|
Dear members, friends and supporters,
We held our annual membership meeting in March, which was well attended. A reporter from our local newspaper, Deister-und-Weser Zeitung, remarked on the openness of our community.
 |  |
Formalities were discussed, and our president presented a four-page report on the activities in the past year (in both Russian and German). The previous board was recognized by the members with flowers, applause, and heartfelt thanks. Matvey Dvortsis, a newly elected member of the board, will deal with the cultural activities of the community. Rachel Dohme, Polina Pelts, Aron Kaplan, and Dieter Vogelhuber welcome Matvey to the board, and are looking forward to his help in cultural matters. The membership fee was also discussed, and it was democratically voted to raise the annual fee to 24 Euros per person. Many members have already paid the fee and some of them have contributed even more. The increase in the membership fee is natural step toward financial security and helps us maintain the manifold religious, cultural, and social range of the community's activities. As Jews we see a moral duty in financially supporting our community.
Rabbi Irit Shillor gave a lecture on Israel's declaration of independence at the annual membership meeting of the Hamelin Society of Christians and Jews. Rabbi Shillor explained certain aspects of the declaration to the Society of Christians and Jews, of which our community is a member. She deepened our understanding by quoting historical and biblical sources. As a souvenir everyone received a copy of the declaration of independence.
  
Rash! Rash! Rash! We celebrated the joyous and colorful festival of Purim on March 21st together with Rabbi Shillor and many of our members. It was a celebration for and by our community with the reading of the Megilla (the Scroll of Esther) in three languages, a Purim play "Esther" performed by Dieter's German class, the music of our children and teens by "Young and Jewish Hamelin, Jr.," a dance performance from Boris Markhaseev's Israeli dance group, and homemade hamantashen, lovingly baked by Polina's German class. Members volunteered to bring shlachmones (Purim baskets) to the homes of community members who are ill after our celebration. The baskets were made by our children and contained Purim cards, fruit, and of course, hamantashen.
Jewish April
We celebrate our annual community Pesach Seder on April 19th at 4:00 PM led by Rabbi Shillor and Volodymr Pesok. The Seder is free for community members, visitors from other communities are asked to contribute 10,00€. In order to plan our Seder, please let us know of you plan to attend. Call the office on Tuesdays or Thursdays or sign one of the lists posted in the community.
Pesach commemorates the exodus from Egypt as described in the Torah (Ex. 15:5). The festival commemorates the end of enslavement and the beginning of a new era in the desert wandering to Sinai, to receive God's commandments. During the seven days of Pesach we abstain from leavened foods.
Matzot and wine, kosher for Pesach, can be bought in the community. Israeli Matzot for € 4,-/kg and wine € 10,- (1,5 l). Please remember that during the week of Pesach, April 19–April 27, it is prohibited to bring or eat any leavened foods in the community! A kosher Pesach to all our members!
Rabbis Everywhere!
We are blessed by the visits of many rabbis in April. Of course, Rabbi Shillor will be with us for her monthly visit. We are happy to celebrate Pesach with her. She also offers Kabbalat Shabbat, classes for children, and candidates for conversion in our community.
Rabbinical student Adrian Schell will be with us in the beginning of the month, April 4–5, accompanied by his mentor from the Abraham Geiger College, Rabbi Dr. Edward van Voolen. We are looking forward to their visit and the services.
Offers
The Central Council of Jews in Germany, the Central Welfare Office, and various other Jewish organizations offer seminars to our community members. The wide range of programs makes it impossible to let you know of all the seminars in our newsletter. Please have a look at the boards in the community center for further information. If you are interested in any of the offered seminars, please contact the office or one of the board members. We are happy to help you!
Cooperation with “Lebenshilfe” (A workshop for disabled)
As Jews it is our duty to help others. We see this as a part of our wish to “repair the work” (Tikkun Olam in Hebrew). This was the reason we ordered Shabbat candles from the workshop for disabled “Lebenshilfe in Springe.” The candles are beautiful, inexpensive, and help the disabled to help themselves. Shabbat candles can be purchased at the office for € 0,50 each.
New Members
We welcome Mrs. Polina Dudina in our community!
Do you know anyone in Hamelin who is looking for an active Jewish community? Please ask them to contact us, and we will offer them information about our community. Our door is open and we welcome new members.
Contributions
We thank the classes 11A, 11B, and 11C of the business high school Handelslehranstalt Hameln and their teachers Mrs. Spangenberger and Dr. Schmidt for their contributions.
We also thank Polina Peker, Larissa Shapiro, Milja Golberg, the Catholic Church of Bad Pyrmont, and Temple Brit Kodesh of Rochester, New York, for contributions this month.
 Tree of Life
Spring has sprung! New leaves have sprouted on our tree:
- The Classes 11A, 11B and 11C of the business high school Hameln contributed a leaf.
