Today, the 28th day of the month of Iyar on the Hebrew calendar, is the Israeli national holiday Jerusalem Day, commemorating Israel’s victory in the Six-Day War in 1967 and the return of the ancient capital to the Jewish state.
It has been declared a minor religious holiday by the Chief Rabbinate of Israel and it is a holiday on which Israelis get a day off work. It is also a day when schools, government offices, and many businesses are closed.
The Lithuanian Jewish Community’s Art Studio under the tutelage of master painter Raimondas Savickas is ending the season with an exhibit of works by participants. Everyone is welcome, but registration is required by sending an email to zanas@sc.lzb.lt.
Time: 6:00 P.M., Friday, June 7
Place: Third floor, Lithuanian Jewish Community, Vilnius
The Sabbath begins at 9:26 P.M. on Friday, May 30, and concludes at 11:10 P.M. on Saturday in the Vilnius region.
You are invited to volunteer for what has become a beautiful tradition sponsored by the US embassy in Vilnius and various volunteers: to help maintain the old Jewish cemeteries in Lithuania. This time we’ll work on the old Jewish cemetery in the village of Turgeliai in the Šalčininkai region of Lithuania south of Vilnius.
Time: 10:00 A.M. to 1:00 P.M., Sunday, June 2
Place: Old Jewish cemetery in Turgeliai in the Šalčininkai region
Link: https://shorturl.at/QILlI
Everyone is invited to take part. Come show your respect and concern for the history of the Jews of Lithuania and for Lithuania. It’s a small sacrifice, only a few hours, and no heavy lifting is involved!
The Sabbath begins at 9:16 P.M. on Friday, May 24, and concludes at 10:56 P.M. on Saturday in the Vilnius region.
At 7:00 P.M. on June 4 the Shalom Culture and Music Festival presents a concert at the Church of St. Kotryna (aka St. Catherine) in Vilnius, with performances by opera soloist Rafailas Karpis, violinist Boris Kirzner and the Vilnius State Choir conducted by Artūras Dambrauskas. This will be the first performance in Lithuania of “Wagon of Shoes” by Lee Kesselman. The concert program is to include works by Jewish composers for solo and choir.
“Wagon of Shoes” is a work for choir, soloist, piano and violin by Lee Kesselman based on the poem by Abraham Sutzkever, Yiddish poet, Jewish partisan and survivor of the Vilnius ghetto. The Jewish composer lives in the USA and wrote the piece for the 700th anniversary of Vilnius under commission by the Lithuanian Consulate in Chicago and the Dainava Choir of the Lithuanian Community in Chicago. The premiere took place in June of 2022 in Chicago.
The Shalom Culture and Music Festival is being held in eleven Lithuanian cities and towns from May to October of 2024. The half-year tour will feature classical and contemporary music, klezmer, improvisational jazz, exhibitions and artistic activities. Musicians and singers from Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Ukraine, Germany and Israel will participate in the festival. This year’s festival program includes over 20 concerts in concert halls in Vilnius, Kaunas, Šiauliai and Palanga, the Old Zapyškis Church, synagogues in Alytus, Joniškis, Kėdainiai, Pakruojis and Žiežmariai and at the former Telšiai yeshiva.
Embark on a journey to learn a 1000-year-old language with a rich cultural heritage in Vilnius, the fabled “Jerusalem of North!”
You will meet and learn from world-names in Yiddish education: professors Avrom Lichtenboim (Argentina), Dov-Ber Kerler (US) and Anna Verschik (Estonia). Apart from directly learning Yiddish, You will get tons of additional and fun educational events–museum and cultural site tours, film-screenings and Yiddish song–every afternoon!
The Sabbath begins at 9:05 P.M. on Friday, May 17, and concludes at 10:40 P.M. on Saturday in the Vilnius region.
The Lithuanian Makabi Athletics Club invites families with children to their summer sporting holiday at the Pailgio Perlas recreational site June 8 and 9. The two days of sport include the traditional competitions and fun, but this year there will also be a Makabi Challenge including orienteering, puzzles and tug-of-war.
Lithuania’s top players Ignas and Gerda Šišanovas and Rafaelis Gimelšteinas will be there to teach ping-pong. Registration is required before June 4 by sending an email to info.maccabilt@gmail.com.
Cost:
• Children under 7 free;
• aged 7-12 with overnight stay 25 euros;
• 13 and older with overnight accomodation 40 euros;
• 7-12 without overnight 15 euros;
• 13 and older without overnight stay 25 euros.
