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An oral song tradition

Shenandoah University Prof. Lori Şen spoke about Sephardic music on Nov. 2, as part of Kolot Mayim Reform Temple’s 2025/26 lecture series. (PR photo)

Kolot Mayim Reform Temple started its 2025/26 Building Bridges Zoom lecture series – six music-themed talks running through April – on Nov. 2, with Lori Şen, a professor of vocal pedagogy at Shenandoah University in Winchester, Va.

The title of Şen’s lecture was Classical Echoes in Ladino: Sephardic Songs Reimagined.

“This talk is especially meaningful to me, as it reflects a journey that began about eight or nine years ago with my doctoral dissertation in voice performance,” she said.

“What started as an academic project has since grown into a broader exploration and celebration of a rich and underrepresented genre within the Western classical tradition – Sephardic art song.”

Şen spoke about the Sephardim, their history, language and culture, before discussing the elements of traditional Sephardic music. Later, she introduced Western classical arrangements of Sephardic folk songs for voice and various instruments, and spoke about the development of this genre, playing excerpts from a variety of songs.

Within the expanse of what constitutes Sephardic culture, there is a language, most commonly called Ladino or Judeo-Spanish, a mix of 14th- and 15th-century Castilian, with contributions from Galego-Portuguese, Catalan, Valencian, Aragonese, Hebrew, Turkish, Arabic and others, such as Greek, French, Italian and Balkan languages.

“A certain linguistic creativity is inherent to Judeo-Spanish, which has even been used as a vehicle for expressing verbal revenge through humour in an oppressive society,” Şen said, citing examples of plays on words that can be found in Ladino.

Şen quoted from linguist Marie-Christine Varol, author of Manual of Judeo-Spanish: “Irony, distance, puns and endless plays on meanings and stylistic nuances bouncing back and forth make this language of quotations, double entendres, discrete jokes that seem undecipherable of implied and overly clear meanings into an original and eternally renewed linguistic system steeped in a devastating sense of humour that can only be achieved through a knowledge of several languages, a knowledge that gives it its strength, its richness and its freedom.”

Şen said the types of Sephardic song are defined based on musical parameters such as structure, melody and rhythm, as well as the text and the relationship between the music and text. Many songs were passed down orally, making their origins difficult to trace. Others are Ladino translations or adaptations of Turkish, French and Balkan songs, incorporating dance rhythms like tango and foxtrot, and sometimes referencing familiar operettas.

“Since this repertoire represents such a wide range of cultural exchange, the musical analyses of them require vast musical knowledge,” Şen said. “Sephardic music possesses elements of Western classical music of all periods, starting from medieval, Spanish, Moroccan, Balkan and Greek musical traditions, and Turkish folk and classical forms, including makam.”

Makam is the Middle Eastern modal practice with more pitches than we’re used to in our Western 12-tone notation system.

According to Şen, although instruments were employed on occasion, the Sephardic song repertoire is essentially vocal. When instruments were involved, they were mainly percussive, a tambourine, for instance, though mandolin and oud were also employed.

Traditional Sephardic folk songs, since they were transmitted orally, incorporate a large amount of improvisation. Thus, the melodies of the same songs can differ significantly between communities and across generations.

On her website, lorisen.com, Şen has a catalogue she compiled that includes lists of Sephardic works and composers, works categorized by instrumentation, and songs. Based on archival research and interviews she has conducted with Jewish musicians and music scholars, Şen has identified more than 45 composers who have arranged more than 190 different traditional Sephardic folk songs in the art song form for voice and various instruments. Also on her website is a Ladino diction guide designed to assist singers interested in performing Sephardic songs.

A mezzo-soprano and Fulbright alumna, Şen’s range spans opera, art song, musical theatre and jazz, and she has performed throughout Europe and the United States. Her teaching and research specialize in vocal literature, pedagogy and voice science. Further, through her background in physics, she explores the art and science of the singing voice.

