Religion – Page 104 – Lithuanian Jewish Community

ISIS Destroy Ancient Gate to Biblical City of Nineveh

The Gate of God, also known as the Mashqi Gate, was one of a number of grand gates which guarded the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh. Referenced in the Bible (Genesis 10:10, 2 Kings 19:36, Isaiah 37:37-38, Nahum, Zephaniah 2:13-15, Book of Jonah, as well as in the Christian Book of Tobit and the Gospels of Matthew and Luke in the New Testament), the settlement of the site which eventually became Nineveh dates back to about 6000 BC and in the 6th century BC it was the largest city in the world. Nineveh was central to the first book of the prophets, namely, Jonah, who was sent by God to make the Ninevites repent. The Book of Jonah describes the city as an “exceedingly great city of three days journey in breadth” whose population at that time was “more than 120,000.” On July 24, 2014, ISIS destroyed the tomb of Jonah in Ninveeh as part of a campaign to destroy idolatry, although Jonah has an entire chapter named after him in the Koran.

A source at the British Institute for the Study of Iraq confirmed the gate had been attacked.

The Antiquities Department in Baghdad didn’t deny the attack had happened, according to a source who also said there were unconfirmed reports the group was dismantling part of the walls of Nineveh to sell the stone blocks to antiquities collectors. There were also unconfirmed reports the Gate of God was being dismantled for sale rather than being completely destroyed.

2016-04-15

Kaunas Jewish Community Working with City Maintenance Department

Gercas Žakas, chairman of the Kaunas Jewish Community and deputy chairman of the Lithuanian Jewish Religious Community, has met with the directors of the Cemetery Maintenance agency of the Kaunas municipality and the heads of the city’s maintenance department, during which they discussed Jewish cemeteries in Kaunas and maintenance and burial issues. The Jewish cemetery on H. ir O. Minkovskių street is at capacity and they confirmed the location for a new cemetery site. Žakas said he was satisfied by the productive meeting and was glad there had been such timely solutions to Jewish heritage and Jewish cemetery issues recently.

2016-04-15

Passover Seder

The Lithuanian Jewish Community will hold a Passover seder on April 22, 2016. It will be held at the Conti Hotel in Vilnius (Raugyklos street No. 7) and will start at 9:00 P.M. Rabbi Samson Isaacson will lead the event.

Tickets are now sold out.

For more information, contact:

telephone 867881514, email zanas@sc.lzb.lt

2016-04-13

Choral Synagogue Thanks Jakov Bunka Charity and Support Foundation for Donation of Valuable Books

The Vilnius Choral Synagogue would like to give a big thank-you to the Jakov Bunka Charity and Support Foundation for their doonation of valuable books!

2016-04-10

Israeli Business Community Tells Lithuanians to Enter Kosher Food Market

It’s said Jews are most interested in organic, ecological, vegetarian food products with a long shelf-life and unique items such as different flavors of honey. The public organization Versli Lietuva organized meetings between a delegation of Israeli food producers and about 150 Lithuanian businesses. The delegation representing 13 Israeli businesses met with Lithuanian businesses, taste-tested products and considered prospects for cooperation. The Lithuanian Government has named Israel as one of 14 priority Lithuanian export markets. At present about 40% of Lithuanian exports to Israel are food products and mainly milk products. Ze’ev Lavie, chairman of the Israeli Chamber of Commerce’s International Relations Division, told Verslo Žinios Lithuanian food products enterprises could better exploit the global popularity of kosher food.

Full story in Lithuanian here.

2016-04-06

Slobodka Cemetery and Seventh Fort Mass Murder Site in Kaunas to be Cleaned Up

Following a meeting between the Israeli ambassador and the mayor and city council of Kaunas in early March, on the first Friday in April the Kaunas deputy mayors, municipal staff and the chairman of the Kaunas Jewish Community visited the Jewish cemetery in the Slobodka neighborhood [Vilijampolė] and the mass grave at the Seventh Fort. During this meeting in the field, it was resolved that the municipal body Kapinių priežiūra [Cemetery Maintenance] would set up an information stand at the entrance to the Slobodka cemetery and would post signs forbidding cars, smoking, walking dogs and lighting fires there.

