Category: March 2022

The Perennial Holiday Favourite for SA Jews of All Ages By: Ilan Preskovsky Muizenberg Then Like no doubt many a Jewish Joburger, some of my fondest memories growing up in the ‘80s and ‘90s took place during summer holidays in a small coastal town just a few minutes’ drive from Cape Town. Muizenberg in December/January was exactly the sort of place in which indelible memories were created. I remember old, Cape-style houses in long, quiet streets surrounded by train tracks on the one side, the “Vlei” on the other, and,…

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The story of Ella Blumenthal By: Cathy Wilson Having been involved in Holocaust and Genocide education for many years, and after watching the many documentaries and seeing the same black and white photographs, there is a possible risk of becoming slightly desensitised. Before watching “I Am Here”, the film of the story of Ella Blumenthal, I did wonder why there was a need for another documentary – what new information could Jordy Shank as Director and Gabriella Blumberg as Producer possibly add? The answer became abundantly clear through my tear-filled…

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Making Aliyah an adventure By: Chandrea Serebro Dean and Shirley Cohen “As a young couple, we’ve always wanted to live in Israel. Both born to Israeli mothers (real sabras), we have always had a strong affiliation to the country. We travelled to Israel and were often reunited with close family and always felt that we truly belonged in Eretz Yisrael. So, the idea of settling one day in Israel wasn’t far-fetched. We went on to start our own family and found it increasingly difficult to contemplate leaving our families behind.…

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A taste of the Seder around the world By Chandrea Serebro From Buenos Aires to Madrid and finding the way home Buenos Aires, known for its glamour and energy, saw its first Jewish community established in the mid-1800s and still today there is a strong Jewish community. Ayana (Natalia) Jazanovich was born and spent her formative years growing up in Buenos Aires. “My parents were children of European parents who left Europe before WW2 and although they grew up knowing they were Jewish and spoke Yiddish, there was no connection…

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How to digest trauma without letting it swallow us By: Paula Levin They say when life gives you lemons, you make lemonade – but what do you do with maror? Lemons are the small stresses and setbacks; the minor inconveniences, the bad luck, bad days, and bad moods that are part of ordinary, daily living. Maror is much more. It’s pain and suffering, loss and tragedy – the traumatic and catastrophic events that go far deeper, are far more bitter, and are much harder to swallow. What do we do…

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Getting to the heart of the matter By: Rabbi Dovid Samuels Happy new year! No, it’s not Rosh HaShanah; it’s Nisan, and we’re building up to Pesach. So, why the new year’s greetings? Rabbeinu Tam, one of our most famous medieval commentators, teaches us that the world really had two aspects of creation. In Tishrei, Rosh HaShanah marks the creation of the world ‘in thought’, and Nisan marks the creation of the world ‘in action’. Naturally, this concept is a complex one; as is any topic concerning the creation of…

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