The next lecture in the Kolot Mayim series will feature Broadway historian and lecturer David Benkof on Jan. 11 at 11 a.m. Benkof will deliver his talk – Spotlight on Jewish Broadway with the Broadway Maven – in Victoria in person and on Zoom. For information, visit kolotmayimreformtemple.com.

Sam Margolis has written for the Globe and Mail, the National Post, UPI and MSNBC.

Genealogy tools and tips

Stephen Falk, president of the Jewish Genealogical Society of British Columbia, spoke at the White Rock South Surrey Jewish Community Centre on Nov. 16, offering guidance on tracing one’s Jewish ancestry. (photo by Chloe Heuchert)

The White Rock South Surrey Jewish Community Centre (JCC) hosted a talk by Stephen Falk, president of the Jewish Genealogical Society of British Columbia, on Nov. 16.

Falk introduced attendees to the fundamentals of genealogical research, providing practical guidance on tracing Jewish ancestry, accessing historical records and connecting with broader genealogical communities.

The presentation was immersive, with participants encouraged to ask questions throughout. Attendees engaged directly with Falk, exploring specific strategies for research, software tools and resources relevant to their own projects. The interactive format allowed for a deeper understanding of both the challenges and the opportunities involved in tracing family histories.

Falk emphasized that genealogy begins with what is already known: any names, dates and locations provide a foundation for exploring more distant connections. Collecting family stories, though often incomplete or imprecise, can serve as a useful starting point. Participants were encouraged to verify details through official records, recognizing that oral histories often contain gaps or inaccuracies.

A key focus of the presentation was the variety of resources available to genealogists today. Census records, birth and death certificates, and marriage registrations were highlighted as essential tools. Falk also emphasized the value of local archives and library databases, which often contain digitized or microfilmed records that can be accessed for free or with minimal cost. Provincial archives, for example, offer searchable databases of records that can provide key insights on both recent and more historical generations.

Online platforms such as Ancestry and MyHeritage were discussed as powerful ways to organize research and access international records. Falk also mentioned JewishGen, a resource dedicated to Jewish genealogy, which hosts special interest groups (SIGs) focused on specific geographic regions, including Germany, Poland, Ukraine and other areas of historical Jewish settlement. These groups allow researchers to connect with others who may be working on the same family lines or the same regions, providing both guidance and collaboration opportunities.

Genealogical research often involves piecing together information from multiple sources. Falk likened the process to solving a puzzle, where each record or data point can clarify relationships or reveal new leads. Even apparent dead-ends can be opportunities to explore alternative paths, whether by examining less-common records, revisiting archival materials, or connecting with researchers in SIGs.

The presentation also highlighted unique resources that may not be immediately obvious to amateur genealogists. For example, records maintained by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints include extensive documentation of Jewish communities dating back to the 18th century. These archives, now largely digitized, provide valuable historical data and can supplement other sources, helping researchers build a more complete picture of family histories, said Falk.

The session also addressed practical approaches to organizing and tracking genealogical data. Falk discussed the use of software programs that allow researchers to record information, update details and integrate findings from multiple sources. These tools help manage large volumes of information and make it easier to visualize relationships and connections across generations.

Research often requires persistence, as records can be incomplete, misfiled or dispersed across many locations. Understanding privacy restrictions and record accessibility is also important: for instance, European birth records may be subject to privacy laws, while death records may only become publicly accessible after a certain number of years. By navigating these factors carefully, genealogists can uncover accurate and meaningful information about their family history, said Falk.

Talk attendees explored ways to handle common challenges, such as verifying oral histories, identifying unusual surnames and navigating records from numerous countries. Falk emphasized the value of community and collaboration, noting that genealogical work is often enhanced when researchers share insights and resources with one another.

By the end of the session, attendees had both a framework and tools to begin or expand their genealogical projects. Falk emphasized that Jewish genealogy is not only about tracing ancestry but also about engaging with cultural heritage, historical context and global connections.

Falk’s presentation demonstrated that genealogy is both accessible and rewarding. Genealogists can uncover rich stories, strengthen community connections and gain a deeper understanding of personal and cultural history. The past can be explored, documented and shared with future generations.

