EnerJew Day Sweeps FJC Camps
A special day of activities is sweeping FJC’s Gan Israel camps this summer – EnerJew comes to campus to let the campers experience what the youth movement is all about first-hand. EnerJew Day is a “demo-version” of the movement’s way of combining fun and learning, organized by the youth activists themselves. Over 25 EnerJew Days […]
Russian Talmud Translation “Unprecedented Project in Book Publishing”
FJC’s publishing house “Knizhniki” showcased the first results of its massive Talmudic translation project last Sunday: tractate Brachot, published in two volumes, was presented to the general public at a press conference during the Yahad youth forum. The translation will allow Russian-speaking Jews to build a stronger connection with Jewish texts, and also help to […]
Young Russian Jews Rave Up Moscow
A grandiose youth gathering, organized by the FJC’s Yachad Forum, took place in Moscow over the weekend. About 800 Jewish students, youth program activists and community volunteers from 50 cities all over Russia came together for four days of learning, socializing and having fun, in what turned out to be one of the top social events of the […]
Khabarovsk: ‘Or Avner’ Graduate Honored by Mayor
FJC’s ‘Or Avner’ Khabarovsk school graduate, Tatiana Chaya Nekrasova, received a medal from the city mayor last week as part of the year’s “Outstanding Graduates” ceremony. Tatiana was honored for her achievement in sports, as she is the Russian far-East gymnastics athlete and regional champion. Tatiana just graduated the city’s FJC O’r Avner’ Jewish school, […]
Ulyanovsk Rabbi Opens His House (and Heart) to City Teenagers
Looking at the busy pace of activity at FJC’s Jewish community of Ulyanovsk, Russia, it is hard to imagine that only ten years ago the community was on the brink of complete assimilation. The city had no synagogue, no rabbi or community leadership and hence the city’s youth was drifting further and further away from […]
5,000 Children Enjoy Summer Camps
61 FJC summer camps opened their doors this season for an exciting summer vacation to young campers from all over the vast FSU region. The 43 day-camps and 18 sleep-away camps in Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Georgia and other FSU countries are hosting over 5,000 children, providing them with clean and secure environment, hot nutritious meals […]
Jewish Institute Celebrates Graduates
Last week saw the graduation of young ladies from the Machon Chamesh Jewish Institute in Moscow, who received their Bachelor degrees in Public Relations and Economics. The diplomas were distributed at a moving graduation ceremony in Moscow’s Jewish Community center. FJC’s Machon Chamesh Institute is one of the few higher education institutions in the FSU […]
Ukrainian City Renames Street in Honor of the Rebbe
The people initiated the name change, recognizing Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson as a local hero By Dovid Margolin | Chabad.org Pulling down on a light-blue tarp, Rabbi Shmuel Kaminezki and Rabbi Mayer Stambler unveiled a brand-new street sign this morning in Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine: Menachem Mendel Schneerson Street, 1. The newly renamed street, which honors the […]
Birobidzhan Revived by New Torah Scroll
FJC’s Jewish community of Birobidjan in the Russian far-East, received a gift of a new Torah scroll from an anonymous American sponsor last week. The new Torah is the first ever scroll of their own for Birobidjan Jews, who have previously used one on lease from a Moscow community. The occasion was among the most […]
A glimpse into Azerbaijan’s hidden all-Jewish town
Even as its future is uncertain, the unique north Caucasus community of Krasnaya Sloboda is experiencing a religious revival BY LEE GANCMAN | Times of Israel KRASNAYA SLOBODA, Azerbaijan — “Not good,” Rabbi Yona Yaakobi says in Hebrew, expressing his distaste while pointing to a grave featuring a statue of a man who died in 1988. […]