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York Liberal Jewish Community will Takeover York Castle Museum’s Twitter on Holocaust Memorial Day (27 January 2021) 

Founded in 2014, the York Liberal Jewish Community holds the only regular Jewish services in the City. We follow the Liberal tradition, with men and women participating on an equal basis and prayers in English and Hebrew. In addition, evening services tend to include a lot of singing in Hebrew. 

We are extremely lucky to be being supported by Liberal Judaism, who ensure we have regular rabbinic support, not just for our Shabbat morning services but also for High Holy Days, festivals, lifecycle events and our term time adult education course, Judaism 101. Our Friday night services and children’s cheder (religion school) are led by community members. 

We are self-run so while anyone and everyone is welcome to attend, those willing to get involved and help with organising and hosting events are particularly welcome. To speak to us, you can send us a message by going to our website  

https://jewsinyork.org.uk/  

Even though our community was founded in 2014, Jewish heritage in York goes back nearly 2000 years. The city saw tragedy and joy and we are excited to work with York Castle Museum to explore and interpret our city’s heritage.  During the Takeover you will see some sacred objects we hold in York and learn about the city’s Jewish heritage.  

In addition to this Takeover, we are participating in York’s annual Holocaust Memorial Day Civic event online, reflecting on the national theme, Be the Light in the Darkness. Hosted by the Lord Mayor of York Cllr Janet Looker and the Vice-Chancellor of the University of York Professor Charlie Jeffery, the event will also feature short talks by the Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell and our Student Rabbi Gabriel Kanter-Webber, as well as two short films. The keynote speaker will be author Ariana Neumann, who will be reflecting on the memoir she wrote, When Time Stopped, about her father and how he escaped Nazi-occupied Prague. You can register here.

We hope you will join us on the 27th and come together to celebrate the Jewish faith and the city’s culture and heritage. We can all stand in solidarity. We can choose to be the light in the darkness in many ways and places – at home, in public, and online. 

Click here to read the Story of Max Berl

@jewsinyork @LiberalJudaism @HMD_UK @York_Minster @FriargateQ @YorkInterfaith #HMD2021 #LightTheDarkness #HolocaustMemorialDay