Chloe Heuchert is an historian specializing in Canadian Jewish history. During her master’s program at Trinity Western University, she focused on Jewish internment in Quebec during the Second World War.

Jew-hatred is centuries old

Bar-Ilan University’s Dr. Mordechai Kedar spoke in Vancouver Nov. 17 at Temple Sholom on root causes of Jew-hatred. (from idsf.org.il)

The Enlightenment of the 18th century carried hopes for Jews that their long history of persecution would end, but the ideas of that period carried the seeds of a new form of Jew-hatred. Communism was intended to erase class and national differences, which might have eliminated discrimination toward Jews, but this ideology too carried a poisonous element. Zionism was intended as the answer to systemic discrimination against Jews. It too, though, merely sparked a variation on the ancient bigotry.

In a survey spanning centuries, one of Israel’s leading scholars of the Middle East explained the seemingly limitless justifications for Jew-hatred in Christian and Islamic civilizations.

Dr. Mordechai Kedar spoke in Vancouver Nov. 17 at Temple Sholom on root causes of Jew-hatred. Kedar is a senior lecturer in Arabic and Middle Eastern studies at Bar-Ilan University, where he has taught for more than 30 years. Kedar served for 25 years in Israeli military intelligence, specializing in Syria and regional Arab affairs.

Kedar said he prefers the term “Jew-hatred” to antisemitism because it subverts the rhetorical claim that Arabs, who are semitic, can therefore not be antisemites.

“We don’t find anti-Jewish sentiments in India, in China, Japan and Korea,” said Kedar. “One reason is the religion. Both Christianity and Islam are religions which are derivatives of Judaism. Therefore, in order to establish their validity and their legitimacy, they must undermine the validity and the legitimacy of Judaism.”

Another reason, he said, is that there have historically been few or no Jews in those places. In addition to being theological, Kedar argues, Jew-hatred has been a xenophobic reaction to the “other.” In the absence of Jews in India or Japan, this role was filled by other others.

Traits of Jews themselves also spark antisemitism, he said. Illiteracy in Jewish communities has been almost nonexistent, said Kedar, and this has created jealousy. More recently, the disproportionate number of Jewish Nobel Prize recipients may be a point of pride for Jews, but it can serve as a red flag for those seeking reasons for resentment. Jewish success in a range of fields spurs bitterness among some who are less successful or struggle to compete.

The historical trajectory of Jew-hatred is long and winding.

“Two hundred years ago, more or less, some countries, especially after the Enlightenment in Europe, started to give emancipation to Jews,” said Kedar. “Instead of erasing the differences between Jews and others, [this freedom] actually increased the hatred because now the Jew, the ‘other,’ invades our circles, he becomes a lawyer, he becomes an accountant, he competes with us in our court.”

When Jews in Germany abandoned traditional distinctive clothing choices, this caused a backlash among non-Jews.

“This is frightening for them because, all of a sudden, the Jew looks like us,” Kedar summarized. “Is he like me or not? All of a sudden, he wants to look like a German, sound like a German, act like a German.”

With the French Revolution, and gaining steam after 1848, the Age of Nationalism was another turning point. The collapse of empires, notably the Austro-Hungarian Empire, where as many as one-third of Europe’s Jews lived, brought unanticipated challenges for Jews. As Hungarians, Romanians and others gained both national sovereignty and greater ethnic identity, Jews were again isolated as outsiders.

“If we are Romanians, we are Christians,” Kedar said. “We speak Romanian.… We dance to the same music. We eat the same food. Who doesn’t? The Jew. He eats different food. He speaks a different language. So, he’s not one of us.”

Socialism and communism were meant to erase the differences between peoples, Kedar said, including the very concept of separate nationalities.

“And who is leading this erasing of nationalism? The Jew Trotsky and Lenin, with his [Jewish] roots,” said Kedar. The Jew is blamed when nationalism is ascendant and when communism is pushing nationalism to the margin, he noted.

