SPS 2017 Chanukah Party

Although we were too late to include a write-up on Chanukah in the January Gate, I decided it is never too late to thank all those members and friends who came and joined in the fun of the evening. There were 78 in the end, after one or two people cancelled due to illness. 

Firstly I am always amazed at the wonderful selection of food which you all bring and I know that we discuss this beforehand; nevertheless those of you who cook and prepare dishes are to be commended for the quality, taste and presentation. In addition, items purchased are of the finest and we end up with platters of food which, as someone pointed out to me ”A Caterer could not possibly present any better!” Thank you all. Also to our wonderful ladies of the House Committee, chaired by Barbara Martin, for their attention to organisation and detail, you are truly fantastic. We must not forget our wonderful Security team who braved the cold – thank you, we appreciate what you do for us to keep us safe inside. 

The Karaoke session turned out to be lots of fun - so many people stood up and sang and I know that everyone enjoyed themselves. Maybe we can repeat the same next Chanukah. I do hope you all had a good break and feel rejuvenated to cope with 2018. I spent a few days in Berkshire with my daughter Denise and her husband Coenie and had such a relaxing time eating, drinking and playing scrabble and also working on 2 jigsaws that it was a pleasure not to be relying on the Internet/Ipad/Iphone for entertainment. Denise was working on the 3rd jigsaw when I returned home. Unfortunately, after a few days I developed a nasty head cold and had to stay at home and cosset myself and was really grateful for the programmes on Television, which I had previously recorded, to keep me company, so the internet does come in useful when required! 

I hope this year will bring good health and peace for everyone and bring happiness to all. Thank you again for making the festival one to remember.

Pearl Phillips 

LJ Quiz

Just to say thank you so much for a superbly organised quiz yesterday. Southgate was so welcoming, the food was delicious, the hall so well laid out and of course the quiz itself was brilliant! There was such a good atmosphere and it was obvious that it was a great success. Please thank the whole team for me and indeed on behalf of LJ. I did go into the kitchen to say ‘thank you’ personally to all the catering volunteers but there was no one there. It’s been a real pleasure working with you and I thoroughly enjoyed myself. 

Warmest regards, Monique 

The Barn Dance - 4th November

I am writing this report following the above event, which I am pleased to say was a great success! We had just under 50 people come along for an evening of fun, food and of course lots of dancing. Our caller was very enthusiastic and had a great sense of humour! We learnt various dance sequences and it was great fun trying to get all the sequences right and our caller kept this going throughout the evening. Halfway through the evening, we held a raffle with many prizes won. The net amount raised was £328.00, which will be going into the Synagogue Roof Fund. I would like to thank everybody who came along to support the event and also to those who gave up their time to come and help set up on the day. I have already been asked when we will hold another Barn Dance, so watch this space! 

SAVE THE DATE: SPS 75th ANNIVERSARY QUIZ – 28.4.18 

Amanda Lesley – Fundraising Group



Over 50 people enjoyed a barn dance held in the Schindler Hall. We swung our partners and “dozy do’ed” the evening away, and as many of us are of a certain age we were very glad to have the many two-minute breaks in between the dances. Actually, I don’t think my knees will recover till next year! We enjoyed plenty to eat and drink and a great raffle with many items donated by local shops all collected by Amanda and her team. Thank you ladies of the fundraising commitiee, a great time was had by one and all. Here’s to the next one and SPS members make sure you are there.

Jane Greenfield 

Chavarah Supper With Words From The Savoy Butler

Congratulations to Jane Greenfield for organising a thoroughly enjoyable chavurah service in early September. She managed to get over sixty people to come and listen to Sean Devoren, the Head Butler at the Savoy Hotel, regale us with revelations of what his job entails. 

He took us into a different world that most of us could never aspire to. It was fascinating and at times bewildering but great fun. Special thanks to the lovely ladies of the house committee, who as usual made sure the amazing choice of food was served with aplomb. 

