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IN
THIS ISSUE:
HISTORIC REFERENDUM CONFERS RECOGNITION ON SWISS
CONGREGATION
A constitutional referendum in
the Swiss canton of Zurich has bestowed cantonal government recognition
on two Jewish congregations - one Progressive, the other Orthodox – a
first for communities of non-Christian faiths. Affected are the
(Orthodox) Israelitisches
Cultusgemeinde Zurich (ICZ)
and the Judisches Liberale Gemeinde
Zurich (JLG). Both are in the city of Zurich, and the latter is an
affiliate of the World Union's European Region.
Says JLG's spiritual leader,
Rabbi Tovia Ben-Chorin,
"Our President, Mrs. Nicole Poell, has
been politically involved for many years and had been elected by her
party to the Verfassungsrat, the commission charged with amending the
cantonal constitution." Poell, he says, was "the only Jew on the
commission – [and] thus in an excellent position to campaign for the
inclusion of Jewish congregations." Ben-Chorin adds that the canton's
ultra-Orthodox congregations are not covered by the amendment, which
stipulates adherence to democratic guidelines grounded in law.
It is not yet clear how JLG and ICZ will benefit from the change – the
terms of which require specific legislation. However, there was an
almost immediate byproduct: On
May 8, the canton's parliament - which in the past held its annual
Special Convocation Service only in churches of the
Reformierte (Swiss Protestant) movement – held the service at ICZ
in what Ben-Chorin called a "truly exceptional event. Such
convocations,” he continued, “[had] never even been held in the church
of any other Christian denomination, let alone in a synagogue."
Attending the service were cantonal ministers and parliamentarians, as
well as clerics from other faiths. Also present was the Israeli
ambassador to Switzerland.
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HA'ARETZ ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS WORLD UNION ROLE IN
GERMANY
This week, the Israeli
Hebrew daily Ha'aretz published an article on recent progress
toward federal recognition for Germany's Progressive movement, giving
the World Union and its president, Rabbi Uri Regev, major prominence. A
must read at:
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/719934.html
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JEWISH
AGENCY GIVES GO-AHEAD FOR PROGRESSIVE CAMP IN ST. PETERSBURG
The Jewish Agency has chosen the Progressive movement to operate a youth
camp this summer for some 100 youngsters aged 11-16 in St. Petersburg,
Russia. Previously, summer camps held for Jewish children in the area
had been operated only by the Jewish Agency, Chabad, or Adayin Lo, a
local organization. “The decision to give us the opportunity to run
such a large camp this year indicates [the Jewish Agency’s] appreciation
of our movement’s success in the city in such a short period of time,"
says Alex Kagan, the World Union’s director for the former Soviet
Union. "This is without a doubt a credit to the hard work of our
dedicated staff in St. Petersburg, a strong team led by Rabbi Michael
Farbman; Olga Markus education coordinator [for Russia]; Zanna Zlotnik,
who was recently appointed Netzer/FSU coordinator; Yuri Podolny,
executive director of the office; and others.”
The St. Petersburg summer
camp will be funded by the Humanitarian Fund of the
ICHEIC
(International Commission on Holocaust Era Insurance Claims) Foundation,
under its “Initiative
to Bring Jewish Cultural Literacy to Youth in the Former Soviet Union.”
Most of the camp staff of 25 will be drawn from the leadership of the
St. Petersburg chapter of Netzer Olami, the
World Union's international Zionist youth movement; 10 are already
undergoing training at Jewish Agency-sponsored seminars. They will be
joined at the summer camp by Netzer leaders from elsewhere in the FSU,
and by six youth leaders from the movement in Israel.
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TWO PROGRESSIVE LEADERS RECEIVE HIGH HONORS - PART II:
BRESLAUER RECOGNIZED BY
ISRAEL’S BEN GURION UNIVERSITY
Ben Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) bestowed an honorary doctorate
upon World Union Executive Committee member Stephen K. Breslauer during
its Board of Governors meeting in Beersheva on May 30 (see photo). An
active supporter of the World Union’s work in Latin America and the
former Soviet Union, Breslauer is also a vice president of the
Association of Reform Zionists of America, a member of the Executive
Council of the North American Federation of Temple Brotherhoods, and a
board member of such bodies as the Jewish Agency and United Israel
Appeal. He has long served on the board of BGU and is the founding
chairman of the Greater Texas Region of the American Associates of BGU.
He lives with his wife Sandra in Houston, where they are members of
Congregation Beth Israel. Others honored with Breslauer include Israeli
chief justice Aharon Barak, Andre Azoulai, an advisor to the king of
Morocco, and violinist Shlomo Mintz. Previous recipients of honorary
doctorates at BGU include Yitzhak Rabin, Isaac Bashevis Singer, Elie
Wiesel, Francois Mitterand, Isaac Stern, Adin Steinsaltz, Simon
Wiesenthal and Nelson Mandela.
Stephen K.
Breslauer at the award ceremony in Beersheva
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ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY TO HONOR REFORM MOVEMENT'S
BAYFIELD
Rabbi Tony Bayfield, head of the
British Reform movement, will be only the third Jew in history to be
honored by the Archbishop of Canterbury with a Lambeth Degree, which has
been awarded since the 16th century in recognition of “published
writings of an academic nature.” The doctorate of divinity will be
conferred during a ceremony at Lambeth Palace in July. The degree is
usually awarded within the Anglican Church - the only other Jews to have
been honored in such a way were the late British chief rabbi Lord
Jakobovits in 1987, and Britain’s current chief rabbi, Sir Jonathan
Sacks, in 2001. Bayfield is being recognized for his leadership in
interfaith relations, and in particular for his work as co-president of
the country’s Council of Christians and Jews. “I am deeply moved by
this honor,” he said. “The theology of interfaith relations has long
been a special interest of mine. But I do see this as recognition of
the leadership role that Progressive Judaism has taken in this area.
One of the revelations of modern times is that the faiths of the world
can only exist in relation to each other and there can be no peace in
the world without peace between the religions.”
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