By Joanna Auron-Gorska, PhD. Beit Polska board member October 2013 “If we have Jewish people who are making a life now in Poland, it behooves us, as our brothers’ keepers, to be involved positively“, says Lucia Czarny Goodhart. Goodhart is a Jew, an Israeli, an American and a Pole – all in one. Polish-born, she […]
Beit Warszawa, Jewish Music, and Shabbes
By Haim Beliak Rabbis serving World Union for Progressive Judaism and the European Union for Progressive Judaism were invited to participate in a symposium that was published in The Reform Jewish Quarterly Fall 2013 entitled “Progressive Judaism Around the World: Paradigms of Peoplehood.” I wrote an article entitled “Beit Warszawa, Jewish Music, and Shabbes.” The […]
“Million Dollar Vidui”
Forbes Poland has published an investigation in to the sale and proceeds from Pre-World War II Jewish Communal property. This ground breaking article is having reverberations in Poland and in Jewish communal agencies such as Federations, synagogues, and foundations in America. Dr. Joanna Auron, a board member of Beit Polska, wrote a response to the […]
Poland: The Magic of Discovering Legacy
I met Esther Meyers after her return from Poland. That trip proved a powerful event in her life that had beckoned her for may years. There was also a justified reluctance that Esther carried. At a peaceful Shabbat dinner, Esther spoke about the people and places she experienced as she returned to her parents’ world. […]
Envisioning the Future
By Judy Maller Simchat Hochmah (The Joy of Wisdom) is a new ceremony celebrating reaching the age of wisdom (70). It is significant that four women chose to share their 70th year focusing on their commitment to Judaism. The American Jewish community is blessed with smart and generous teachers. One of those teachers is Judy […]
Jedwabne 2013
On July 10, 2013 members of Poland’s Jewish community gathered in the town of Jedwabne in the Lomza region for a memorial service. At the memorial – one, lone, eye witness child survivor, Isaac Lewin was there to witness and interrupt the proceedings commemorating the events of July 10, 1941. The reflection below: “Jedwabne 2013” […]
Re-joining the Family; Progressive Judaism in Poland
By Rabbi Haim Dov Beliak, Introduction by Judy Manelis Kulanu Magazine, Spring 2013 Poland is the birthplace or origin of many of North America’s Jews. Some scholars even believe that 70-80% of American Jews have roots in Poland. Certainly, we know that the great intellectual and religious movements of Zionism and Hassidism flourished on Polish […]
Beit Polska News, May 2013
I hope you are following the events, stories, and films relating to Poland during these weeks — the dedication of the new Museum of the History of the Jews of Poland; 70th Anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, Holocaust Memorial Day etc. I’ll be blogging about many of these movies, articles, issues, and personalities at RabbiBeliakBlog, […]