Wonder who Jane will come up with next time. What about the life and times of a London Cab Driver? Could be interesting, or perhaps not.

Barn Dance at SPS!

Come and join the fun! 

Saturday 4th November 2017

7.30pm 

£12.50 per person to include deli-style food and drinks. 

Please contact: 

fundraising@sps.uk.com or office@sps.uk.com 

Please pay in advance by no later than Friday 20th October

Friday Family Service

On Friday 19th May, Rabbi Yuval conducted the first Friday Family Service, after school, in the Schindler Hall.

Unsure as to how many families would attend, word of mouth had done the trick and we were delighted that 17 children from the ages of 6 months up to 9 years, along with their family members, turned up, eager to participate! It was great to see many from the successful 'Mini-Ruach' playgroup and some non-members who'd been invited along too.

The atmosphere was relaxed, yet fun, with everyone singing in a circle following the Shabbat stories, songs and prayers led by our Rabbi, allowing all the children and their parents to join in. At the end of the service, some of the older children helped with the lighting of the candles and everyone said the blessings over the wine (grape juice!) and challah before enjoying a delicious buffet (courtesy of Katie Dack and myself) of pizza, crisps, dips, cakes and much more!

The rest of the time was spent eating, chatting, playing, meeting new friends and making a date for the next family service.

On that note, we do hope you can join us on Friday 7th July at 4.15pm which will be our last service before the summer holidays. Spread the word!

World union for progressive Judaism convention in Jerusalem

My son, Richard, and I were delegates at the W.U.P.J. 38th International Convention, 17 – 20 May in Jerusalem. I was the oldest and the only one to have attended its Sixth Conference, 1949 in London. Then there were 100 delegates from 13 countries; now over 400 Delegates came together from 32 countries. Founded by Lily Montagu in London in 1926, WUPJ is now the largest Jewish religious movement world-wide.

By common consent it was the best convention ever. Highlights were a service at the side of the Kotel reserved for egalitarian services, with women carrying the Sefer Torah; a Shabbat Eve celebration at the site of the former Railway Station, now a cultural centre, where the eight Reform congregations around Jerusalem came together in song and dance with a thousand participants; and the Shabbat morning service on the top of Bet-Shmuel, the wonderful Reform Centre overlooking the Old City. Like our Shabbat Resouled Service with music, processions, singing and dancing and seven Aliyot, with much enthusiasm it lasted two and a half hours!

Among the main speakers and workshop leaders were Nathan Sharansky (Head of the Jewish Agency), the daughter of Shimon Perez (who recited Kaddish at his funeral), Danny Fessler (Director of the Leo Baeck Educa$on Centre in Haifa) and Gilad Kariv, CEO of the Israel Reform Movement, well-known to us.

While at the 1949 Conference, so soon aer the Shoah, the mood was sober, serious and contemplative; the mood in 2017 was euphoric, confident and optimistic.

So we sang Chasack, Chasack venitchasek at the end of Leviticus with great conviction: “We are strong and will strengthen one another!”.

Harry Jacobi

Supper Quiz - 25th February 2017

A big thank you to everybody who came along to support our Supper Quiz last month. It was very well attended and we were entertained by our Quizmaster whilst enjoying a fish and chip supper. 

There was a great vibe around the hall throughout the evening and it appeared that the evening was enjoyed by all. I would also like to say a big thank you to those who helped out on the day. 

We held a raffle during the evening and I am pleased to report that the net figure raised was just over £800, the proceeds of which will be utilised by SPS. 

Community Seder

You will shortly be getting your Pesach recipe books down from the shelf to start your Pesach baking. As usual I am asking if you could bake a few extra cakes and biscuits to enhance the Kiddushim after services. If you do not have time to bake we will happily accept bought cakes and biscuits (obviously Pesach ones). 

All donations gratefully appreciated and accepted. 

There are a few days left, up to 2nd April, to reserve your place at the Communal Seder. Application forms can be obtained from the office. 

