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Euroasian Jewish News
International Klal Israel Colloquium.
17.04.2007
On April 15, 2007 the Moscow Choral Synagogue (KEROOR) hosted the opening ceremony of the International Klal Israel Colloquium: Jewish Ethnicity and Nationalism: Past and Present" dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the Moscow Symposium "Jewish Culture in the Soviet Union". The Symposium was to be held in December of 1976, but though it was completely ready, Soviet authorities forbade the event.
The Colloquium was organized by the Russian State Classic Maimonides Academy, the Tel-Aviv University, the International Center for Jewish Education and Field Studies and the Vaad of Russia, and supported by the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress (EAJC) and the Joods Humanitair Fonds (Netherlands).
Benjamin Fine, Felix Kandel and Vladimir Prestin, the Moscow Symposium of 1976 organizers, were invited to the Colloquium presidium.
Forum was preceded by the reception in the Ambassador of Israel residence, which was arranged to honor the Minister of Immigrant Absorption of Israel Zeev Boim's visit to Russia, and on the occasion of the Colloquium. In her speech the new Israeli Ambassador to Russia Ms. Anna Azari stressed the importance of the collaboration of the Jewish Diaspora scholars with their colleagues from Israel.
Minister Boim was present at the opening of the colloquium, which was started by the Vaad of Russia President, the EAJC Secretary General Michael Chlenov. The Rabbi-in-Chief of Russia, the EAJC Council of Rabbis Deputy Chairman, r. Adolph Shayevich and the Russian Jewish Congress (RJC) Vice-President Eugeny Satanovsky wished every success to the forum.
"One of the purposes of the present forum is an attempt to collect the present-day prognosis of the Jewish life, which could be compared with those, made 30 years ago, and published in the Symposium of 1976 documents", - Prof. Chlenov told.
Zeev Boim spoke about the prominent contribution of the Jews of the former USSR to the economics, culture and political life of Israel, and stressed that the work mobilizing new repatriates must go on.
At Michael Chlenov's suggestion the participants observed a minute of silence to honor the memory of the victims of the Holocaust, thus joining memorial events celebrated by the Jews of the whole world at that day.
The Forum continued its proceedings in the Kurkino hotel, where on April 16 there were held the Second International Colloquium "Jews of "Knaan": Early Jewish History in Slavic Lands in the North Black Sea Basin". The Institute of Slavonic Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences joined the abovementioned sponsors of this event.
EAJC Public Relations and Media Department
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