Home Archives for The Limmud Experience

Record Numbers Attend Limmud FSU Moscow

Posted on April 16, 2013 Written by
Limmud FSU Moscow 2013 provided programs for participants of all ages; photo courtesy Limmud FSU.

Over 1,100 participants gathered in Moscow, Russia, last week for the largest Limmud FSU Moscow event to date. Considered to be one of the most prestigious of Jewish cultural events in the former Soviet Union, Limmud FSU conferences provide a festival of Jewish learning featuring a packed program of lectures, workshops, round-table discussions and music along with a wide-range of cultural events. by Maryna Gaidak Just a week ago I started working as a volunteer chair of the PR committee for the Limmud FSU Ukraine conference this Fall. Following a very productive trip to the eastern Ukrainian city of Dnipropetrovsk and meeting with members of the organizing committee, I traveled to Limmud FSU Moscow. I have never attended Limmud before and with that in mind I entered backstage something I knew … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Life in the FSU Countries, The Limmud Experience Tagged:

In Asia, Creating a New Jewish Revival

Posted on April 4, 2013 Written by

by Rebecca Kanthor and Jeanine Buzali Shanghai, China: one of the world’s busiest ports. China’s most populous city. A top-25 global financial center. And on April Fourth, host to the region’s emerging Jewish renaissance. While strange to some, this historic and fascinating city steeped with Jewish history will provide a springboard for Asia’s emerging Jewish communities through Destination Shanghai, a four-day celebration of what it means to be Jewish in Asia. Seventy years ago Shanghai was home to tens of thousands of Jews - of Russian, Sephardi, and various European backgrounds (including refugees escaping Nazi persecution), but today it will inspire contemporary Jewish leaders from Asia and around the world who with gather here and build a Jewish identity and community uniquely … [Read more...]

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Limmud FSU US: An Immigrant Community Comes Into Its Own

Posted on March 20, 2013 Written by
3 countries of Russian speaking Jewry; copyright eJewish Philanthropy

At Limmud FSU, I witnessed a strong Russian-Jewish community that is interested in its future and its place in the wider North American Jewish world. by Lea Zeltserman I spent this past weekend in Princeton, at Limmud FSU USA. It was a weekend of firsts, starting with the simple fact that I have never been surrounded by so many Russian speakers before. And now, here were over 750 of them, taking up the entirety of the Marriott Hotel where the conference was held. I rarely speak Russian with people I’m not related to, and I've never been anywhere where Russian is the first language of most interactions. It was at once entirely familiar and unfamiliar. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: The American Jewish Scene, The Limmud Experience Tagged: ,

Hong Kong is Finally Limmud Trending

Posted on March 13, 2013 Written by
Limmud HKG

by Erica Lyons Just hours before the first Limmud Hong Kong the majority of the community was still asking, what is Limmud? Yet, despite this (as well as the fact that only 25 people signed up prior to the event), the inaugural Limmud Hong Kong, sponsored by the Hong Kong Jewish Community Centre, drew participation from approximately 85 members of the community representing an incredible cross section. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: In the Media, The Limmud Experience Tagged:

The Jewish Journey Called Limmud

Posted on January 28, 2013 Written by
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by Clive Lawton I was one of the four that started Limmud in 1980 in Britain. British Jewry in that time was neither a dynamic, educated nor exciting community. It was nearly impossible to find learning for adults and the community was deeply divided between the different denominations, between different age groups and even geographically. The vast majority of Jews in Britain did not know and did not want to know that there were Jews anywhere else - or if they knew it they were pretty sure they couldn’t learn anything from them. … [Read more...]

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Three Years in the Chair

Posted on January 10, 2013 Written by
Endings:Beginnings

by Helena Miller and Uri Berkowitz All endings are also beginnings. Mitch Albom, in his book "The Five People You Meet in Heaven", makes this observation and also says that we often don’t recognise the potential of endings. In Jewish terms, we are very comfortable with the connection between endings and beginnings. As soon as we finish reading the Torah, on Simchat Torah, on that very same day, we begin again. From Haazinu to Bereshit, with barely a pause for breath. At Limmud International, we have been preoccupied with endings and beginnings in the past few months. After three years as Limmud International co-chairs, we have been succeeded by David Hoffman. David joins Kevin Sefton, who took over as Limmud Chair from Carolyn Bogush. And, Limmud has also welcomed new Executive Director … [Read more...]

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