian chapel in central Manchester. We have been made very welcome and, therefore, formed a strong link with the Unitarians.

What do you do for High Holy Days?

Since 2006, MLJC has held full Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur services.

Initially these were led by Rabbi Aaron, followed by Rabbis James Baaden and Alan Mann. As Rabbi Mark is committed to Edinburgh Liberal Jewish Community for the High Holy Days, it has become an adventure for the congregation to experience a range of rabbis. One tradition is the ‘Break the Fast Buffet’ catered by the community and thoroughly enjoyed by the increasing number of members and friends who participate.

What challenges do you face?

MLJC has had to work hard to establish a foothold in Manchester, which already has enormous Orthodox and Reform communities. Outside of London, Manchester is the first city to have both Reform and Liberal synagogues. Had a Liberal community been established first, it would have been huge.

What are your development plans?

Two of our members, Phyllis and Len Alden, are participating in the Liberal Judaism Ba’alei Tefillah course with a view to developing further services that could take place in the future, for example on weeks between Mark’s visits.

Discussions are also underway to hold services on Shabbat mornings.

How do I find out more?

Go to our website www.mljc.org.uk or email mljc@liberaljudaism.org

What other services and events have you put on?

Well-attended events have included our communal Seder led by Rabbi Mark and two Klezmer evenings. The Klezmer events were attended by more than 30 people with music provided by The Klatch, a group of musicians who come together from all over the North West and beyond.

Do you have a Torah?

Yes. MLJC boasts a Sephadi Torah Scroll purchased on eBay and puts it to good use. One problem with focussing on Erev Shabbat services is that the community

MLJC members enjoy an evening of Klezmer

Youth

July/August 2012

LJ Today Page 11

LJY-Netzer is Liberal Judaism’s Zionist youth movement. It gives young people the opportunity to develop a strong Progressive Jewish identity, make lasting friendships and have loads of fun

A very special Passover Seder

By Sam Grant THIS PASSOVER was a very special one for LJY-Netzer, as our members joined together with those from RSY-Netzer and Habonim Dror to run a Seder at Ravenswood Village.

Ravenswood is a residential village for adults with severe learning difficulties, which is run by the charity Norwood.

Because Ravenswood is about an hour outside of London, it doesn’t get the same stream of volunteers that many London-based charities do. This project enabled many people who otherwise would not have celebrated the Seder this year to take part in a memorable evening, complete with lots of singing, dancing and rattle shaking.

At the core of who we are as Jews is the message that “we were strangers”.

This message is most striking during Pesach. It is a time when families and communities get together to retell an ancient story, but also when some people cannot join in that narrative; some people have no recourse to hear or tell that

story. It is both an honour and a duty that LJY-Netzer organised a project that gave people the opportunity to take part in a Seder meal and laugh, dance and sing about freedom.

LJY-Netzer is proud to have chosen Norwood as its Social Action Project of the Year. The aim is to provide practical opportunities for our members to volunteer, alongside the more traditional fundraising we carry out for charities we support in Israel. The Seder will become an annual fixture on the LJY-Netzer calendar and the springboard for many more visits and activities.

Please get in touch using the contact details at the bottom of this page if you have any questions or want to know how you can get involved with future LJYNetzer social action activity.

Get ready for the summer of your life YOU may not be able to tell by the weather outside but summer is almost here, which can only mean one thing… lots of exciting LJY-Netzer events.

Machaneh Kadimah, our summer camp for school years 3-10, is LJYNetzer’s biggest event of the year. We bring together hundreds of young people from all over the UK, introduce them to a tsevet (staff) of more than 40 passionate, enthusiastic and highly-trained madrichim (youth leaders) and conjure up two weeks of magical, creative, fun and engaging activities in a beautiful boarding school in the South West of England.

Generations of Liberal Jews have been through Kadimah and come out the other side with experiences and memories that last a lifetime. Ask anyone who’s been on Kadimah what they thought about it and you’ll get the same response: “It was the best two weeks of the year.”

