Guests and friends from across the region and London recently joined Norwich's Jewish community for a special anniversary service. The celebrations marked 17 years since the Progressive Jewish Community Of East Anglia (PJCEA) was launched in the city.  | | Children taking part in the celebrations |
The packed congregation included Nigel Cole, Chair of Liberal Judaism, and Rabbi Danny Rich, Chief Executive of Liberal Judaism, as well as Lady Knollys, Vice Lord Lieutenant of Norfolk, and Felicity Hartley, Lord Mayor of Norwich. Rabbi Rachel Benjamin led the morning service on 25 November with a message of respect for all faiths and the importance of contributing to the wider community in a spirit of peace and tolerance. She hopes the anniversary service will raise their profile locally and nationally. "East Anglia may have a dearth of kosher restaurants, but it is still a good place to be a Liberal Jew," she said. London visitorRabbi Benjamin is based in London but travels to Norwich to take monthly services for the PJCEA. During the celebration she spoke of her great affection for Norfolk and her happy memories of living in Norwich when she was a student rabbi. Children also took part in the service and were asked to come forward for a blessing when a prayer shawl was raised over them. New wall-hangings were unveiled and it is hoped they will help create the atmosphere of a synagogue at the monthly prayers. The service was taken in Hebrew and English and ended with the passing round of chalah - a traditional sweet, soft yellow bread that has been blessed. Jewish communities in NorwichNorwich has three synagogues: the Norwich Hebrew Congregation at Earlham Road, the Progressive Jewish Community, which meets in Colegate, and the Adat Yeshua Messianic Synagogue at Thorpe St Andrew Village Hall. Byron Simmonds, the chair of the Colegate congregation, values their history in the area. "Norwich has a rich Jewish heritage dating back to medieval times, with several parts of the city centre housing having historic links to the Jewish community," he said. "The PJCEA is pleased to be able to demonstrate its commitment to the city and to contribute a cultural diversity of which Norwich can be justly proud." What is Progressive Judaism?Progressive Judaism includes the Liberal Judaism tradition and is one of three major strands of Judaism in the UK. The Norwich community is fairly small but there are more than 30 congregations and 10,000 members across the UK. Mr Simmonds explained that Liberal Judaism is a modern take on the ancient religion. "It seeks to make Jewish life relevant to the modern world and one illustration of this is that men and women have equality of opportunity in all aspects of religious life," he said. "Liberal Judaism believes that ancient laws must be interpreted to ensure that ethical values and practices also take account of what we know, and the world as it is today, while preserving the core beliefs and practices that underpin the religion." | 