Another resolution was adopted for the Seventh Fort mass murder site: the city maintenance department (represented by Jolanta Miliauskienė) is to clean up the site (clean flagstones and collect garbage) around the monument to the Jews murdered there. The environmental department (represented by Radeta Savickienė) is to cut down trees and bushes according to a request drafted by cultural heritage department head Saulius Rimas which includes a photograph showing what is to be cut down and with the consent of Gercas Žakas, chairman of the Kaunas Jewish Community.

2016-04-06

Israeli Supreme Court Says State Should Recognize Orthodox Conversion

TEL AVIV (JTA)–Israel’s Supreme Court ruled that the state must recognize Orthodox conversions performed in Israel outside the authority of the Chief Rabbinate. The ruling Thursday means any non-citizen who converts in a private Israeli Orthodox conversion court can gain Israeli citizenship under the country’s Law of Return. Previously, converts who converted abroad could only gain Israeli citizenship if they lived in a Diaspora Jewish community. Some 150 citizens who have converted in private Israeli Orthodox conversion courts will now be seen as Jewish by the state.

The court rejected the state’s claim that only Chief Rabbinate conversions are legitimate within Israel. Because of the Jewish community’s multifaceted nature, the court ruled, any conversion performed by any Orthodox community, whether in Israel or abroad, are recognized as valid.

“The Jewish nation is indeed one nation, but it is spread out across the world and is composed of communities, layers and sub-layers,” the court’s decision read. Recognizing only the Chief Rabbinate “does not attribute weight to the existing range of Jewish communities–and that is unacceptable.”

Full story here.

2016-04-05

Challa at the Bagel Shop Café

The Bagel Shop Café has begun making challa bread for Sabbath the way it should be. Besides bagels, visitors can now purchase authentic challa bread, not too sweet but very delicious. A good Sabbath to all.

2016-04-01

Purim at the Gesher Club

The Gesher Club of the Lithuanian Jewish Community celebrated Purim March 25 at the Natali Restaurant in Vilnius. Since carnival costumes are a usual part of Purim, all participants were required to come in costume or at least partially dressed in costumes. LJC program coordinator Žana Skudovičienė took care of those who for one or another reason were unable or did not have time to get ready for the holiday. She let them chose a mask or costume accessory provided by Fayerlakh ensemble director Larisa Vyšniauskienė for the occasion.

2016-03-29

Thank You

Thank you to Žana Skudovičienė, Julija Lipšic, Ninelė Skudovičiūtė, Monika Antanaitytė and Olga Masarskaja for the wonderful organization and preparation of the Purim celebration at the Vilnius Choral Synagogue.

S. Levin, chairman
Vilnius Jewish Religious Community

2016-03-29

Lithuanian Jewish Students Union Purim Festival

The Lithuanian Jewish Students Union held a festive Purim celebration Saturday, March 26 in Vilnius.

Purim-goers were asked to dress as their favorite movie star or film character and a contest was held to pick the winning female and male roles. Attendees dressed as the Uma Thurman character from Pulp Fiction, Audrey Hepburn and Superman received prizes donated by Lux Figura.

There was also a quiz involving some brain-teasers, but most of the night was spent in conversation, eating and drinking. Rabbi Samson Isaacson attended the event as well. It was supported by the Embassy of Israel, the Goodwill Fund and the Mirameda medical clinic.

2016-03-29

Purim at the Choral Synagogue in Vilnius

There was a celebration of the Purim holiday at the Choral Synagogue in Vilnius March 24, which was also proclaimed a day of mourning in Lithuania to pay honors to the dead in the bombings in Brussels. Everyone observed a moment of silence for the victims at the synagogue.

Lithuanian Jewish Religious Community chairman Simas Levinas presented holiday greetings to the assembled and spoke about the meaning of Purim: Haman’s attempt to kill all the Jews. “History has seen more than one Haman, who sought to destroy the Jewish people. Stalin, Hitler and now ISIS, but no one has succeeded,” Levinas said.

