One sabbath, I noticed Margosha, she had come by herself to the reform synagogue in Warsaw for Friday night services. She was in her late twenties a thin, tall woman with short brown hair and glasses. Margosha’s clothes were in brown tones, a tweedy blazer, a dark chocolate brown skirt with a white shirt and […]
Zigler’s Story
Introduction by Rabbi Allen Maller In 2010 I was asked to serve as a Rabbinic scholar in residence at Beit Warszawa. My wife Judy Maller and I were amazed by the wonderful people we met in the congregation. Every rabbi knows that the Halakic definition of who is a Jew is simple: all children born […]
Are Non-Jews With Jewish Identities Welcome?
The number of people who believe they are descendants of Jews is almost equal to the number of Jews who are counted in official international censuses, according to British historian Tudor Parfitt, an expert on Judaizing movements, who was a keynote speaker at a Jerusalem conference held in early November at the Van Leer Institute, […]
Moments in a Year of Learning to be Jewish
Becoming Jewish- a choice of a lifetime When starting on the journey to become Jewish- candidates of our Step-by-Step group engage in the life cycle of Beit Warszawa and Beit Polska. Theory and practice go hand by hand. Local candidates attend a once a week study session of Jewish customs and laws, Hebrew reading of […]