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Raphäel Catez - Bar Mitzvah – 28. 12. 2024
Speech given by Rabbi Brian "We know that Joseph was a very likeable young man, and handsome enough to attract the attention of the...
Jan 16
98 views


Simchat Torah 5785
On the Thursday between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, in the middle of the ten Days of Awe, we traveled as a family to Soest in Germany...
Oct 27, 2024
59 views


Rosh Hashanah LaBehemot and the Days of Awe
While the coming High Holidays 5785 are late compared to 5784 – we celebrate Rosh Hashanah on October 2/3 and Yom Kippur ten days later...
Sep 5, 2024
111 views


Drasha for Pride Shabbat – 21/6/2024
Let’s read a little Talmud together… Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: When Moses ascended on High to receive the Torah, the angels said...
Jul 6, 2024
31 views


Combatting Online Hate
These are complicated times. There can be little doubt that antisemitism in all its forms has surged significantly in recent months and...
May 14, 2024
104 views


Looking In and Looking Out
IJC can be rightly proud of its inclusivity and welcoming ‘open tent’ approach to membership. The membership committee – Maria, Golan,...
Mar 15, 2024
76 views


HIAS’ Sixth Annual Refugee Shabbat
Shabbat Yitro on February 3rd was a special day for IJC in several ways. Our community joined many other communities across the globe to...
Feb 5, 2024
41 views


Building Bridges of Light on Chanukah
IJC meets the Neighbours Coalition On December 9th, record numbers of IJC members and friends assembled in the synagogue to celebrate the...
Dec 18, 2023
81 views


Thoughts about Vengeance in the Wake of October 7
Karen Engel is a final year rabbinical student at Zacharias Frankel College in Potsdam. She studied with Rabbi Brian, and they remain...
Nov 29, 2023
62 views


Every Jewish Thing You Do
On October 8th I headed to Berlin to participate in the opening in-person seminar of a certificate programme entitled ‘Current Forms of...
Nov 11, 2023
71 views


We Are All Israel
Since last Saturday, I have been experiencing a nagging sense of unease, a feeling that I’m not myself, that everything is different,...
Oct 14, 2023
43 views


A Lifetime of Choosing
I’ve had several in-person, online and email conversations during the summer with people who want to embrace Judaism. Most of the time...
Sep 6, 2023
106 views


Like an Open Book?
A few weeks ago, I was invited to participate in a programme on BRUZZ TV, Brussels Flemish network. I was there as a book, a living book,...
Jul 16, 2023
57 views


Remembering
The month of April (Nisan and Iyyar) is a month of remembering with Yom HaShoah, Yom HaZikaron and Yom HaAtzma’ut, all three relatively...
May 7, 2023
37 views


Shoes by the Door
IJC’s Pesach Seder 5783 started with a quiet moment of reflection. Our Seder is full of ancient and more recent rituals, but this year we...
Apr 7, 2023
156 views


IJC’s Gabbai Team Refreshes, Renews, and Expands
What is a Gabbai? In former times, a gabbai was the person in charge of collecting and distributing the community’s tzedakah, helping...
Mar 8, 2023
116 views


My Rabbinical Installation
I was ordained rabbi on December 1st 2022 in the Rykestrasse Synagogue in Berlin. We tried in vain to have the ordination relocated to...
Feb 7, 2023
133 views


Grief, Loss and Mourning
Remembering my Mother This week is my mother’s yahrzeit. She passed away fifteen years ago at the age of 94, and our extended family all...
Jan 9, 2023
94 views


Lo Ba’Shamayim Hi – Not in Heaven
After a long and sometimes difficult wait, resulting in part from the Covid pandemic, December 1st finally arrived, the day of my...
Dec 6, 2022
109 views


Giving with Gratitude
Did you ever give a gift in whatever form, and think the receiver was ungrateful? Did you expect gratitude? Maybe just a little – after...
Sep 27, 2022
45 views
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