On July 14th, the Jewish community of Brighton and Hove joined the city’s dignitaries to unveil the blue plaque fixed at 22 East Street in honour of Israel Abrahams, the first Jewish resident of what was then a town called Brighthelmston, who came to live there in 1766. Today, Brighton and Hove Progressive Synagogue, established […]
What makes a siddur ‘Liberal’? Having published several siddurim for over 100 years, Liberal Judaism in Britain can readily provide answers to this question. Our first answer emerges from the simple fact that LJ has published several siddurim – or to be more accurate, several prayer books and one siddur – as well as several […]
For the past few months, Britain has been caught up in the EU referendum campaign. During the debate, campaigners on both sides stirred up our deepest fears: on the ‘Leave’ side, the fear of a continuing and unstoppable tide of migrants from Eastern Europe, if we stayed in the EU; on the ‘Remain’ side, the […]
Four weeks from today we will know results of the European Union referendum, and whether the UK electorate has voted to remain in the EU or to leave. Believe it or not, this is a Jewish issue. It is a Jewish issue, not because the outcome of the election either way is of critical importance […]
The School holidays have begun, so, unfortunately, we will not be greeted by a melee of children when we go into the foyer for Kiddush. It’s also the Easter weekend, which means that many people – mostly, those with young families – have taken the opportunity to go away. Meanwhile, it’s Shabbat and the rhythm […]
On Wednesday evening, I was at the Liberal Jewish Synagogue, St John’s Wood, participating in an event to celebrate Women Rabbis in the Pulpit – A collection of sermons;[1] a book I edited with my colleague, Rabbi Dr Barbara Borts, which includes contributions from 45 of the 55 women rabbis ordained by Leo Baeck College,[2] […]
On Wednesday evening, I participated in the National Holocaust Memorial Day[1] event held at Chichester Cathedral. The event was a tribute to Sir Nicholas Winton, who rescued 669 children in Czechoslovakia before the outbreak of the Second World War,[2] and featured the testimony of Lady Milena Grenfell-Baines MBE, who, aged 9, was one of the […]
While over two billion Christians the world over[1] are focusing their attention on a Jewish baby boy called Jesus – Yeshu in Hebrew – who was born over 2000 years ago, I’m going to speak this morning about another famous Jewish boy: Joseph – Yoseph, who, according to biblical chronology, was born more than 1500 […]
Today I’m going to talk about men. The Jewish sources are packed full of men: from the ancestors, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, whose mother-less succession, one after the other, is as miraculous as the Immaculate Conception, through the pivotal role played by Moses, as deliverer of the Divine law in the wilderness, through the judges, […]
Over the past four years, the news has been dominated by the refugee crisis; in particular, by the millions of refugees fleeing from the conflict between the extremist warriors of so-called ‘Islamic State’ and the entrenched dictatorship that is the Syrian regime. The news has also been taken up with debates about the huge movements […]