The Communal Seder is always greatly enjoyed by those who aend. As you can appreciate this is something that just doesn’t happen, it is an event that takes careful planning and organising. There are the dedicated few, not all of them aend, who help set up the Hall, organise the sea,ng and make sure there is enough matzah, wine, Seder plates, crockery and cutlery in place for the night. 

Extra help is always required and appreciated. If you have an hour or two during the day when you can help please contact Barbara Martin, she will tell you how you can help and the time to arrive. 
Thanking you in anticipation. 

Barbara Martin

Come to your senses quiz

After months of planning, the SPS Fundraising Group took it upon themselves to hold a quiz with a difference, which involved using all of our five senses. We held five rounds plus an ongoing Marathon Round. 

We worked as a team to put together an evening of activities together with lots of laughter! The Schindler Hall was quickly buzzing with around 60 people, who started the evening with a Marathon round whilst indulging in a fish and chip supper, desserts, drinks and nibbles. 

Halfway through the evening, we held a raffle where many prizes were won. 

It gave us, as a group, much pleasure in seeing just how much everybody enjoyed themselves, after which we had a lot of positive feedback. 

In total, a figure of £660 was raised. It has been decided that £300 will be donated to Leo Baeck Education Centre to support 60 families who have lost all their personal belongings in the recent Haifa fires. 

The remaining £360 will be used by SPS. 

DATE FOR YOUR DIARY: 

SATURDAY 25TH FEBRUARY 2017 - SUPPER QUIZ 

Amanda Lesley

Faith's Got Talent

Over fifty representatives of diverse faith groups from around Enfield met in the Schindler Hall on Saturday 26 November for “Faith’s Got Talent”, a celebration of the rich and varied skills present in those communities.

SPS members mixed with members of local mosques, Hindu temples and Christian churches, amongst others. The talent on display included Christian rappers, Bahai singers and Hindu dancers. SPS’s talent was well represented both by Daniel Keren, who played not just the traditional shofar calls, but a selection of TV and movies themes on a variety of shofarot, and by our Singing Group, who entertained those present with spirited renditions of Shalom Alechem and Adon Olam.

After the evening Rabbi Yuval said “Interfaith work is an essenal part of our role as a liberal community. I was delighted that we were able to welcome our neighbours in faith to SPS.” Bob Dulin echoed Yuval’s remarks, saying “I’m already looking forward to next year’s event. From now until then, Freda and I will be practising our rumba." 

Julian

Events at Southgate Progressive Synagogue

Every now and then we have events at SPS that have the wow factor; the “Come to your Senses” quiz in November definitely fell into that category. There was an air of mystery as to what the quiz was going to be all about, but when it started we soon found out, and enjoyed an evening of good food, and great company, that was by common consent one of best quiz evenings in the history of SPS. 

Whilst being a man of humble disposition, I was proud to be the dynamic leader of a magnificent all round highly intelligent team, who ended the evening victorious. Thanks to everyone who made the quiz such fun: girls and boys, you did a great job, and well done to everyone who came and helped swell the Synagogue’s coffers. There will be a more traditional style quiz in February, so come along one and all and try and dislodge the supreme reigning champions. 

Two other successful events took place on Saturday 26th November, after the morning service - a Lunch and Chavruta study session on “Responsibility”. The positive feedback from those who attended was that it was a very stimulating and meaningful afternoon. Many thanks to Phyllis Freedman and Joy Cox for organising the event; hopefully there will be more in the future. 

In the evening, sponsored by the Borough of Enfield as part of Inter Faith week, we hosted “Faiths got Talent". Over fifty affable people enjoyed a wonderful, warm-hearted, inspiring event. The evening included a friendly competition of music, readings, rap, poetry, and dance between Jews, Muslims, Christians, Hindus, Buddhists, and members of the Bahia community, who were the eventual winners. It showed that by putting politics and divergent ways of life aside for at least one evening, a number of varied faiths can sit down together and enjoy each other’s company in harmony and mutual respect. 