Rabbi Samson Daniel Isaacson also gave holiday greetings and said Purim is a unique holiday which is about getting drunk, which seems strange, since this is considered a bad thing among Jews. “Only during Purim is it remembered that salvation comes from affliction. After all, getting drunk was suggested so that no one would be able to tell the difference between Haman and Mordecai. And it so happens that way often in life, when you think one thing, but it happens another way. Purim sameach!”

Fayerlakh ensemble musicians Miša Filipov Jablonskis and Leonardas Zinkevič performed a rousing set of Purim songs for young and old.

LJC deputy chairwoman Maša Grodnik said she was glad that things were finally getting back to normal at the synagogue and that the holiday was being celebrated with a rabbi, which for a long time was missing from the community. “Today the tragic events in Brussels remind us that Israel is setting an example for Europe on how to protect society,” Grodnik commented.

Israeli ambassador Amir Maimon recalled how he looked forward to Purim as a child, and that it always began to rain when Purim came around. “Today in Vilnius on Purim the sun was shining, and we are celebrating the liberation of the Jews. The victory of the Jews of Lithuania that they can celebrate in their own synagogue,” the Israeli ambassador remarked.

More snapshots from the event here.

2016-03-24

Purim in Panevėžys

The Panevėžys Jewish Community kicked off their Purim celebrations in the events hall of the Panevėžys Community Center March 20. Panevėžys Jewish Community chairman Gennady Kofman greeted a large party of guests from Vilnius, Ukmergė, Šiauliai and Panevežys and read an excerpt from Magilat Ester.

Artūras Taicas, deputy chairman of the Lithuanian Jewish Community and chairman of the Ukmergė Jewish Community, greeted guests as well and passed on the good wishes of LJC chairwoman Faina Kukliansky. Panevėžys city deputy mayor Petras Luomanas and city council member Alfonsas Petrauskas also gave wonderful addresses.

pan6purim

2016-03-23

Kaunas Jewish Community Purim Celebration

The Kaunas Jewish Community sends its Purim greetings to everyone and invites you to attend their combined Purim and Sabbath celebration on Friday, March 25.

2016-03-23

Rabbi Isaacson Speaks at Screening of Film “Kaddish”

The film club of the Lithuanian Jewish Student Union screened the film “Kaddish” on March 10, an event during which the public was able to meet one of Lithuania’s newest rabbis, Rabbi Samson Daniel Isaacson. Before the film started, Rabbi Isaacson gave a short talk welcoming the audience and telling about the film made by a friend of his. Kaddish is the story of Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef Zilber, born in Russia in 1917 (died 2003, a Russian, later Israeli Haredi rabbi and a leader of the Russian baal teshuva movement, author of several books, Russian Israeli religious authority). Zilber studied Judaism privately, at home, because his father Ben-Tzion Haim Zilber (originally Tsiyuni) refused to allow him to attend ant-religious Soviet schools.

At the age of 15 he began to teach Judaism in his hometown of Kazan, although it was illegal under Soviet law to do so. After a life filled with hardship, oppression by the Soviets and incarceration in the gulag, he and his family were finally allowed to leave the USSR for Israel in 1972, where he continued to teach, practice traditions and attract a large group of young people.

Discussion followed the screening of the film as audience members asked the rabbi questions and he responded. The several dozen members of the audience and the rabbi were treated to snacks and tea after the discussion, allowing people to get to know the rabbi better in a somewhat informal setting.

2016-03-23

Bagel Shop Café Purim Holiday Schedule

The kosher Bagel Shop Café of the Lithuanian Jewish Community is in full gear getting ready for the Purim holiday. There are several new pastry items the chefs there have cooked up, including the “red velvet” pastry taking the Jewish culinary internet by storm. Their special hamantashen recipe passed down through the generations uses yeast as well.

Senior chef Riva Portnaja says her family calls hamantashen “omentashen,” and that her mother always put yeast in the dough. According to her, Litvak hamantashen only contain poppy-seed fillings, and the triangular pastry is made so that is almost closed.

2016-03-23