The Judaica Research Institute at the Martynas Mažvydas National Library in Vilnius will host a seminar to celebrate the life of Litvak writer Grigoriy Kanovitch on Wednesday, May 15.
Time: 11:00 A.M., Wednesday, May 15
Place: Events hall, Martynas Mažvydas National Library, Vilnius
Jewish children and young people aged 7 to 17 (in grades 2 to 11) are invited to attend a varied set of classes from singing to handicrafts on the Baltic Sea in Latvia in comfortable conditions under the tutelage of qualified adult consultants. Participants are expected from the Baltic states and beyond, and space is limited.
The camp will take place from June 26 to July 4, for nine days and eight nights, at the Minhauzena Unda Hotel (https://www.hotelunda.com) just outside Riga. The cost is 450 euros per participant with payment plans available, and 390 euros if you register before May 20.
For more information and to register, call +371 2918 7555 (Ilona) or +370 6300 3388 (Alina), or send an email to info@ystreet.lv. The YStreet organization is also on facebook and Instagram:
The Sabbath begins at 8:52 P.M. on Friday, May 10, and concludes at 10:23 P.M. on Saturday in the Vilnius region. Lithuanians will vote in national elections held this Sunday.
Those who like to exercise their mental faculties are invited to the next “Kas, kur, kada?” quiz with Irina Slutsker as MC. Registration is required by sending an email to zanas@sc.lzb.lt or by calling (+370) 678 81514 by next Wednesday, May 15. This time there is also a participation fee of 5 euros, which can be paid by bank transfer to the Lithuanian Jewish Community, account number LT 06 7044 0600 0575 7425 with the word “PROTMŪŠIS” indicated in the appropriate line. The quiz will be conducted in Lithuanian.
Time: 7:00 P.M., Friday, May 17
Place: Lithuanian Jewish Community, Vilnius
The Museum of Applied Art and Design in Vilnius opened an exhibit of mainly tapestries based on the artists’ sketches and ceramic works by Marc Chagall, Max Ernst and Pablo Picasso on April 25. The exhibit will continue until September 30, 2024. The museum is located at Arsenalo street no. 3A in Vilnius.
May 8 and 9 are celebrated as Victory Day, marking the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany which came into effect at 12:01 A.M. on May 9, 1945, Lithuanian time.
Dear children, young adults and parents,
Meaningful and fun activities await you every weekend:
Knafaim Club for those aged 13 to 17 at 6:00 P.M. on Fridays;
Ilan Club for children 7-12 at 12:00 noon on Saturdays;
Dubi Club for children aged 3 to 6 at 12:00 noon on Sundays.
All clubs meet at the LJC in Vilnius. See you there!
The Women’s Club is meeting again this Friday, this time with a male cook in the kitchen. Viljamas Žitkauskas will demonstrate his special breakfast-making techniques with an emphasis on Israeli cuisine.
Registration is required by sending an email to zanas@lzb.lt or by calling (+370) 678 81514.
Time: 7:00 P.M., Friday, May 10
Place: Lithuanian Jewish Community, Vilnius
On May 14 the St. Kotryna Church in Vilnius will host the opening concert of a Jewish music and culture festival called Shalom Culture and Music, including performances by vocalist Israel Roytman from Jerusalem, local opera soloists Giedrė Kisieliūtė and Joris Rubinovas, and vocalist Karolina Mint.
The program includes Jewish folk songs and favorites from Lithuania, Israel and the USA.
The Shalom Culture and Music Festival will take place from mid-May till October and will visit 11 Lithuanian cities and towns, with concerts including Jewish, klezmer, classical music and works by contemporary composers. Performers come from Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Germany, Israel and the Ukraine.
Tickets for the opening concert are available here: https://bit.ly/3TZ7dS1
Tickets for the 19 other concerts planned are available here: https://bit.ly/3W2MgIl
The Sabbath begins at 8:39 P.M. on Friday, May 3, and concludes at 10:06 P.M. on Saturday in the Vilnius region.
Yom haShoah takes place at sundown this Sunday, the 27th day of Nissan on the Jewish calendar. The Day of the Shoah is observed in Israel such that all activities cease, drivers stop their cars on the highway and everyone observes 2 minutes of silence for the 6 million Jews murdered in the Holocaust.
We will hold an observance at 12:00 noon on Monday, May 6, in the Jewish section of the Sudervės road cemetery in Vilnius. The address is Sudervės road no. 28, Vilnius.