Please note, from next week we will no longer be having our Wednesday Weekly, instead will be launching our Monday Events Mailing and a Friday Shabbat Services Mailing along with a chance to tailor your email subscriptions to reflect your interests! | |
Westminster Events at a Glance | |
Westminster Weekly
24th January 2024 - 15 Shevat 5784
| |
A message from Rabbi Benji | |
Dear Hilary,
It’s Holocaust Memorial Day this weekend. October 7th was the most devastating day for us, the Jewish people, since the Shoah. It pained and shocked me. I have now seen so many of us crying in this community - some for what happened, some for what is now happening, and mainly, for all of it. It has been a privilege to do my part in supporting people here, and to learn from others about the wisest responses. One of our dear members and Shoah Survivors, Marika Henriques, wrote to me sharing some sentiments that have taught me about the possibility for resilience and growth:
These are dreadful times. For me the “never again”, that the past became the present, in some deep part of me, is still unthinkable and it gives me nightmares. But I worked so deeply on healing my Holocaust wound, therefore I will deal constructively with the nightmares, live my life as best and creatively as I can. I will not allow these happenings to destroy me again! It is extremely hard to hold the opposites, the support of and grieving for the trauma of Israel and grieving also for the Gazan civilians especially the children. My book was dedicated “to children whom the world allows to suffer”. All children. I am a Jew, because I weep wherever there is suffering.” Although I am not denying that like all grief, the waves when they come are hard to bear, nevertheless I try to hold on to hope, that I must see, and I try to see light however black the darkness is.
Thank you, Marika, for teaching us about the ability to manage one’s response, to cultivate resilience and compassion, and to insist on hope.
Come to Kent House this Friday evening when we will be marking Holocaust Memorial Day by hearing from Shoah survivor Janine Webber. She will be talking with Westminster Synagogue member, playwright Charlotte Bogard Macleod after the service. You can find out more about Janine and sign up for the talk here.
On Sunday 4th February, in just under two weeks’ time, we will be celebrating the Czech Scrolls coming to our community sixty years ago. I am tremendously proud of the role our community played in essentially rescuing and healing those survivors, the Scrolls, and enabling them to thrive. The Scrolls provide, of course, a story of survival, and more than anything, a story of life - people here have worked so hard, and lovingly, so that those Sifrei Torah, those trees of life, are now read from by communities and people across the world, finding meaning and possibility in their lives through encountering words of Torah. Come to celebrate this story of life and hope, with a special Celebratory Service which will start at 2:00pm. There are limited places for this, so click here to sign up, and we hope some of you will volunteer to ensure the smooth running of the event, as we welcome back so many Scrolls to our building. Alternatively – you can join from afar by clicking here.
We will be celebrating Torah all weekend in honour of this milestone, with the screening of Commandment 613 on Thursday 1st February along with Q&As with sofer Rabbi Kevin Hale. Then, on Friday 2nd February our usual Torah Study in our Shabbat Evening Service, will be followed by a Community Shabbat Dinner. That Saturday, we will be celebrating a Bar Mitzvah, when he will read from our Hořovice Torah Scroll – continuing the Scroll’s story of life within our community. We hope you can join us for various points of this weekend, and visit the Czech Scrolls Museum on the third floor of our building. If you have any questions, please do get in touch with Jon Zecharia and Monica Lanyado Rodin who will be happy to help.
B’Shalom,
Benji
P.S. This Sunday, 28th January, at 6:30pm we will hold our beloved Annual Supper Quiz. There are only a very limited number of tickets left, so do get yours today if you wish to come. Click here to book.
| |  |
|
Shabbat Shira
Parashat Beshalach
Holocaust Memorial Day
17 Shevat 5784
Fri 26th January
6:30pm
Shabbat Evening Service
Service Leader:
Rabbi Kamila
Meeting ID:
687 484 054
Password:
518750
To access our Shabbat Evening Service, click here.
Sat 27th January
10:30am
Shabbat Morning Learning Service
Service Leaders:
Rabbi Kamila
Rabbi Benji
Address:
Diana Clark
Musicians:
Sara Feldmann Brummer
Meeting ID:
809 168 590
Password:
146760
To access our Shabbat Morning Service, click here.
| |
Education
Dates
Or Shabbat
Saturday 27th January
10:00am
B'nei Mitzvah Year 1
Saturday 27th January
10:00am
B'nei Mitzvah Year 2
Friday 26th January
5:00pm
Post BM
Friday 2nd February
5:30pm
Or Chadash
Wednesday 31st January
6:30pm
If you would like more information on any of our classes, click here.
| |
|
The War in Israel
The war in Israel is bringing up big feelings for many of us, which may be leaving us feeling conflicted or confused, angry or disempowered, overwhelmed or numb, or a whole other host of emotions.