But that’s not all we have planned for this summer. Anyone in year 12 should join Kayitz Netzer, an incredible two week Europe Tour in which you’ll form great friendships and explore issues that have affected European Jewry from the Middle Ages through to the modern day. From London to Prague, Budapest then Berlin, discover the stories of our ancestors from

a unique Progressive Jewish perspective.

LJY-Netzer is the only movement to offer a tour of this kind and it really is an unmissable opportunity.

For more information on these events and other LJY-Netzer goings-on check out our website www.ljy-netzer.org or call us in the office on 020 7631 0584. See you in the summer!

LJY-Netzer members enjoy last year’s Kadimah. Will you be joining them from August 13?

Contact the LJY-Netzer team: Adam (a.francies@liberaljudaism.org), Sam G (s.grant@liberaljudaism.org), Sam C (s.cohen@liberaljudaism.org) and Anna (a.posner@liberaljudaism.org) or telephone 020 7631 0584

Page 12 LJ Today

July/August 2012

Liberal Judaism congregations

Chairman Lucian J Hudson Vice Chairs Simon Benscher and Jackie Richards Treasurer David Pelham Social Action and Disability Leon Charikar Israel and the Diaspora Tamara Schmidt Communications Ed Herman Social Justice Amelia Viney National Officers Dr Howard Cohen, Rosie Comb, David Hockman and Gillian Merron Vice Presidents Monique Blake, Henry Cohn, Nigel Cole, Geoffrey Davis, Stanley Fink, Jeromé Freedman, Louise Freedman, Rabbi Dr David Goldberg, Rabbi Dr Andrew Goldstein, Sharon Goldstein, Rabbi Harry Jacobi, Jeremy Jessel, Willie Kessler, David Lipman, Corinne Oppenheimer, David Pick, Rosita Rosenberg, Tony Sacker, Harold Sanderson, Joan Shopper, Beverley Taylor and Clive Winston Chairs of Rabbinic Conference Rabbi Shulamit Ambalu and Rabbi Charley Baginsky Chief Executive Rabbi Danny Rich University Chaplain Rabbi Ariel Friedlander Education Rabbi Sandra Kviat Outreach Rabbi Anna Gerrard Music Cantor Gershon Silins Interfaith Rabbi Mark Solomon Operations Director Shelley Shocolinsky-Dwyer PR Alexandra Ben-Yehuda Shlicha Adva Sapir LJY-Netzer Sam Cohen, Sam Grant, Anna Posner and Adam Francies (Student Worker)

lj today is edited by Simon Rothstein The deadline for the next edition is August 1.

Please email your news to ljtoday@liberaljudaism.org Printed by Precision Printing. www.precisionprinting.co.uk

Associated congregations

Beit Ha’Chidush Postbus 14613, 1001 LC Amsterdam, Netherlands, 00 31 23 524 7204; bhc.informatie@gmail.com; www.beithachidush.nl Oxford Liberal Jewish Services: 01865 515584 or 01865 765197; www.ojc-online.org

Developing communities

North Herts Liberal Jewish Community (based in Stevenage) 01438 300 222; northhertsljc@gmail.com; www.northhertsljc.org The Suffolk Liberal Jewish Community (based in Ipswich) 01473 250797; sjc@liberaljudaism.org

Rabbi Pete’s quick quiz LJY-Netzer’s Machaneh Kadimah summer camp is almost upon us. But how much do you know about its history?

Find out by taking the test below…

1) In which year did the first Kadimah Holiday School take place?

2) Where was its location?

3) In its early years, Kadimah had two rabbinic directors. Who were they?

4) Where did Kadimah take place in 1981?

5) Which of these towns has NOT been a venue for Kadimah? Chislehurst, Tring, Cheltenham or Shaftesbury.