- Polina Peker: In memory of my five murdered relatives
- Larissa Shapiro: In memory of my father Sander Shapiro
- Milja Golberg: In memory of my husband, our father and grandfather Vladimir Goldberg (1930–1988)
Thank You — Todah Rabah
We thank all those who helped actively to prepare our Purim Party—from the play, by Dieter's German class, to the hamantashen made by Polina's German class.
Thank you, Mrs. Tatjana Meschede, who bought our Purim graggers, and for her generous donation which paid our Web site for five months.
Thank you, Rabbi Irit Shillor, who donated books on various Jewish subjects to our library.
We also thank Mrs. Konstantinova and Mr. Jevdokimov who have planned and lead our Sunday Café in March wonderfully, and Mrs. Shapiro and Herr Vinnytskij for donating books for our library.
Mazel Tov
- Mazel Tov, Matvey Dvortsis, our new board member.
- Mazel Tov, Arik Sosin, for his 1st prize at “Youth making music” and lots of luck for his coming competitions at the state level.
- Mazel Tov, Prince Hassan bin Talal of Jordan, winner of the 2008 Abraham Geiger Prize.
Birthdays in March
We wish all those celebrating a March birthday the very best wishes for health and happiness. After Kabbalat Shabbat on April 18th, we will celebrate our March birthdays together. Join the party!
Refuah Schlama — Get Well Wishes
We wish all who are confined to their homes or in the hospital a complete recovery.
 Yahrzeits in March — We remember:
Tetjana Khodos April 4, 1998 / Nisan 8, 5758
Anna Potozkaja April 11, 2000 / Nisan 6, 57607
Evgenia Borischanskaja April 26, 2004/ Iyar 5, 5764
May their memory be a blessing. Please join us at services as we recite Kaddish with family members. Yahrzeit candles are available through the synagogue office.
Shalom,
—Your synagogue board
Program for April 2008 • Adar II–Nissan 5768
Office hours: Mon., Wed.& Fri., 8:00 a.m.–12:00 noon and Tues. & Thurs., 9.00 a.m.–4.00 p.m. |
| Tuesday, April 1 |
9:00 a.m.
4:00 p.m. |
Synagogue Board meeting
Video afternoon |
| Friday, April 4 |
3:30 p.m. |
B'nai Mitzvah class |
| |
5:00 p.m. |
Kabbalat Shabbat services with rabbinical student Adrian Schell Guest: Rabbi Dr. Edward van Voolen |
| Saturday, April 5 |
10:00 a.m. |
Shacharit services and Torah study with A. Schell. Guest: Rabbi Dr. Edward van Voolen |
| Monday, April 7 |
12:00 p.m. |
Judaism class in Russian with V. Pesok |
| Wednesday, April 9 |
10:00 a.m. |
Guest: Mr. Hans-Georg Spangenberger
Slide presentation: Marc Chagall |
| Thursday, April 10 |
3:30 p.m. |
Young and Jewish Hameln Jr., Sivan Gaides |
| |
4.30 p.m. |
Shalom Jr. rehearsal, Faina Pelts |
| |
5:30 p.m. |
Hebrew for Adults, Sivan Gaides |
| Saturday, April 12 |
10:00 a.m. |
Shacharit sevices and Torah study |
| Sunday, April 13 |
3:00 p.m. |
“Sunday Cafe”: Dr. Felix Peres “My Hobby” |
| Tuesday, April 15 |
10.00 a.m. |
Visit of a 9th grade high school class |
| Friday, April 18 |
3:00 p.m.
5:00 p.m. |
B'nai Mitzvah class
Kabbalat Shabbat services with Rabbi Irit Shillor
Guest: Mr. Evers, German Press |
| |
|
|
| Saturday, April 19 |
12:00 p.m.
4:00 p.m. |
Giyur class
Community Pesach Seder with Rabbi Shillor |
| Wednesday, April 23 |
10:00 a.m. |
Guest: Mrs. Thamm / Faina Pelts
Presentation: Pension rights |
| Saturday, April 26 |
10:00 a.m. |
Shacharit services with Torah study |
| Tuesday, April 29 |
4:00 p.m. |
Judaism in Russian with Maya Olvovskaja |
Activities outside the community |
| Monday, April 7 |
8:30 a.m. |
Hospital Wilhelmstrasse, Dying and Death: Rituals in Judaism Presentation for hospital nurses, R. Dohme |
| Wednesday, April 9 |
7:00 p.m. |
Society of Christians and Jews: Presentation: “Israel” Steffan Hageman in St. Augustinus Church, Lohstraße |
| Tuesday, April 22 |
4:00 p.m. |
Society of Christians and Jews: Christian-Jewish Forum “How was the biblical canon compiled?” R. Dohme, St. Augustinus Church, Lohstraße |
|
|
|
Archived Newsletters:
|
|
|