We have created a page on our website with links for organisations/kibbutzim you may wish to make a donation to, along with links for resources and mailing lists, which you can view here. The page also includes our Prayer for Israel which we read every Shabbat, in case you wish to use it more frequently.
We feel it is vital to keep the lives of the hostages at the forefront of our minds as we pray for their safe return. To read more about their stories, click here.
As part of the Board of Deputies and Hostages and Missing Families Forum initiative for synagogues to "adopt" a hostage and make their name heard, Westminster Synagogue is proud to adopt Elkana Bohbot.
| |
We will be sharing more information about Elkana in our communications and services, but hope that you can keep him, and his family, in your thoughts as we pray for his safe return. | |
|
Community Wishes
This week we wish Long Life to:
-
Cheryl Drew who has a yahrzeit for her parents Maud & Simon Welcoop
-
Judith Medioni who has a yahrzeit for her mother Regina Medioni
-
Sylvia Taylor who has a yahrzeit for her mother Fredl bat Natan HaLevi
If you have some news you'd love to share with us, be it well wishes for someone unwell, mazel tov on recent celebrations, or a project you're working on to share with the community do get in touch!
| |
|
Members' corner
Our member and former trustee, Andrea Mentel, is looking for a short term rental (house or flat) in London - for up to a few months. If you have or know of something available, please be in touch with Louise, who can put you in touch with her.
Member Orit Schreiber will be giving a talk this Saturday at The New West End Synagogue regarding her exhibition "Expressions of Judaism" which she curated for Westminster Synagogue last year. The new exhibit will hang until 26th February and features three different British Jewish artists, Julie Burton, Michele Jaffe-Pearce and Ali Simmons, exploring their individual responses and expressions of Jewish cultural themes. You can view more about it here or contact Orit directly, here.
| |
|
Community Opportunities
There are many ways to get involved in our community, but we wanted to highlight a few ways that might be of interest:
Being a Deputy:
The Board of Deputies of British Jews is the voice of the British Jewish community, the first point of call for government, the media and others seeking to understand Jewish community interests and concerns. The election for our representatives for the Board of Deputies is coming up at our AGM on the 4th June. The Board of Deputies works on a range of areas and issues, and Westminster Synagogue are represented by two elected deputies and Under-35 observers – currently Ruth Abrams, Jane Power and Max Burt. Read more about this opportunity here, and if you're interested in finding out more about standing for election or becoming a Deputy or observer, please contact Gary.
Assisting with Refugee Kitchen
We are part of an initiative which allows an opportunity to use our kitchen for local families who don’t otherwise have access to a cooking space. If you are free on Monday Mornings and would like to volunteer to help out with this, contact Gary who will be happy to discuss further.
Assisting with School Visits to the Synagogue
We often get request from schools and organisations about tours of the Synagogue, particularly as part of primary school Religious Studies curriculum. We're looking for members who are available weekday daytime to join our volunteer guides who can help lead these. Don't worry if you feel you wouldn't know how to - we will hold a training session to give you the tools. Contact Kamila if you would like to learn more.
Being in our Purim Spiel:
Every year our members put together a short Purim Spiel to tell the story of Esther in a fun, musical way. If you'd like to join our Purim Players on stage this year, then come Into the Unknown and venture into A Whole New World of fun as they prepare for a very Disney Purim Spiel on Sunday, 24th March. Click here to join the troupe!
| | |
|
This Week
Friday 26th January
6:30pm
| |
|
In honour of Holocaust Memorial Day please join us for a talk from the extraordinary Janine Webber, one of the last remaining
survivors of the Holocaust.
Janine Webber is a Jewish Grandmother and a self-confessed tough cookie. She loves long walks, opera and celebrated her ninetieth birthday with not one, but two parties. Her joie de vivre
is in defiance against the harrowing childhood she endured under Nazi occupation. The fierce clarity with which Janine recounts her story bears witness to the unimaginable horrors of life for Jews living through Holocaust. The triumph of Janine’s survival is a testament to her indomitable spirit.
Now, on National Memorial Day, it feels more important than ever to honour, remember and commemorate the six million Jews murdered under Hitler’s regime.
