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phetic portion). I was flattered and accepted. I walked to the rear of the sanctuary, searching for a chumash, the book that includes all the Torah and haftarah portions. There were none— just books with the Torah portions. The honor-giver must have seen the look of consternation on my face— did they expect me to chant the haftarah by heart?— and handed me a book( apparently not available to the rank and file) that included all the haftarot in large print. Nice!
The rabbi led the entire shacharit( morning) and Torah services, plus all the full-length Torah readings and a 15- to 20-minute sermon. I cannot critique the content, because it was in Danish. But his delivery was animated. One gentleman who had an aliyah was celebrating an anniversary. After his aliyah, the rabbi addressed remarks to him and his wife in the balcony, after which the congregation stood and sang a lively setting of Psalm 150.
Mussaf( the additional service) was lay led.
Something really remarkable: In many Orthodox congregations, when the Torah reading stretches to about 200 sentences— each needing to be chanted with ancient
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cantillation— there’ s often someone beside the reader giving hand signals to indicate musical shifts. This morning, that person was the rabbi’ s 12-year-old son. Pretty impressive!
Once a month, instead of a modest kiddush of wine and pastries, the service is followed by a luncheon. We lucked out. After the service, we adjourned to an adjoining building and sat down to a lovely meal of meat( including some vegetarian faux meat), vegetables, soft drinks and hard liquor.
Linda learned that for several years, shechitah( kosher slaughter) has been prohibited by the Danish government, likely due to false claims of inhumanity. All kosher meat is imported, mostly from France. That makes serving a meat kiddush expensive.
I was invited, as part of my Danish Jewish experience, to sample some genuine Danish schnaps. I am not a schnaps maven, so I can only say it was strong. Any more than a jigger and I wouldn’ t have been able to find my way back to the hotel— even with Google Maps.
The people near us spoke English and made us feel very welcome. The meal was followed by spirited communal singing
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of zemirot( Sabbath table songs) and birkat hamazon( grace after meals)— and, much to Linda’ s and my surprise, the same melodies are sung in American shuls and summer camps.
One big surprise: During zemirot, the rabbi made an announcement in Danish, and I caught a mention of the Beach Boys. Sure enough, when the congregation sang Dror Yikra, one of the zemirot, it was to the tune of“ Sloop John B.”
We walked back to our hotel feeling very welcomed and gratified. Being able to participate in a Jewish service thousands of miles from home will do that to you. Sunday, June 29
We walked to the Danish Jewish Museum. Very nondescript on the outside. There was no visible security, but visitors had to be buzzed in.
If you look closely, both the door and the plaque beside it feature the Hebrew word mitzvah prominently. That word was very important to the architect, Daniel Libeskind, who also designed the Jewish Museum in Berlin. We were told the floor plan contains the four Hebrew letters that make up the word— but we couldn ' t figure out how.
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( If you do, let me know.)
Through audio, video, and dioramas, the museum tells the story of the Jewish community here, from its beginnings in the early 1600s through the Holocaust.( The brochure says“ through the present day,” but I saw nothing post-Holocaust.) We were told Danish schoolchildren come here to learn about their Jewish neighbors.
Perhaps one of the most remarkable things about the museum is not so much its content as its architecture. The walls are angled. The ceilings are old brick, the walls Danish birch. And most remarkably— the floors are slanted at odd angles that make visitors unsure on their feet. One recording explains this is deliberate. It represents:
1. The boats used to help thousands of Danish Jews flee to Sweden— small, unstable, and constantly in motion
2. The uncertainty faced by all Jews— even( especially?) in the 21st century
All in all, it was a memorable visit to a unique museum.
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The Hebrew Cemetery joins with the community in remembering the names of those who have been buried in the cemetery in the month of April, 2025
Malka MeZahav 1-25-1938- 5-10-2025 Moses Luski 5-23-1953- 5-10-2025 Irving Bienstock 6-15-1926- 5-12-2025 Vladimir Traiberg 6-29-1943- 5-29-2025 Karen Malar 11-2-1967- 5-31-2025 Arnold Zulman 12-17-1932- 6-1-2025 Marion Hoheiser 10-21-1939- 6-4-2025 Yuliya Mordukhovich 6-21-1933- 6-4-2025 Cheryl Rosenberg 9-20-1945- 6-9-2025
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