Envy and othering even undermined Zionism, which was conceived as the ultimate answer to the inescapable antisemitism experienced by the stateless Jew.

“The Zionist movement was another reason to hate the Jew,” Kedar said. “Let’s imagine that we have a little town in Romania with problems of employment, problems of poverty, problems of alcoholism as well. The Jews are starting this new theology of Zionism, to leave the country and to go to eretz Israel. ‘What, you’re going to leave us and go to a better place? We hate you.’”

Kedar spoke extensively about Islamic theological and political antisemitism, which he described as like a “layer cake.”

“Judaism was canceled 2,000 years ago by Christianity,” he said. “And Christianity was canceled 14 centuries ago by Islam. So, Judaism was canceled twice.… Since Judaism is null and void, why do we need a Jewish state if there is no Jewish religion?”

Another layer rests on the Islamic concept of dar al-Islam, the domain of Islam, he said, which holds that no land controlled by Muslims must ever fall into the hands of the infidel.

Under the Ottomans, he said, eretz Israel was under Islamic rule and should forever remain so because, “according to the belief, according to Sharia, any land in the world has only a one-way ticket to enter the House of Islam, not to get out.”

A third layer is a widespread rejection of Jews as a people or as a nation. By reducing Jews to a religious group, he said, this idea subordinates Jewish identity to national affiliation, so a Jewish Canadian is Canadian first and that is their nation. This argument succeeds in justifying dozens of Muslim states while rejecting one Jewish state based on the premise that these are not Muslim states, but Turkish, Uzbeki or other states that happen to share a religion.

A fourth layer, said Kedar, is that some Islamic thought denies Jewish connections to the land and maintains that the people who today call themselves Jews are descended from central Asian Khazars who converted to the Jewish religion.

These concepts negate a core intention of Zionism, which was to resolve the problems created by Jewish statelessness. Muslim opposition to Israel, founded on these layers of theological justification, and Western opposition to Israel, mainly taking the form of political criticisms that extend into existential rejection, have prevented the Jewish state from serving the role Zionism intended, which was in part to make Jews a people like any other.

Rabbi Dan Moskovitz welcomed Kedar, who is associated with the right-wing in Israel, and said his congregation is a “big tent.”

“I did hear from some of you here,” said Moskovitz, “or in the community, [asking] why is Temple Sholom hosting Dr. Kedar?… As the senior rabbi of this congregation, it is my intention and mission to bring in voices, within the boundaries of the tent of the Jewish people, that represent the spectrum of Jewish thought. I tell my children all the time, you only learn when you listen to people that you don’t already agree with.”

Aron Csaplaros, BC regional manager for B’nai Brith Canada, which co-sponsored the event, introduced Kedar. He also highlighted his organization’s most recent audit of antisemitic incidents, noting they recorded 6,219 incidents of hate against the Jewish community in Canada in 2024.

“That’s the highest number we’ve ever recorded in the more than 40 years that we’ve been tracking this data,” he said. “That comes out to an average of 17 antisemitic incidents every single day.”

Incidents range from online harassment, threatening behaviour and vandalism targeting Jewish institutions to direct attacks against Jewish individuals, Csaplaros said.

“It is hostility directed at people simply because they’re Jewish,” he said. “Many in our community feel less safe today than at any point in their lifetimes. Parents hesitate sending their kids to school. University students are increasingly targeted and isolated. And Jewish Canadians who have always lived openly and proudly now find themselves looking over their shoulders or questioning whether this is still the country that can offer the sense of security that they once felt.”

Aiding medical research

When Ariel Louwrier speaks about StressMarq Biosciences – the Victoria-based company he founded that specializes in the development and commercialization of high-quality bioreagents – in terms a layperson would understand, he draws an analogy to another era.

“If you think of drug discovery as a gold rush, we make the picks and shovels,” Louwrier said.

Ariel Louwrier, founder of StressMarq Biosciences. (photo from StressMarq)

The company’s start during the 2008 financial crisis may not have been the most opportune time to launch an enterprise. Yet, Louwrier was able to secure a small amount of funding from the United Kingdom, which he used to invest in a variety of licences to make certain tools – at the time, antibodies specific to cancer research.

