Future Russian Officer Celebrates Bar Mitzva

MYTISCHI, Russia –- The Jewish community of Mytischi celebrated an important occasion – not only in the life of the community, but of all future military persons of Jewish background. This week, two young men underwent their Bar Mitzva to mark their coming of age. Already active in community affairs for a number of years already, this ceremony confirmed Alexander Barkovskiy’s and Oleg Tkacha’s commitment to living a Jewish life.

A Milestone at Chabad

ST LOUIS, MO — Twenty-five years ago, Chabad of Greater St. Louis had a modest beginning — operating out of the apartment of Rabbi Yosef Landa and his wife, Shiffy Landa, the founders of Chabad in St. Louis.

Following a Cultural Bread-Making Tradition

Baking fresh challah is one of the most sacred of Jewish traditions.

It is also an exercise in patience, of which I happen to have very little.

Oldest Living Jew Celebrates 107 in Moscow

MOSCOW, Russia — Caricaturist Boris Efimov celebrated his 107th birthday this week at the Beit Menachem Chabad-Lubavitch Marinah Roshtza synagogue in Moscow. Efimov, who etched political caricatures until the early 1980s, received Soviet State Prizes twice and was People’s Painter of the USSR in 1967.

Chabad to Open Jewish Outreach Center

LANCASTER, PA — Rabbi Elazar Green believes the most important building in the Jewish faith isn’t the synagogue. It’s the home.

“It’s where people can come and experience and live Judaism,” he said.

A Chabad Tradition Takes Off in Daytona

DAYTONA, FL — How a city known for NASCAR, Harley Davidson rallies, and spring brea shenanigans came to need a 25,000 square foot Chabad-Lubavitch center i quite a story.

Chabad Boosts Jewish Activity in Small Suburbs

ANNAPOLIS, MD — Next month’s meeting between Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert will turn international media attention to Annapolis. But one Jewish community in the city is enjoying a different focus.

A Jewish Scroll Opens the Door to Debate

TALLAHASSEE, FL — Saying it is ”fundamental” to freedom to be able to display ”religious symbols,” Gov. Charlie Crist has quietly placed a boxed Jewish scroll on the door leading into his formal Capitol office.

Have Prayers and Packers, too

GREEN BAY, WI — If you’re going to have a kosher tailgate at Lambeau Field, you might as well go all the way.

That means you light up the coals of the kosher grill and bring out the kosher hot dogs, beef, chicken and brats.

Jewish Center Wins OK from City

NEWTON, MA — A fast-growing Orthodox Jewish community that has battled the city for nearly five years scored a major victory last week, defeating the last municipal obstacle to building a 12,000-square-foot synagogue in a residential neighborhood in Newton Highlands.

By a vote of 19 to 3, the Board of Aldermen approved Beth Menachem Chabad’s plan to provide just nine parking spaces alongside its new center at 349 Dedham St., at least 60 fewer spaces than zoning rules would generally require.

Chabad Day of Goodness & Kindnesss Proclaimed in NC

ASHEVILLE, NC — Mayor Terry Bellamy proclaimed a “Chabad Day of Goodness and Kindness” in honor of Chabad of Western North Carolina’s inauguration of its new home on 660 Merrimon Avenue.

Beneath the bold white-on-blue Chabad House sign, the door of the new space opens into a large room where prayer services and community events will be held. An enthusiastic bunch of 150 poured in, the fresh scent of new paint and carpet still in the air, and peered into the rabbi’s office and the children’s room during the grand opening event on September 30.

A Joyful Concert

During the days when the Temple was still standing in Jerusalem, a special ceremony was performed during Sukkot. This ceremony, called Beit Hashoeva, “the place of drawing water,” involved drawing water and pouring it on the altar. The ceremony was accompanied by a celebration, which involved dancing and juggling and was called “Simchat Beit Hashoeva.”

This ceremony is discussed at length in the Talmud, says Rabbi Laibel Blotner of Chabad of Mesa, in an e-mail. “The Talmud describes the ceremony as one that the streets of Jerusalem were lit up and the greatest Rabbis would participate in singing and dancing. The festivities would last throughout the night.”

Chabad Course Explores Israel’s Spiritual Side

ATLANTA, GA — A new six-part adult-education course from Chabad-Lubavitch’s Rohr Jewish Learning Institute will explore the spiritual connection between the Jewish people and the land of Israel starting at the end of October.

Unlike courses that focus on the history or the culture of Israel, “The Land & the Spirit: Why We All Care About Israel” will explore the mystery of the deep connection between Jews everywhere and that small patch of land in the Middle East.

Rabbi pops up in Korea

Chol Hamoed Sukkos was highly eventful for traveling Mohel, Rabbi Yossi Simon of Tzivos Hashem in the UK.

Rabbi & Mrs Avremi Greenberg Chabad Shluchim in Shanghai, China had been blessed with a baby boy who need a bris; and, in addition, an Israeli couple living in South Korea also needed a bris for their baby son.

The Rebbe’s Minyan

Chabad of Georgia grows to 10 centers with no end in sight

Throughout their yeshiva years, Chabad rabbis are trained to be men on the street in cities across the country and around the world that could use an extra Jewish touch. They are sent to cities and rural towns to offer the essence of Chabad – the Hebrew acronym for chachmah (wisdom); binah (comprehension); and da’at (knowledge) – to Jews or anyone embracing the Jewish soul.

It may seem a lot like a Christian missionary model, like the young Mormons riding their bikes and wearing ties while searching for converts, but the Chabad approach has worked well for members of the Lubavitch branch of Chasidism since its arrival in America nearly 66 years ago.