On Friday 26th January 2024, please join us for our Shabbat Evening service, followed by a talk with Janine Webber hosted by Westminster Synagogue member, playwright Charlotte
Bogard Macleod.
Please note, this event will be held in person and on Zoom.
| | |
|
Next Week
Thursday 1st February
6:30pm for 7:00pm
| |
|
As part of our Scrolls 60th Celebrations, we invite you to a special screening of Commandment 613, a 23 minute documentary looking at the work of Rabbi Kevin Hale as he practices the sacred craft of a Torah scribe, bringing new life to scrolls that were saved in Czechoslovakia during the Second World War.
We are delighted to welcome sofer Rabbi Hale and director Miriam Lewin who will join Rabbi Kamila, as we enjoy the film, as well as hold a special Q&A session. We will also be offering a tour of the Museum for those in Kent House.
Please note, this event will be held in person and on Zoom.
| | |
|
Next Week
Friday 2nd February
6:30pm
| |
|
Community Shabbat Dinner
Continuing our celebrations for the Scrolls 60th Anniversary, we invite you to join us for Shabbat Dinner alongside other Scroll holding communities.
This will be a wonderful chance to meet people from other communities as well as our own as we welcome in Shabbat together with a delicious meal following our Shabbat Evening Service.
If there is interest, we'd be looking at also holding a Challah Bake from 1:00pm on the day. If you would be interested in joining this, please click here.
Please note, this event will be held in person only.
| | |
|
Next Week
Sunday 4th February
2:00pm
| |
|
The 1,564 Czech Scrolls arrived at Westminster Synagogue in February 1964. To celebrate the 60th Anniversary of their being saved from further loss under the communist regime, and the remarkable work of the Memorial Scrolls Trust, we will be hosting a Celebratory Service & Reception from 2:00-5:00pm on Sunday 4th February 2024.
The event will include the procession of the Scrolls in the Sanctuary; poignant music; words from Rabbi Andrew Goldstein, Philippa Bernard and Rabbi Kamila Kopřivová; a chance to visit the MST Museum and more.
We hope you will be able to join us for this important milestone event as Scrolls are reunited in Kent House once more.
Please do let us know whether you hope to attend by RSVP-ing below. As the service will also be streamed, kindly let us know if you would prefer to join in person or online, and whether you will be able to volunteer with us.
Please note that spaces are limited for this day, and we cannot guarantee that all members will be able to join in person, however, we will be in touch nearer the date to let you know.
Please note, this event will be held in person and on Zoom.
| |
|
Wednesday 21st February -
Wendy Joseph - Unlawful Killings
Wednesday 13rd March
Anthony Horowitz -Close to Death
Wednesday 10th April
Theresa May - The Abuse of Power
Wednesday 8th May
David Baddiel - The God Desire
Wednesday 12th June
The Duchess of Rutland - The Accidental Duchess
| |
|
The Kent House Series - Wendy Joseph
Fresh off last week's augural Kent House Series event we are already looking forward to the next event in the series, when we welcome Her Honour Wendy Joseph KC to Kent House.
It will be a chance to meet Wendy Joseph who recently stepped down as one of the handful of judges qualified to preside over murder trials at the Old Bailey. And one of the few female ones at that.
For the first time, she can now talk about what it’s really like presiding over and ruling on life-changing cases. Through six extraordinary stories, she explores why we kill, what happens in court and what this teaches us about the society we live in. A page-turner of a book, and a must-see event.
There will be no tickets available on the door and to take advantage of your Westminster Synagogue discount use coupon code: RUTLAND2024 at checkout. Each ticket includes the talk, a complimentary drink on arrival, and a chance to meet the authors at the book signing.
To access the dedicated Kent House Series website, visit www.kenthouseseries.org.
Please note, this event will be held in person only
| | |
|
Friday 16th February
6:30pm
| |
|
Next Dor Shabbat Dinner
It may be cold outside, but our Kent House Home is warm, so come on in and join our Next Dor team for a special Shabbat Dinner on Friday, 16th February following the Shabbat Evening Service!
Next Dor is the spiritual successor to Westminster Young Professionals and aims to nurture a community of Westminster's young and young at heart, creating a fun and inclusive space for them to connect through social and cultural events both at Kent House and beyond its walls.
Book your place here, and if you have any questions, don't hesitate to get in touch with Louise who will be happy to help!
Please note, we would never turn away members due to financial issues. Please do get in touch with Jon or a member of the team if you have any reservations.