6) What was the final year in which Rabbi Andrew and Mrs Sharon Goldstein were directors of Kadimah?

Pete Tobias is rabbi at The Liberal Synagogue Elstree

Sidney’s bridge magic The contract is 5 Spades by South, after West pre-empted in Diamonds and East overbid in Hearts. West, having no Hearts, leads the Jack of Diamonds. Even with the Diamond finesse working, there appear to be four inescapable losers – the trump Queen, a Club and two Heart tricks. But can you, with the benefit of seeing your opponents’ hands, make this apparently impossible contract?

Make a date ...........

July 1(Sunday) One Day Limmud at Pimlico Academy, London, SW1V 3AT, 9am-6.30pm.

July 3 (Tuesday) Liberal Judaism council meeting and AGM at the Montagu Centre, London, W1T 4BE, from 6.15pm.

July 6 (Friday) Pride Kabbalat Shabbat at South London Liberal Synagogue, SW16 1ZW, 6.30pm.

August 13 (Monday) -August 27 (Monday) LJY-Netzer Machaneh Kadimah (summer camp) at Sandroyd School in Wiltshire.

September 1 (Saturday) A Festival of Song at Southgate Progressive Synagogue, London, N14 4QY, 7pm.

November 18 (Sunday) Mitzvah Day 2012. A Jewish-led day of social action.

For more information on any of these events please email montagu@liberaljudaism.org Liberal Judaism is the dynamic, cutting edge of modern Judaism. It reverences Jewish tradition, seeking to preserve the values of the Judaism of the past while giving them contemporary force.

Registered charity number 236590.

Sidney Barrat is bridge teacher at Woodford Liberal Synagogue

Quiz answers: 1) 1971 2) Bearwood College in Wokingham 3) Andrew Goldstein and Douglas Charing 4) Royal Masonic School for Girls in Rickmansworth 5) Cheltenham 6) 1990

The Montagu Centre 21 Maple Street London, W1T 4BE Tel: 020 7580 1663 Fax: 020 7631 9838

The Liberal Synagogue Elstree Elstree High Street, Elstree, Herts WD6 3BY; 020 8953 8889; tlse@liberaljudaism.org; www.tlse.org.uk Lincolnshire Jewish Community 01427 628958; ljc@liberaljudaism.org Manchester Liberal Jewish Community 08432 084441; mljc@liberaljudaism.org; www.mljc.org.uk North London Progressive Jewish Community 020 7403 3779; nlpjc@liberaljudaism.org; www.nlpjc.org.uk Northwood and Pinner Liberal Synagogue Oaklands Gate, Northwood, Middx HA6 3AA; 01923 822592, npls@liberaljudaism.org; www.npls.org.uk Nottingham Progressive Jewish Congregation Lloyd Street, Sherwood NG5 4BP; 0115 9624761; npjc@liberaljudaism.org; www.npjc.org.uk Peterborough Liberal Jewish Community Enquiries: 020 7631 9822 The Progressive Jewish Community of East Anglia www.pjcea.org.uk; enquiries@pjcea.org.uk Reading Liberal Jewish Community 0118 942 8022; rljc@liberaljudaism.org; www.rljc.org Shenfield, Brentwood & Districts Synagogue 01277 888610; info@roshtikvah.com; www.roshtikvah.com South Bucks Jewish Community PO Box 826, Amersham, HP6 9GA; 0845 644 2370; sbjc@liberaljudaism.org; www.sbjc.org.uk South London Liberal Synagogue PO Box 14475, London SW16 1ZW; 020 8769 4787; slls@liberaljudaism.org; www.southlondon.org Southgate Progressive Synagogue 75 Chase Road, London N14 4QY; 020 8886 0977; sps@liberaljudaism.org; www.sps.uk.com Wessex Liberal Jewish Group (Bournemouth) info@wessexliberaljudaism.org.uk; 01202 757084 West Central Liberal Synagogue 21 Maple Street, London W1T 4BE; 020 7636 7627; wcls@liberaljudaism.org; www.wcls.org.uk Woodford Liberal Synagogue Marlborough Road, London, E18 1AR; 020 8989 7619; info@ woodfordliberal.org.uk; www.woodfordliberal.org.uk

Bridge answer: Take the first trick with the Queen of Diamonds, then play Ace and King of Spades, the Ace and King of Clubs and the Ace of Diamonds. You then lead a trump to East’s Queen.