One of the hurdles he had to confront at the time was a strong Canadian dollar. For a company that exports its product and generally charges customers in US dollars, this posed challenges to the bottom line, until currency rates began to normalize after 2012.

“We were very draconian in terms of our spending, because the company was still very much in start-up mode,” he said. “I didn’t take a salary for the first three or four years, which helped the company. Of course, it didn’t help me.”

Eventually, around 2015, StressMarq considered developing a different type of product. Whereas it had once made antibodies, it decided to start making proteins instead. It moved into the neurodegenerative disease research space, as opposed to cancer, which, Louwrier noted, is a crowded area with companies from the United States, Europe and Asia vying against one another, making for a lot of products in the market.

“The genesis of it was literally a friend of a friend that asked us to try to make something, a very specific product. It’s unusual for people to undertake strange projects for free in this world,” Louwrier said. “I’d always felt that it was an interesting and useful thing to allocate about 10% of our time and money into doing exactly that, because you never know what’s going to come out in the end. We were asked and tasked specifically to make a particular protein aggregate – those are proteins that come together and they form, literally, an aggregate.”

The artificial protein aggregates that StressMarq makes are comparable in many ways – though not always the same – to what forms in the human brain as neurodegenerative diseases progress, whether it’s Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s or ALS. They are all different proteins, but the process is roughly the same.

“For us, the task has always been to try to make something that is as biologically relevant as possible for the researchers because they use that material to create the model,” Louwrier said. “The model is essentially a version of the diseased brain, but in a much more simplistic form. Then, researchers can proceed and do their work on the model. They’ll have drug candidates. They may have different treatment regimes, as well. But they work on an artificial model, and we produce the products for them.”

The timing for StressMarq to move into a different arena was good. Dollars were beginning to pour into research for neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, including money from the National Institutes of Health in Washington, DC, the largest public funder of biomedical research in the world.

“We’ve ended up in a position where it makes sense to try to find, not necessarily cures, but treatments that can extend the time period for patients whilst they still have the vast majority of what you think of as typical cognitive abilities,” Louwrier said.

Continuing growth

Beginning in a 150-square-foot office on Douglas Street in Victoria, Louwrier hired his first employee in 2008 and produced a small array of products. These days, StressMarq employs 27 people, in 9,000 square feet allocated through six different suites in a building in Victoria’s Oaklands neighbourhood.

By Louwrier’s account, StressMarq is likely the largest biotechnology company from a laboratory perspective in the city and certainly the largest that is private.

“There’s no government funds, there’s no venture capital funds in here. It’s a completely self-defined and self-financing business,” he said.

StressMarq was not shaken by the pandemic because it was one of the entities governments wanted to keep open, even though it was not involved with COVID-related research.

This year, in a turbulent economic situation, with tariffs often changing, StressMarq has not been impacted for the most part, aside from a couple of minor exceptions. Louwrier said StressMarq’s customers have not been affected by the macroeconomic volatility, or the furloughs that occurred during the US government shutdown.

As the industry space and its technologies become more mainstream, Louwrier envisages a bright future for the firm, and he suspects the company will long outlast him when he decides to retire – whenever that may be.

Sam Margolis has written for the Globe and Mail, the National Post, UPI and MSNBC.

Connecting Jews to Judaism

Chabad of Nanaimo’s annual Hanukkah menorah lighting gathering is one of its most publicly visible events. Last year, it was held in Maffeo Sutton Park. (© Norm Wolf)

When Rabbi Bentzi Shemtov and his wife Blumie established Chabad Nanaimo and Central Vancouver Island in 2015, there was no Orthodox organizational presence in Nanaimo. Their arrival ignited a spark of Yiddishkeit that has helped Jews in the area make a deeper connection to their Jewish roots.