Hopefully the Synagogue will be involved in many more worthwhile occasions like this. 

Robert Dulin

So, having been ‘invited’ (arm behind the back job) to coordinate Mitzvah Day, and given all of 5 minutes to make up my mind, I thought I would give it a go. 

Having got over the hurdle of having to stand outside Asda (I mistakenly assumed that we would at least be in the lobby and perhaps should have donned more layers) the trusted team got to work. I took lessons from Michelle Golding in how to project one’s voice to request items and with the help of Gerry Ostermeyer and Jacqui Kane we collected a huge array of non-perishable items. Asda’s customers were incredibly generous and completely supportive of our collection for the Enfield Food Bank. 

It is always very grafying to feel that you are helping the less fortunate and the comments we received absolutely endorsed this. 

Would I do it again? I am hoping that they move Mitzvah Day to a scorching hot summer’s day which I guess is not an option. Can someone therefore direct me to the nearest shop that sells Arctic clothing! 

Jill Newton

Interfaith Walk

On a sunny Sunday afternoon back in June I decided to go along to an Interfaith walk which had been organised by Brian Ball. All I knew was that along the walk we would be visiting a church, a mosque and a temple. It sounded interesting so with my mother and daughter in tow we packed a drink and an umbrella and headed off.

We started at Edmonton Methodist Church with an introduction from Brian and some refreshments. After a bit of mingling we entered the church to listen to Minister Alan Combes tell us about the church building. He explained that it didn’t look like a traditional church but that they had adapted the space to serve as a church for the congregation of 250 people. We sat on the lovely cushioned chairs and admired the soE carpet, balcony and music area for the children. We led into a discussion about children’s attendance (or lack of) at church – something we found to be a common problem across faiths.

We then began the short walk to the Mevlana Rumi Mosque which was just across the road. This was very exciting for me personally as I remembered coming to this building as a child when it was Edmonton Library. We were welcomed by Seval Gocke who began by saying how proud she was to be a female director of the mosque. We sat in a very grand common room and Seval told us about Ramadan (which was halfway through at that me) and invited us to special celebrations which were happening the following week. We removed our shoes and entered the prayer room which had a beautiful carpet. I was intrigued to see how the men and women were separated but surprised to learn that women could pray together with men albeit standing at the back. We listened to some prayers sung by one of the members.

Once our shoes were on we said goodbye and headed off to the Nagapooshani Ambaal Temple. On arrival we saw that the Temple is currently being rebuilt and we were taken to the temporary temple next door. The room was filled with statues which were introduced to us by Shanmuganathan Navaratnam (also known as Shan). He told us the names of each of the statues and ex-plained the animals associated with them.

It was overwhelming to see the amount of detail related to each one and their importance in the Hindu faith. We then went to see the build-ing site and the evolving new temple. How impressive! Each stone was shipped over from Sri Lanka and there were hundreds. I will definitely be returning to see the finished project which is expected to be ready next year.

The final stop on our walk was back to the start where we met Jagdish Aminaden from the Baha’i faith. He explained that they do not have a specific place to worship but rather they meet in halls or houses. Jagdish gave us a talk about the founder of Baha’i, Baha U’llah and the 3 main beliefs which are one God, one humankind and one religion. We then watched a video showing a holy place called Haifa in Israel where the ‘Shrine Of The Bab’ is found. The beautiful gardens surround the Shrine and this is also where the administration offices are based. It is definitely a place I would like to visit one day. I enjoyed the walk and the chance to find out more about the faiths. I learned that there are similarities and differences. It was good to speak to others along the way and share our experiences. I would like to thank Brain for organising and I look forward to the next interfaith event. Hopefully you will join me!

- Nathalie Muller

Kabbalat Torah 2016

This years Kabbalat Torah service was led by Naomi and Sarah. Over the last two years they have developed their jewish understanding and have now come to the end. They planned, wrote and led the Saturday service. 

Below is what they wrote about each other and their time in Religion School.

