NYC Metro Area
We’ve had a wonderful summer of community programming in New York! First, our partners at Kehila Kedosha Janina opened up a wonderful new exhibit: The Synagogues of Greece - Making the Invisible Visible through Architecture, Technology, and Storytelling by Greek Jewish architect Elias Messinas. In this exhibition, based on the 30-year in-situ documentation and research of Messinas, and the digitization of the rediscovered 1960/1 archive of synagogue surveys by architect Shemtov Samuel (1939-2009) now part of the Elias Messinas Archive, the project aims to reconnect to a nearly lost heritage. By presenting briefly the traditions, the history and architecture of Greek synagogues, and through the use of technology, attendees learn, but also re-experience synagogues that have been lost forever from communities like Salonika, Veria, Kos, and beyond. Through architectural representations, digital models and VR tools, these buildings regain their formal presence and we "visit" them again although they do not exist any longer.
In August, in conjunction with this year’s Sephardic Rabbinic Conference, we co-hosted a beautiful Sephardic Community Selihot Concert at Congregation Shearith Israel in Manhattan. This special evening featured a powerful keynote address by Rabbi Marc D. Angel, a delicious spread of Sephardic foods, and six different hazzanim (cantors) and musicians representing traditions including Syrian, Moroccan, Spanish & Portuguese, and of course our own Ladino-Sephardic music. It was a packed house, and special thank you to Congregation Shearith Israel for making this event happen.
We also had a wonderful time at the annual Community Wide Sephardic Selihot Program this September at the Sephardic Congregation of Fort Lee (led by Rabbi Ilan Acoca). more than 100 community members from more than 12 area synagogues gathered at midnight to sing the beautiful Sephardic Selihot of our communities, a powerful evening of reflection and song in the lead up to the High Holidays. Our Greek Jewish & Sephardic Young Professionals Network also hosted the annual Sephrdic Rosh Ashana Seder for the second night of the holiday at Kehila Kedosha Janina. Participants from around NYC joined for a beautiful evening of Hebrew, Ladino, and Greek renditions of the Simanim of the Rosh Ashana Seder, using our specially made Sephrdic Brotherhood Seder Booklet for the holiday.
Coming up, we have our annual Ziara - Community Cemetery visits at Mount Hebron Cemetery in Queens and Cedar Park Cemetery in New Jersey, led by Rabbi Yossi Azose. We are also excited to co-host the second Athens Meets Aleppo program, an evening of celebration in the Sukkah with dancing, delicious Sephardic foods, and live Greek, Ladino, Israeli, and Arabic music on September 30th in Lower Manhattan. The program is open to our whole community, but please be sure to RSVP in advance.
If you’re interested in joining to visit a loved one and say Ashkavah memorial prayers, please reach out to us at info@sephardicbrotherhood.com.
Check out our website for more info at sephardicbrotherhood.com, and make sure to always check our weekly La Boz Sefaradi—the Sephardic Voice, for all our upcoming local and national events.
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