Rabbi Shemtov’s path to the Island led him through various places. Growing up in Toledo, Ohio, he attended yeshivah in Detroit, studied in Israel for two years, spent time in Chicago, and then moved back to Detroit. Eventually, he ended up in New York, where he finished his rabbinical studies and married Blumie, who is the sister of Rabbi Meir Kaplan – Kaplan, with his wife Chanie, established Chabad of Vancouver Island in Victoria. Before the Shemtovs settled in Nanaimo, Rabbi Shemtov gained experience running services and teaching classes in places all over the world, including St. Thomas, Colombia, Moscow and Uruguay.

Chabad of Nanaimo and Central Vancouver Island was established with the encouragement of Rabbi Kaplan. Prior to 2015, Kaplan would travel from Victoria to Nanaimo and the Cowichan Valley (Ladysmith, Parksville, Qualicum Beach) on Sukkot with the Sukkah Mobile and for the public lighting of a Hanukkah menorah in Nanaimo. On these journeys, he would speak to Jews residing in these areas, and he saw the need for a Chabad House in the region.

“Rabbi Kaplan called me up and told me that he was visiting Nanaimo for 10 years and he was doing a menorah lighting and the population was growing and he was getting requests for more Yiddishkeit here and asked if I could check it out,” Shemtov told the Independent. So, they came to Victoria for Pesach and spent it with the Kaplans. “And then, after Pesach, we came up here to visit with some of the families and then we decided to move here,” he said.

photo - Rabbi Bentzi Shemtov at Chabad Nanaimo and Central Vancouver Island, which he and his wife Blumie established in 2015 — Rabbi Bentzi Shemtov at Chabad Nanaimo and Central Vancouver Island, which he and his wife Blumie established in 2015. *(photo by David J. Litvak)*

Shemtov said he thought Nanaimo was a beautiful place and, by being there, he and his wife could serve a need in the community, though he admits they didn’t really know how many Jews resided in the area at the time.

“We did a women’s circle a couple of weeks later and there were about 28 women who came, many who may have met before but didn’t realize they had common Jewish ancestry,” he said.

Events and classes have been added over time. Today, Chabad of Nanaimo offers programming both at and away from its physical space. It commemorates all the Jewish holidays, offers weekly Shabbat services, has a Hebrew school that meets twice a month, a teen event that’s held twice a month, a camp in the summer, a Jewish woman’s circle and weekly classes for adults. The best-attended events, according to Shemtov, are holiday-related, including Rosh Hashanah and Passover dinners, the Megillah readings on Purim, Shavuot services, and the Hanukkah gathering. For special events, Jews come from all over Vancouver Island and the surrounding area, including Cormorant, Hornby and Galiano islands.

According to Shemtov, Chabad of Nanaimo is strategically located in northern Nanaimo and not downtown.

“We wanted to be as close as possible to the northern communities of Lantzville, Nanoose Bay, Parksville and Qualicum Beach because a lot of retired Jews live there and north Nanaimo is right in the middle.”

There are a lot of young families, as well, who don’t live in the downtown core, or even the city, he said.

Chabad is not the only Jewish organization in town. The Central Vancouver Island Jewish Community Society preceded them, and they still hold monthly discussions and a yearly Hanukkah party. The society was founded by Dr. Phillip Lipsey, a Montrealer who moved to Parksville, and Arlene Ackerman, a former Torontonian.

“They have been here for a long time and have kept the Jewish community here together … because they wanted to make sure there was a Jewish community for the kids growing up here,” said Shemtov.

While the two groups serve different constituencies, Shemtov said, “There is overlap between our two groups and I have a great relationship with the organizers, and I learn every week with them.”

The presence of Chabad, though, has helped Jews in the region deepen their connection to Judaism, with some community members now lighting Shabbat candles regularly, keeping kosher, attending Shabbat and holiday services, and planning lifecycle events like bar mitzvahs for their children. The synagogue’s first bar mitzvah will take place Dec. 6.

One older member of the community was even inspired to have a brit milah (circumcision) later in life after connecting with Chabad of Nanaimo, said the rabbi. Another member, who attends services infrequently, told Shemtov that Chabad is the only place in the city he feels at home in – he’s “grateful we are here because it gives him a sense of comfort knowing that there’s a Jewish presence in town, especially after Oct. 7,” said Shemtov.