Please note, this event will be held in person only
| | |
|
Sunday 25th February
4:00pm
| |
|
We often quote from it:
“There is nothing new under the sun” (Eccls 1:9)
“Vanity Vanity all is vanity,” (Eccls 1-2)
Sometimes we sing from it:
“To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven.”
(Eccls 3:1)
And we puzzle over it:
Who wrote this dark, troubling text. And why? How did this book, so distinct from all the rest, become part of our Bible?
In Qohelet: Searching for a Life Worth Living, the first illuminated edition of the complete Hebrew text, philosopher Menachem Fisch and artist Debra Band guide us through the book’s beautiful, often bewildering exploration of the nature and value of life. Moreover, their splendid visuals and compelling commentary enhance our appreciation of what this ancient text has to say to us today.
Join us on Sunday 25th February for an exclusive talk about the book and the work behind it.
Please note, this event will be held in person and on Zoom.
| |
 | |
Memorial Scrolls Trust Museum
In February 1964, 1,564 Czech scrolls arrived at Kent House from Prague. Saved during the Nazi era, these Torah Scrolls from the now deserted synagogues of Bohemia and Moravia were brought to Westminster Synagogue.
Over the decades since their arrival, the racks grew emptier as one Scroll after another found a home in communities around the world. The scrolls used by Westminster Synagogue come from Horazd'ovice, Horovice and Prestice, small towns not too far from Prague.
They no longer have Jewish communities and our Scrolls are a poignant reminder of those communities that perished and now only live on through us.
To visit the museum, located on the third floor of Kent House,
please click here.
To read the latest newsletter from the MST, click here. If you would like to subscribe to their mailing list, let them know via email here.
February marks the 60th Anniversary of the Czech Torah Scrolls arriving at Westminster Synagogue, and we hope you can join us as we celebrate this momentous occasion. Click here to find out more about the ways you can connect in January and February - and to learn more about the amazing work of the Memorial Scrolls Trust, click here.
| |
 | |
Yallah 2024 – Judeo-Arabic Music Conference
JMI’s Judeo-Arabic Music conference returns for the second edition, featuring a day and evening of a keynote speaker, academic papers presented from the world’s leading international scholars, music with Yoav Oved, workshops from practitioners and closing the evening with music from Parisian French-Algerian Producer & DJ Sharouh.
Music marks opposing emotional expressions of joy and sorrow in ritual celebrations. In Jewish life, rituals embody symbolic action and engender a processual flow (Turner 1967:149–50), sometimes invoking joy and sorrow within the same text. During moments of pain and sorrow, ritual communities equally rely on performers and practitioners to guide communities through feelings of catharsis, enlightenment, joy and exhilaration.
The 2024 Yallah conference will feature presented papers from international academics on music of joy and sorrow from the varied diasporas of Arabic-speaking Jews. Repertoires will include the full spectrum of vernacular, paraliturgical and liturgical repertoires. JMI has invited multi-disciplinary approaches to this discussion from ethnomusicology and sound studies to comparative literature, history, religious studies, anthropology, gender studies and others.
Sunday 11th February
9:30am-6:00pm
You can find more information and book your tickets here.
Location: SOAS University of London, 10 Thornhaugh St, London. WC1H 0XG
Concession Tickets: £45 Early price (by Jan 15th) / £50 after
General Tickets : £50 Early price (by Jan 15th) / £60 after
Conference tickets includes admission to the evening event with DJ Sharouh
| |
 | |
Secrets of the London Yiddish Stage
With its entertaining mix of readings from one-act plays, sketches, and songs from London’s immigrant East End, you won't want to miss this!
See London’s East End through a new lens, from love affairs in Victoria Park to haggling about voting in the 1912 British election. From escaping the Russian draft of the 1850s to cheeky parodies of the British Music Hall.
The evening will include excerpts in Yiddish from the Merchant of Venice and the King of Lampedusa, with subtitled translation and all-join-in songs from the band Katsha’nes.
A talented troupe of actors and musicians, including well known actor, playwright, comedian and theatre producer David Schneider and celebrated New York Yiddish actor Shane Baker, are brought together for this entertaining and thought-provoking performance, directed by Yiddish scholar and performer Vivi Lachs.
You’ll get the sense of the history and atmosphere of London’s vibrant Jewish immigrant theatre in English and Yiddish, and cry, sing, laugh and heckle!
No Yiddish knowledge necessary.
Wednesday 24th January
7:30pm
For more information and to book your tickets, click here.
| | | | |