Naomi by Sarah

Throughout my me at religion school I have had a friend in Naomi. I remember when she first walked into the classroom and how shy she was. However, over me I have seen Naomi blossom into a motiviated young woman, who has strong morals and is dedicated to achieving her goals. One of Naomi’s main goals in life is becoming an architect, using her creative abilities and talent in art. Naomi’s Jewish journey is certainly unique, as she has independently built up a strong bond with Judaism.

Sarah by Naomi

Sarah is a dynamic character. Always on the go and never stopping to take a break. Throughout our years at religion school, first learning together as young children while giggling at the back of the classroom, to where we are now. Having completed our Judaism GCSE, I have learnt several things about Sarah. She is head-strong, highly opinionated and thoughtful, always up for a laugh but still there when you need a

friend to turn to. Although Sarah’s journey may be unclear at the moment, I am certain her creative outlook on life and strong character will take her far.

The LJ Biennial 2016

Back at the start of the summer the Liberal Judaism Biennial Conference 2016 was held in Solihull. Nearly 300 Jews across the UK were there, possibly representing 40 different Liberal/ Progressive communities.

We started on a Friday evening with drinks and then a musical Kabbalat Shabbat service before dinner. This was a weekend where we didn't need to bring our own Siddur Lev Chadash as the service was projected onto two large screens, which reminded me of how we do our 'Shabbat Showtime' and Purim melodies. The service included tunes new to some, familiar to others, but everyone joined in and the beautiful sounds filled the room. Dinner was an opportunity to greet new people and start to become acquainted with characters you'd recognise all weekend long. The Jewish community being as it is, you were never far away from someone you knew through friends, family, colleagues, once, twice or three times removed!

For me the Shabbat morning service was key. My fellow Ba'alei Tefillah colleagues took the core of the main service, with satellite options running concurrently in adjoining rooms which depicted Shabbat observance over the millennia. My aforementioned colleagues and I were given our certificates of Graduation of the course by Rabbi Danny Rich and LJ Chair Simon Benscher at the end of the morning service.

The rest of the weekend programme then began in earnest. After a keynote discussion between author Cole Moreton and Rabbi David Goldberg where the key takeaway emerged that in the UK there are 12 million adults who believe in God but hold no religious affiliation at all. I.E. in the census they declared no religion, belong to no religious institution, but could be searching for a spiritual solution. 

We started our journey through the weekend's selection of workshops. There were to be four sessions across Saturday and Sunday with a choice of up to 13 subject choices each time. They ranged from discussions on Brexit, Israel, female Rabbis, to study on liturgy, Talmud, through to food, music and fashion.

The theme of the weekend was 'Thinking outside the book.' LJ is considering republishing our Siddur, and many workshops were looking on how we can influence the way the new Siddur is laid out, its content, the language  (not only translitera8on, and gender-equal, but actually considering how we should address the ‘eternal one’ - a whole session on itself that I attended was very enlightening), the imagery, the format (even if it should be left-right, or right- 

left) etc. The Saturday night dinner was followed by some humorous in-house entertainment, some video messages from previous students of the Leo Baeck College as it celebrates its 70th year graduating Rabbis. This included a message from our own Rabbi Yuval Keren, so he was with us, if not in person! We were then entertained by Jewish comedy-singer Daniel Cainer, whose rendition of ‘Bad Rabbi’ nearly brought the house down! 

Not to be forgotten, during the Saturday dinner the LJ Chair Awards were presented by the Rich/Benscher combination. These awards are given to hard-working long-standing members of the LJ communities and, as the title suggests, it is the Chair of each community that nominates the recipients. Unbeknown to her, our Jane Greenfield was a winner and she was delighted to accept the certificate.

Jane’s contribution to the organizing of this and previous Biennials was marked too at the closing ceremony where, with Josie Kinchen of Finchley Progressive Synagogue, she was presented with a gift.

