Steve Brummel, our venerated President Emeritus, was in the Czech Republic this month. He sat for an interview at the Brummel House in Pilsen, as Prague TV is making a documentary about the influential Austrian/Czech architect Adolf Loos. Loos designed and supervised the construction of the Brummel House in 1927-28. Exactly 50 years later, Steve had orchestrated the Brummel House's salvation from destruction at the hands of the Communist city authorities. Steve was intervi

Last Shabbat, some twenty IJC members, old and new, gathered at a former abbey in the Flemish countryside for our community retreat, Rest in a Restless World, our third retreat at this location. As people arrived throughout Friday afternoon and early evening, there was a palpable sense of anticipation. Some came for the entire Shabbaton, others for part of the programme, and all brought with them the invisible luggage we carry through our busy lives: commitments, responsibili

George Prosper Remi, better known as Hergé, was the creator of one of the best-known strip cartoon figures, Tintin (Kuifje). Titles of his early work about the adventures of the boy reporter and his dog Snowy (Milou) included Tintin in the Land of the Soviets, Tintin in the Congo and Tintin in America. These were described as conservative propaganda for children. So how racist was Hergé? Following the German occupation of Belgium in 1940, the conservative Catholic newspaper

IMPAC’s Vision for Coexistence and the Fight Against Antisemitism By Nigel Goodrich I am often asked how we champion dialogue between communities while firmly opposing extremism. For progressive Jews valuing both shalom and the battle against antisemitism, this question is at the heart of our work. IMPAC was founded in 2019 by Patricia Teitelbaum and me. As an international NGO, we advance human rights, social justice, freedom of religion or belief, tolerance, and mutual unde

Says Golan T ---On Sunday, June 7, some IJC friends and I spent the morning at the Japanese Garden in Hasselt. We wandered past ponds, bridges, tiny shrines and traditional buildings, discovered the elegant koto (a traditional Japanese floor harp), and admired the reflections dancing on the water. Sarah S. on the highlights: ‘the koi carp were enormous, and one of the funniest moments was watching a duck casually walk across a group of them as if they were floating stepping s

One of the great privileges of rabbinic life is accompanying people on meaningful Jewish journeys and witnessing the sincerity, courage, and commitment that those journeys require. In recent weeks, I had the pleasure of accompanying two new members of our community, Zoé Toussaint and Lev Klisurov, as they prepared to appear before the Kerem Beth Din for recognition of their giur journeys. These were moving moments, not only for Zoé and Lev personally, but also for our wider I

A recently published book by Natalie Livingstone entitled “The Nuremberg Women” highlights the role played by women during and after the Nuremberg trials, a role, apart from female interpreters and reporters such as Rebecca West and Erika Mann, that has been underplayed and even suppressed. With her book, the author, grand-daughter of Holocaust survivors, tries to set the record straight and speaks about the many women whose contribution has been deliberately overlooked. One

By Diana K --- “Six million is just a number. Here I want to give a voice to two people who perished in the Shoah, my grandparents, Max and Trude Hahn.” This is how I start my presentations to high school students at the Hainberg Gymnasium in Göttingen, the school my mother was expelled from shortly after her 16th birthday in spring 1938. This was my second visit to the school. Thanks to the foresight of my grandparents who sent many documents and belongings to Sweden and Sw

Rachel and Stephany A couple of years ago I asked the children at the end of the Hebrew school year what they liked most about the past year, and without hesitation they answered “Matzah baking.” From then on, I try it every year. But honestly, I dread working with the ovens at BH and I have skipped a year sometimes. This time we were able to buy a little electric oven, and although it is small, it does the trick, and I do not have to worry about blowing up the building. Now

Most of us nowadays associate the island of Lampedusa with the major entry point for Mediterranean migrants. But not many people are aware of the Jewish connection to the island. In June 1943, Sergeant Sydney Cohen, an RAF pilot, unwittingly captured the island of Lampedusa, 200 km south of Sicily. He then accepted the surrender of a garrison of 4,300 Italian troops. Cohen, who had been a tailor’s assistant in the East End of London, joined the RAF in 1941 and was sent t