After winning this trick, and with no other suit to lead, East has to lead a Diamond. Overcoming your first impulse to ruff in one hand and discard in the other, you discard a losing Heart from dummy and the losing Club from hand.

East once again has to lead a Diamond – now discard the second losing Heart from dummy and ruff in hand. Then play the Ace of Hearts and cross-ruff the rest for 11 tricks!

Bedfordshire Progressive Synagogue (Rodef Shalom) 01234 218387; bedsps@liberaljudaism. org; www.bedfordshire-ps.org.uk Beit Klal Yisrael c/o The Montagu Centre, 21 Maple Street, London W1T 4BE; 07505 477459, bky@liberaljudaism.org; www.bky.org.uk Bet Tikvah Synagogue 129 Perrymans Farm Road, Ilford, Essex IG2 7LX; 020 8554 9682; bttkv@liberaljudaism.org; bettikvah.blogspot.com Birmingham Progressive Synagogue 1 Roseland Way, Birmingham B15 1HD; 0121 634 3888; bps@liberaljudaism.org; www.bpsjudaism.com Brighton and Hove Progressive Synagogue 6 Lansdowne Road, Hove BN3 1FF; 01273 737223; bhps@liberaljudaism.org; www.brightonandhoveprosynagogue.org.uk Bristol and West Progressive Jewish Congregation 43-45 Bannerman Road, Easton, Bristol BS5 0RR bwpjc@liberaljudaism.org; www.bwpjc.org Crouch End Liberal Jewish Chavurah info@crouchendchavurah.co.uk; www.crouchendchavurah.co.uk Crawley Jewish Community 01293 534294 Dublin Jewish Progressive Congregation PO Box 3059, Dublin 6, www.djpcireland.com; djpc@liberaljudaism.org Ealing Liberal Synagogue Lynton Avenue, Drayton Green, W13 0EB; 020 8997 0528; els@liberaljudaism. org; www.ealingliberalsynagogue.org.uk Eastbourne Progressive Jewish Congregation 01323 725650; fax: 01323 417645 epjc@liberaljudaism.org; www.epjcong.org.uk Edinburgh Liberal Jewish Community 0131 777 8024; info@eljc.org; www.eljc.org Finchley Progressive Synagogue Hutton Grove, N12 8DR; 020 8446 4063; fps@liberaljudaism.org; www.fps.org Gloucestershire Liberal Jewish Community Enquiries: 01242 609311 or 01242 231877; shalom@gljc.org.uk; www. gljc.org.uk Harrow and Wembley Progressive Synagogue 39 Bessborough Road, Harrow HA1 3BS; 020 8864 5323; hwps@liberaljudaism.org; www.hwps.org Herefordshire Jewish Community 01594 530721; hjc@liberaljudaism.org; www.herefordshirejc.org Kent Liberal Jewish Community 07952 242432; kljc@liberaljudaism.org; http://tinyurl.com/kentljc Kingston Liberal Synagogue Rushett Road, Long Ditton, Surbiton, Surrey; KT7 0UX; 020 8398 7400; kls@liberaljudaism.org; www.klsonline.org Leicester Progressive Jewish Congregation The Synagogue, 24 Avenue Road, LE2 3EA; lpjc@liberaljudaism.org The Liberal Jewish Synagogue 28 St John’s Wood Road, London NW8 7HA; 020 7286 5181; ljs@liberaljudaism.org; www.ljs.org