SARATOV, Russia — A crowd of 550 Jewish community members, businesspeople and government officials packed a Saratov, Russia, municipal hall to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Volga River port's Chabad-Lubavitch center.
Russian Jewish Community Celebrates Decade of Rejuvenation
SARATOV, Russia — A crowd of 550 Jewish community members, businesspeople and government officials packed a Saratov, Russia, municipal hall to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Volga River port’s Chabad-Lubavitch center.
The evening program ñ featuring speeches, a concert and performance by a Russian theater troupe ñ was officially dedicated to Rabbi Yaakov Meir and Leah Kubitshek, who arrived in 1997 to establish the center, but it was just as much a tribute to the growth of a community that bounced back from the ravages of Communist-era religious oppression.
“I don’t remember so many important people, from Jewish businesspeople, Jewish actors, Jewish VIPs, all coming together before,” said Alexander Lazarson, 62.
Lazarson, a professor of physics who grew up in Saratov and now serves as president of its 10,000-strong Jewish community, recounted the sea change in Jewish life witnessed in the city over the past decade.
