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Dynamic Young Rabbi In England

Posted by on Aug 3, 2008 in Britain |

From the Watford Observer:

A dynamic young Rabbi is hoping to build an “East End” type community when he takes over from his father, Rabbi Dr Andrew Goldstein at Northwood and Pinner Liberal Synagogue.

Aaron, who lives in Watford, has been profiled in GQ magazine as one of the most dynamic young religious leaders of his generation.

The 38-year-old father of two, who has been married to Tammy for ten years, is aiming to create a community of people who look after eachother like they did in the East End, where people wanted to create a feeling of togetherness for themselves.

He said: “I am not here to judge, I am here to guide, and act as a facilitator.

“I would like to empower people through adult learning programmes, to enable people to put into practice their Jewish skills.”

Rabbi Goldstein, who has been a Rabbi for six years and lives in Watford, officially takes over from his retiring father, who has been the synagogue’s Rabbi since 1970, next month.

He said: “I am so excited about this, it is a growing congregation with young families, who join us from as far as Hampshire, and Milton Keynes.

“It really is phenomenal.

“In fact we are such a large congregation that our High Holy Day services are held in the Colosseum, in Watford, because there are too many of us for the synagogue.”

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LimmudFest In UK This August

Posted by on Jul 7, 2008 in Britain |

From the Guardian:

Welcome to the July edition of Sounds Jewish.

In this month’s podcast, we tackle the big questions: Is God a woman – and can Jews camp?

Joining me in the studio are Rabbi Laura Janner-Klausner of Alyth Garden Reform synagogue alyth.org.uk in London, and comedy writer, Ivor Baddiel.

Rabbi Laura explains how the new Reform Siddur or prayer book is tackling sexism in Judaism. It’s about time we modernised our view of God, she argues. But is it all a bit too modern for the Jewish mainstream?
Plus we speak to comedian Iris Bahr about playing opposite Larry David in one of my favourite shows of all time, Curb Your Enthusiasm.

She also talks about her new show, Dai, (‘Enough’) which she’ll be performing for one night only, courtesy of The Jewish Community Centre for London. The show is set in a café in Tel Aviv moments before a suicide bomber enters.

And Jewish Glastonbury: we speak to the organisers behind Limmudfest, a four-day camping festival combining music, culture and spirituality with a Jewish twist. It’s all happening over the August Bank Holiday weekend in the Peak District.
We’re taking a summer break, though I’m not sure camping will be my ideal holiday choice, and we’ll be back refreshed in September. See you then.

Sounds Jewish is produced with the Jewish Community Centre for London

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British Jews Celebrate Israel’s 60th Anniversary

Posted by on Jul 1, 2008 in Britain, Israel |

LONDON (JTA)—With a pair of massive rallies for Israel held simultaneously in London’s Trafalgar Square and Manchester’s Heaton Park on Sunday, British Jewry may be signaling that its transformation is at hand.

Some 30,000 participants attended the public shows of support for Israel, which were inspired by New York’s annual Salute-to-Israel parade.

Several thousand people waving Israeli and British flags marched from the Ritz Hotel to Trafalgar Square followed by dozens of carnival floats, cyclists, dancers and bands. At Trafalgar Square, an Israeli Cabinet minister, Britain’s secretary of state for Education and Britain’s chief rabbi all addressed the crowd. Israeli musicians performed between the speeches.

“I’m sure that my father, who served here as an officer in the British army, couldn’t have imagined that some day tens of thousands of Jews would be waving Israeli flags here in Trafalgar Square,” said Jeremy Newmark, chief executive of the Jewish Leadership Council, who helped organize the events.

Observers and critics alike said the unprecedented show of pride and self-confidence at the rallies is a sign that British Jewry is shaking off its reputation for being timid and low key.

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