Shabbat Shalom (Parashat Sh'mini)

1. From the Rabbi  

Colliding Memories
 
It is the season for memories. Last week we remembered as if we, personally, went forth, baking matzah on our backs, singing songs about goats etc. etc. All very jolly. The sufferings of Egyptian slavery have been through the wash-cycle and are bleached white and shiny. The focus of Passover is on redemption and freedom; the focus is forwards, towards Sinai, and entering the land of Israel.
 
This week we remember the Holocaust. And there is no jollity. As I write this my mind is drawn to the relationship between the march out of Egypt and the Death Marches of the last days of the Nazi era. Raizl Kibl marched from Auschwitz and later recalled;
 
‘In a frost half-barefoot or entirely barefoot, with light rags upon their emaciated and exhausted bodies, tens of thousands of human creatures drag themselves along in the snow. Only the great strong striving for life, and the light of imminent liberation kept them on their feet. [For] woe to them whose physical strength abandons them, They are shot on the spot. In such a way were thousands who had endured camp life up to the last minute murdered, a moment before liberation.’
 
So what are we doing when we commemorate Yom HaShoah? It’s not a ‘happy ever after’ kind of a story. There is, of course, a State of Israel, but there is no redemption. Nor can we rely on the oft-quoted slogan of my youth, ‘Never Again.’ There have been too many genocides, from Rwanda to Bosnia, for me to feel that there is a connection between the commitment to remember our own Holocaust and the safety of every people from this most heinous of offences.

Rather, I want to suggest two other reasons for memory.

When we remember we afford a scrap of dignity to those who were killed being told implicitly and explicitly that there lives counted for nothing, that no-one would remember. We remember to prove the Nazis wrong. Their lives did count and do count still.

Secondly, we remember to feel pain, feeling pain is good. We should expose ourselves to feeling pain, this is how we know we are alive, this is how we know we are compassionate, this is how we know we care. We remember the Holocaust because, as our own eyes prick with tears, we remind ourselves of our own humanity and our membership of the Jewish people. The Rebbe of the Warsaw Ghetto, Kalonymous Shapiro, suggested that when all doctrines of reward and punishment have crumbled away all that remains is the possibility of crying together, together with out fellow humans and together with a God who, Shapiro claims citing the Talmud, cries too. In this we remind ourselves that even if we cannot change the facts of the Holocaust, we refuse to accept them with a shrug of the shoulders and a flip to the back pages to check out the sports headlines.
 
We commemorate Yom haShoah at New London with a talk from Kitty Hart-Moxon, Auschwitz survivor, come to prove the Nazis wrong, come to be reminded of our shared humanity.
 
Shabbat shalom,

Jeremy Gordon 

2. NEW LONDON UJIA APPEAL DINNER - THURSDAY 30TH APRIL 2009
Reception 7.00 pm    Dinner 7.45 pm

If you haven’t already accepted the invitation recently sent to you, we urge you to do so.  Sir Sydney & Lady Rosa Lipworth have again kindly offered to host the dinner & this year our guest speaker will be Dr Dan Bahat, one of Israel’s most respected archaeologists. Dr Bahat, a recipient of the Jerusalem Prize, is the former chief archaeologist of Jerusalem. He is an expert on the Temple Mount, Herod’s Palace & the tunnel that runs under the western retaining wall of the Temple Mount. He has a reputation as a fascinating speaker.

This year we are raising funds for educational projects, including a special programme for economically disadvantaged, but highly motivated, teenagers at the Western Galilee Science & Arts Regional High School, where the recently opened new library & resource centre, named after Rabbi Dr Louis Jacobs, is located.  We will also be continuing our support for the bar/batmitzvah programme for special needs children run by the Masorti movement in Israel. This programme has been a great success & is enormously appreciated by the children & their families.

We do hope that you can join us for what promises to be an exceptional & enjoyable evening.

David Immanuel

3. The week Ahead

The Kabbalat Shabbat service this evening begins at 6.30 pm. Tomorrow morning Shacharit is at 9.15 am. This week is the auf ruf of Nick Latner who will be marrying Lauren Berman on Sunday. The Latner and Berman families invite you to join them for a celebratory Kiddush following the service. Mazal tov to both families.

Rabbi Gordon is away this Shabbat and the sermon will be delivered by Len Krikler. Also today, the Sedrah and Haftarah will be read by Andrew Marks in celebration of his Bar Mitzvah anniversary. Mazal tov Andrew.