In spite of – or perhaps because of – the current geopolitical tensions, this year’s IJC Seder brought together a record number of participants: close to 90 people around multiple tables. It was especially heartening to welcome so many new faces, alongside wonderful interfaith guests who joined us in a spirit of curiosity and connection. There was a real sense of community in the room – familiar faces, new friendships forming, and a shared willingness to enter the story toget

This year’s Purim celebration at IJC was exceptional in many ways. Thanks to the enthusiasm and volunteer spirit of many IJC members, our community was treated to a celebration of mega proportions. The initiative came from Monica and Pierre who worked with our events coordinator Peter D to create a varied programme with something for everyone, but with a focus on the kids. Many hours of preparation, clocked up largely by Peter D, Pierre and Monica in the weeks and days prior

By Steve Brummel The Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves from a New York production I recently took my wife Marion to see an afternoon matinee of Verdi’s opera “Nabucco” at the Antwerp opera house. It is about the Babylonian invasion of Israel around 586 BCE, the destruction of King Solomon’s Temple and the forced movement of many Jews to Babylon. The storyline combines the Babylonian conquest and the subsequent Persian conquest and freeing of the Jews to return to Jerusalem. Th

While disappointed to miss this year's outstanding IJC Purim party, I was elated to come across three paintings depicting the Purim Story by the artist Jacopo del Sellaio (Florence 1442-1493) painted in 1485-90 and hanging in the Uffizzi Museum in Florence. The two below and presented together are The Banquet of Ahasuerus and The Banquet of Queen Vashti. The third (here on the left) is the Triumph of Mordechai. Reported by Leslie O The Banquet of Ahasuerus and The Banquet o

The name Sarah Bernhardt conjures up not only one of the greatest actresses of her time, but also one of the greatest courtesans. Her list of lovers is amazing. She even had a liaison with a man nearly forty years her junior! Her life was long and truly eventful. However, let us turn to an aspect of her life story that is significant but little known. She was a friend of the author Alexander Dumas who gave her letters of introduction when she moved to Brussels in 1862, aged 1

Over the past years, our community has grown not only in numbers but in activity, creativity, and connection. With that growth has come a familiar challenge: communication. Emails multiply, WhatsApp threads overlap, information gets buried, and it becomes harder than it should be to keep track of what matters. For that reason, the Board is proposing that IJC adopt its own dedicated mobile application, built on the Donkey Mobile platform. The goal is simple: to bring IJC onto

Just over a year ago, we began something ambitious at IJC. We called it Living Judaism , and the name was deliberate. We did not want simply to offer a course, or a lecture series, or a bookish introduction to Judaism. We wanted to create a space where Judaism could be explored as something lived – questioned, wrestled with, tasted, argued over, and slowly woven into the fabric of daily life. Knowing Jewishly and living Jewishly, interwoven in a single path. What began as a h

The name Sarah Bernhardt conjures up not only one of the greatest actresses of her time but also one of the greatest courtesans. Her list of lovers is amazing. She even had a liaison with a man nearly forty years her junior! Sarah was born Henriette Bernard to the Dutch Jewish courtesan Julie Bernard in 1844. It is not clear who her father was. It is now assumed that he was Maurice Bernard. In exchange for financial help from her father, Sarah was baptized and educated in Cat

Get ready for Purim at IJC — an evening full of joy, laughter, and community! Join us for a festive celebration featuring: 🎭 A fun Purim Spiel 🎨 Kids’ activities & crafts 🥟 Snacks 🍹 Cocktails & mocktails for adults 🎶 Music, dancing, and great vibes Looking forward to a festive evening for all ages and in costumes. Purim at IJC is a celebration you won’t want to miss . 📅 Date: March 7th⏰ Time: 18:00📍 Location: IJC Synagogue ✨ More details coming soon — stay tun

IJC Hosts Survey Results Meeting Undeterred by the cold weather, on Sunday January 11, 2026, more than 30 dedicated IJC’ers gathered in our sanctuary to enjoy a scrumptious catered lunch to discuss the results of IJC’s recent membership survey. A full summary of the results and next steps will be available to IJC members & Giur members shortly. A few highlights: · The response rate to the survey was outstanding · IJC is viewed as a friendly, warm and welcoming co