The whole weekend seemed to pass in a flash. It was a shame that we were only 4 from SPS as there was so much going on. There was literally something for everyone, or hotel spa/gym facilities if you wanted to find some personal time too. Next year there is a single day – LJ’s Day of Celebration at Northwood & Pinner Liberal Synagogue, 11th June – so hopefully a bigger SPS contingent will go. I for one will definitely be there and at the 2018 Biennial – please join me.

Welfare Tea

On the "hottest day of the year" - so far - we held our annual Welfare Tea Party. As the sun blazed outside our 65 VIP guests were in for a treat, a super variety of sandwiches, homemade cakes, fruit and chocolates and that all-important cup of tea. Once again the floor show was provided by the talented Alonim Israeli Dance Troupe who not only danced for us but danced with us! The ever entertaining and enthusiastic Simon Gilbert performed a host of well-known songs and we all had the opportunity to join a good old fashioned sing-along. 

A big thank you to the welfare group and the house committee who, along with their willing team of volunteers, made the afternoon a great success. 

Leo Baeck Youth Orchestra Visit

Recently students from the Leo Baeck Youth Orchestra from Haifa, Israel visited Southgate Progressive Synagogue to perform. Below is their message to us;

                                    

We, the members of the Leo Baeck Education Centre Youth Orchestra, which to send our heartfelt thanks to the Jewish communities of London and Birmingham for hosting us so warmly and generously. We greatly enjoyed performing in all the communities and meeting the wonderful people who arrived to listen to us. Our delight at presenting our everyday lives and experiences in Israel through the music that we so love was even increased by our audience's enjoyment and familiarity with the pieces (and laughter from our jokes). 

We were deeply touched and contented to observe that music can connect people from all over the world, even in difficult, conflicted times such as these. The community members' interest and curiosity regarding our personal lives, voluntary work at school, and musical experiences, and their willingness to expose us to their own Jewish lives, showed us that we were Israeli teens truly have a supporting community of well-wishing people all over the world. Thank you for sharing Purim with us (it was hard being away from home on this special holiday), thank you for feeding us (we are always hungry) and simply - thank you for everything. 

We sincerely hope that relationships between Leo Baeck and the British Jewish communities, be they long-lived or just budding, will continue to flower, perhaps leading us to visit and entertain you once again. 

Neta Barlam and Eitan Gronich

.

Bingo Evening

On Tuesday 12th April we held a bingo evening!

It consisted of five different rounds and each round there were two prizes to be won; for a row and a line. During the break there were tea and cakes to enjoy and a raffle - there were lots of prizes to be won that evening!

There was a good turn out and the fundraising committee would like to thank everyone for coming!

We have fundraising events throughout the year so keep an eye out for our next one, we look forward to seeing you there!

Music Quiz

On Saturday 13th February SPS held a music quiz! 

The two hour quiz consisted of general music questions on almost all music genres, a round of audio snippets and a picture round. There were a variety of different genres and eras suitable for everyone! During the break a raffle was held where many great prizes were won.

We raised £1250 with £500 going to Papworth Hospital and the remaining money to SPS.

A big thank you to everybody who came along to support our Music Quiz – it was very well attended and we were entertained by our Quizmaster whilst we enjoyed a fish and chip supper.

Fundraising: Barn Dance

Throughout the year the fundraising committee holds a variety of different events to raise money for the community and to bring everyone together for a night of fun! We like to do different types of evenings to appeal to everyone and keep it exciting. These events include the most recent Barn Dance;

On the 17th October a barn dance was held in the Schindler hall with around 50 people, of all ages, and was a great success! There was food, dancing and a raffle all to raise much needed funds. The caller was extremely enthusiastic  and energetic and kept us dancing all evening by teaching us various dance sequences which needed a lot of practicing to make sure we got it right! A buffet style meal was provided for everyone by the fundraising committee. A raffle was also held halfway through the evening which included lots of different prizes to be won.

The whole evening was extremely enjoyable and brought the community together outside of religious practices. People are already asking when the next one will be so it was definitely a great success!