As a birthday (11/1) gift, Rabbi Raanan came to hang a very special mezuzah at my home. This simple tin mezuzah once hung at the entrance to my great-grandparents’ apartment in Berlin for at least the 16 years they lived there (1916 – 1933). They were Arthur Hahn and Julie Hahn, nee Schwarz. I discovered it by pure chance on the very last day of my very last trip to Berlin in May 2017. It was well camouflaged on the doorframe, and yet I spotted it. I believe it was because my great-grandparents wanted me to find it and tell the mezuzah’s story. I then emailed the hotel owners if they could remove the mezuzah and give it to me and why I wanted to have it. The timing was perfect, as the hotel was about to be shut down and renovated, and the mezuzah would have been tossed into the garbage, so they told me. Once removed, it remained in Berlin in a friend’s care for the next 5 years, till recently, when another congregant kindly brought it over from Berlin to me.
It was the only mezuzah left in the entire building, which comprises 6 floors and today is the beautiful Hotel Seifert, built in 1877. But in 1939, at least 36 Jews were living there. If this mezuzah could talk it would tell how it had seen the very best and the very worst. How it had witnessed my grandparents’ engagement on Jan 14, 1919 and their marriage six months later. It would also say how it witnessed the deportation of the apartment’s last occupant, Dr. Richard Salomon, to Auschwitz. My great-grandfather Arthur had died in 1933, and the Salomon family had moved in shortly thereafter. My great-grandmother Julie would later be deported to Theresienstadt in December 1942, one day after Richard Salomon, where she succumbed to lung disease and starvation 10 months later, witnessed by my grandparents, who were also there and who miraculously, and barely, survived.
Now this mezuzah, a silent storyteller of history’s good and evil, will remain on my doorframe forever while I live in this home. It will be loved and treasured by me 3 generations later, and will never ever again witness a deportation.
In remembrance of Kristallnacht (Nov 9-10), we remember and honor all those who were victims.
Note: Ellyn is on vacation (my phone is in a sleeping bag for the week) until November 7. I am on my annual mother/daughter trip - and I am playing lots of mahj :)
Who: YOU What: plan a chanukah celebration of some kind When: one night of Chanukah Where: at the venue of your choosing How: with up to $500 from JCM
In a nutshell... We want to empower you to plan a fun Chanukah event and we'll help pay for it! This equals a fun community-driven event every night of Chanukah! Click Here For Details
The Jewish people are the descendants of an Iraqi refugree, Abram (who later became Abraham). Abram was 48 years old when the people were dispersed from the Tower of Babylon. He was sent to a Land already populated by the Canaanite nations (Genesis 12:6). He was promised that he would become a great nation and would be blessed.
Talmud Torah - you can still register! Wednesdays 5:00pm We had a dozen students start last week from ages 6-13. They had lots of fun.
Our Mission: Our school seeks to inspire children to develop a rich Jewish life through a love of pluralistic learning and developing friendships in a diverse community.
Rabbi Raanan leads the new ritual committee. This is your chance to be part of the process and decision making for what happens during services and other religious elements of JCM. If you are at all intererested or curious, email rabbi@mauijews.org or just show up on ZOOM. This is what separates from other Jewish communities...that we want and honor all ideas and
Are you still not a member?! Now's the time!!!
It’s membership renewal time! This is when we ask you to reflect on the value of having a pluralistic, inclusive, community-centered synagogue on our little, remote island.
What does that even mean?
Support of the Jewish life of your choosing- without judgment
We don’t talk about levels of observance
No one is “more Jewish” than anyone else
Girls, Boys, LBGTQ+ have equal access to the Torah and lifecycle events
Welcoming to all with a flexible dues plan
Preserving meaningful traditions and open to creating new ones
A voice in the direction your community is heading
Children of paternal lineage are equally Jewish
Contemporary and Traditional teachings
A progressive cemetery
Click Here to read Ellyn's whole letter...or simply click below to join today.
Israeli Folk Dancing canceled this week
Any changes and additions will be posted on the website calendar.
Click Hereif you or a loved one would like to be added for a prayer for healing each week. No names will be read aloud without permission...names can be said privately by the rabbi.
JCM is here to support you and your loved ones, please let us know how we can help.
Yahrzeits October 31 - November 7
William Jaffe Josephine Lopez Dora Goldstein Stanley Sussman Alex Regson Paul Pike Anthony Andrew Caputo Edith Brandes Morris Bloom Sanft Sandra Rachel Rifka Mandel Jacob Berman Sarah Rosoff Edith Brandes Alexander Goldsmith Julius Dan Elsa Gelman Rosoff Ruth Moss Derek Koss Claude Alfred Scemla Helen Wallin
Join us for services on Friday and Saturday to recite Mourner's Kaddish
You can make an impact while you shop everyday.
Simply shop at smile.amazon.com/ch/99-0294390 and AmazonSmile will donate to the Jewish Congregation of Maui Inc, at no cost to you.
Same amazon, same prices, same everything... and JCM will get a donation from Amazon. Thank you for your support!!!
The Jewish Congregation of Maui Beit Shalom Synagogue Kihei, HI 96753
The mission of the Jewish Congregation of Maui is to support and inspire Jewish religious and cultural practices for Maui residents and visitors, provide and encourage Jewish education and life cycle services, and engage the Jewish community with religious services, classes, and events.