On Sunday morning Shacharit will be at 9.30 am in the Bet HaMidrash. At 10.15 am Rabbi Elaina Rothman's Hebrew reading group will meet in the Rabbi's study. There will be no Midrash Shiur this week as Rabbi Gordon is away. The Cheder is still on holiday and will resume next Sunday, 26th April.

On Monday morning Babes in the Wood re-starts at 11.00 am in the New London Hall. This is a social group for mums and babies which includes lunch. We look forward to seeing you there - no need to book just come along. Cost £5

On Monday evening at 8.00 pm join us for our annual Yom HaShoah Commemoration - Guest Speaker Kitty Hart Moxon
An Auschwitz Survivor, Kitty Hart Moxon will talk about the Uprising in Auschwitz which she witnessed and also show a film documenting her emotional return to Auschwitz in the 1970’s.
Kitty was one of the first to return to Auschwitz from the West and no one has made a comparable film since. A short Memorial Service will follow the presentation.  Admission is £5

On Tuesday 21 evening from 8 - 10.15 pm we are hosting a session in the Masorti Uncovered series entitled - God, Faith and Revelation with Rabbi Jeremy Gordon and Rabbi Jonathan Wittenberg When, where and how do we meet God? Is there a unique Masorti approach to questions of faith? This series with top Masorti rabbis and educators has been designed to explore and open up the world of Masorti thought to stretch, challenge and excite you. You are most welcome to participate.

4. Forthcoming Events

Sunday 26th April at 6.00 pm - Movies at New London present - Europa Europa
Our popular Film Club in association with the Friends of the Jewish Museum continues this month with a moving story based on the true story of a young German Jew who survived the Holocaust by falling in with the Nazis. Cost £6 to include refreshments (served from 5.30 pm)

Tuesday 28th April at 7.45 pm - Yom Ha'atzmaut Service and celebration
Our annual service will be followed by Israeli style Refreshments including falafel...after which you are invited to stay for “Zionisms in the Declaration of Independence” with Angela Gluck. The State of Israel started, it seems, as it meant to go on: by dealing with diversity! In those frantic days towards the end of the British Mandate, Jewish leadership in the yishuv felt the need to make a statement about what the State of Israel would be like and what it would be for - a statement for Jews in the yishuv, for Jews in the diaspora, for Israel's Arab neighbours and for the whole world... But what should they say? They were united on the existence of the state but divided on the nature of the state. And the clock was ticking… In this partly interactive session, we'll explore the interacting Zionisms at the time of the establishment of the State of Israel and identify ways that their ideologies found expression in the Declaration of Independence. Come prepared to shout!

Shabbat 2nd May - You are invited to join us for a Communal Lunch
Cost £12 (Children/Students £6) Please book by calling the office.

Tuesdays 12th   19th   26th   MAY  - 8.00 pm in the Bet Midrash Learning at New London presents - Three Rabbis of the Talmud
In this adult education series Rabbi Gordon will look at three of the most provocative and remarkable Rabbis of the Talmudic period. 12th May -We will begin with Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, wandering mystic and hero of Lag B’Omer – which is celebrated on this day. Next up (19th May) is  Rabbi Chanina Ben Dosa, healer and magician. Finally on May 26th, we conclude with Reish Lakish,  gladiatorial thug turned Rabbinic master. These classes will be text based and open to all.   Cost £5 per session

Monday 18th May at 7.30 pm - NLS AGM

5. Bereavements

We are sad to announce the death of Ethel Wix, a founder member of NLS, a stalwart supporter of the community who donated some of our most beautiful silver.
We are also sad to announce the death of the brother of Freddie Lind in Israel. 
We wish both families "Long Life" May you be comforted together with all the other mourners of Zion and Jerusalem.

6. Beyond NLS

Sunday 3rd May - You are invited to a Yom Hatzmuat Dance Party at New North London Synagogue. The party will take place in the atmosphere of a Shuk featuring dancing with Marcelo Marianoff, tasty and interesting Israeli food, fun activity stalls for kids of all ages run by Noam and a superb range of Israeli merchandise for adults and kids too! This event will support the work of Israel Activists for refugees and the poorest in Israeli Society. Please click here for: www.nikkez.com to buy your tickets and for more information.

Shabbat shalom

Stephen Cotsen