“It’s like we’ve gone back in time.” “I feel like in the old days.” “The crowd just kept growing …” “The energy and excitement feels like Yom Tov …”

These were some of the comments heard as the crowd mingled for a Shabbat experience on the steps of the Gardens Shul on Shabbat 7 November.

‘The Glory, The Grandeur, The Gardens’ was the billing for what will definitely go down as one of the most memorable Friday night Shabbat experiences in Cape Town’s history. Highlighting the first anniversary since the launch of the monthly ‘Friday Night Live’ programmes at the Gardens Shul, the occasion was marked by the opening of the historic grand entrance of South Africa’s first synagogue into the Company Gardens.

The evening was truly magical, as a crowd of over 1000 men, women and children packed out the lively services (130 teens at the teen service!) led by Rabbi Osher Feldman, Cantor Ian Camissar and choir and a team of youth leaders. A ‘Sushi and Glenlivet’ brocha was then served in a beautifully decorated, brightly lit marquee in an eruv enclosed area outside the original Grand Front entrance of the Shul, where the crowds enjoyed the excitement of the evening.

Cape Board and WPZC members protest against xenophobia outside St. George’s Cathedral

The spate of xenophobic violence that started in Gauteng spread to Cape Town in the week of 19 May and resulted in almost 20 000 foreign nationals being displaced.

The SA Jewish Board of Deputies (Cape Council) co-ordinated refugee relief efforts over a period of months, specifically in relation to what became known as ‘the Caledon Square Group’, as well as efforts directed more generally towards refugee relief in the general Cape Town area.

The Board has an outreach portfolio, chaired by Li Boiskin, and it sent out an appeal amongst the Jewish community for financial aid to allow the Board to carry out relief efforts directed at victims of the xenophobic attacks and violence. A few hundred thousand rand was raised, supplemented by a further substantial contribution from Investec channelled through our National office, and to date almost all the funds have been utilised.

Strolling together through the Bo-Kaap

On Sunday 23 November, in an unusual ‘first’, 35 young university students, Jews and Muslims, spent the day together sharing and learning about their respective cultures in walkabouts and visits to their traditional historical centres.

After meeting at the Slave Lodge, they went together to the Bo-Kaap where they ‘walk-toured’ up to the Awal Mosque and visited the Bo-Kaap Museum, enjoying the lively atmosphere of the neighbourhood. The tour of the Jewish ‘quarter’ began at the Mount Nelson, where they took in the plaque commemorating the first minyan in Cape Town. Then on to the SA Jewish Museum and to the Ponevez Shul in Maynard Street.

In the afternoon they watched and discussed a video of ‘Encounter Point’, and concluded the day sharing a ‘finale supper’ — “Blintzes and curry, samoosas and chopped herring,” laughs one of the organisers, Daniel Mackintosh.

Maccabi Western Province held their first ever Action Day on Sunday 28 September 2008, with over 100 participants and supporters attending the sporting day. Senior and Junior Cricket, as well as open Netball roundrobin tournaments were held.

The level of play was extremely high, with plenty of classic cover drives, sixes, run-outs, goals and even a hat-trick! In fact, the referees even suggested that a few of the teams would be competitive in league play — something that Maccabi Western Province is considering, so please watch this space!

In a reversal of the trend for synagogues in rural communities, to close as their members migrated to the urban centres, the newly-built synagogue and community centre of the Hermanus Hebrew Congregation was consecrated in the presence of communal dignitaries and representatives of the different faith groups of the seaside town on Sunday 7 September.

Also present was Freda Auerbach, Hermanus’s longest-standing Jewish resident, who has lived there for 68 years. Though the town has 31 permanent Jewish residents, the numbers swell considerably over weekends and holiday periods, when the estimated 349 holiday home owners arrive at the popular resort.

Chief Rabbi Dr Warren Goldstein, who offi ciated at the ceremony, noted that the yahrzeit of the late chief rabbi Cyril Harris was due to fall during the coming week.
“The hand of Hashem has guided us to have (the ceremony) two days before his yahrzeit — it wasn’t planned that way,” he said.

For the past five months fourteen young Jewish adults have taken part in the Young Jewish Leadership Development Course. The aim of this is to train and encourage young leadership within the various communal organisations in Cape Town.

The course has run since the beginning of March this year, with sessions being conducted fortnightly on Thursday evenings. It concluded with a graduation ceremony on Thursday 28 August. Those present at this function were the conveners, Gerald Kleinman, Melvyn Gordon, UJC Chairman Marco van Embden, representatives of many communal organisations, the course participants and their family and friends.