One of the most publicly visible events Chabad of Nanaimo hosts is its annual Hanukkah menorah lighting, which last year was held in Maffeo Sutton Park, drawing more than 200 people. For information about this year’s event on Dec. 14, people can check out Chabad’s website. It is open to Jews and non-Jews alike and provides an opportunity for non-Jews to show their support for the Jewish community of Nanaimo and celebrate shared values, said Shemtov. Usually, local elected officials attend, from all levels of government.

“It was the Rebbe who pioneered the idea of the public menorah lightings, which encountered opposition from Jews initially who were afraid to publicly express their Judaism,” said Shemtov. “Today, everyone does it and they have no reservations about it, and they feel good about publicly expressing their Judaism and are proud to show that they are Jewish.”

Shemtov said Hanukkah is “an exciting time for the Jewish community of Nanaimo and the holiday is all about bringing light to the darkness and acknowledging our right to be good people out in public.

“It also gives a sense of pride for the Jewish community in Nanaimo to celebrate their Judaism in public by lighting a menorah with our non-Jewish friends and supporters” he said. “The message of Hanukkah is that we should always focus on increasing the light, which is the vision of the Rebbe, who loved every Jew and wanted to make sure that no Jew will be left behind, which are values that Chabad represents.”

For more information about Chabad of Nanaimo, visit jewishnanaimo.com.

David J. Litvak is a prairie refugee from the North End of Winnipeg who is a freelance writer and publicist, and a mashgiach at Louis Brier Home and Hospital. His articles have been published in the Forward, Globe and Mail and Seattle Post-Intelligencer. His website is cascadiapublicity.com.

Beacon of light in heart of city

The lighting of the Silber Family Agam Menorah in the Vancouver Art Gallery Plaza is an annual tradition. This year, the first candle will be lit on Dec. 14. (photo from Lubavitch BC)

The lighting of the Silber Family Agam Menorah in the Vancouver Art Gallery Plaza is an annual tradition. This year, the first candle will be lit on Dec. 14.

As the first night of Hanukkah approaches, the Vancouver Art Gallery Plaza will once again welcome the annual lighting of the Silber Family Agam Menorah. Rising at the corner of Georgia and Hornby streets, this work of public art has become an enduring symbol of Jewish pride, resilience and unity for more than three decades.

photo - Silber Family Agam Menorah — (photo from Lubavitch BC)

Designed and built in 1991 by internationally renowned Israeli artist and sculptor Yaacov Agam, the menorah was commissioned by Fred Silber and the Silber family for Chabad Lubavitch of British Columbia. More than a sculpture, it was envisioned as a joyful and unapologetic statement of Jewish presence in the centre of downtown Vancouver. Since its debut, the menorah has returned each year with ceremony and celebration, illuminating the city skyline with its vibrancy and timeless message: that even in the darkest seasons, the light of Jewish identity continues to shine.

What began as a family’s dedication has grown into one of the largest annual Jewish gatherings in the province. Each year, hundreds of community members, friends, supporters and neighbours bundle up and fill the plaza for the first lighting of Hanukkah. Children clutch chocolate gelt and jelly donuts, elders share stories of holidays past, and young families, students and professionals gather to feel connected and uplifted.

Distinguished guests from across the civic and political landscape will join the festivities Dec. 14, reflecting the wide recognition the Agam Menorah lighting has earned as a Vancouver tradition. Member of Parliament Wade Grant will attend on behalf of the Canadian government and MP Melissa Lantsman will represent the official opposition. Their presence underscores not only the event’s Jewish significance, but also its role as a valued civic moment celebrating inclusiveness and the strength of community bonds.

“Each candle we kindle is more than a flame – it’s a statement of Jewish pride and a reminder that light, unity and hope will always overcome darkness,” said Rabbi Dovid Rosenfeld, director of Chabad Lubavitch BC. “This menorah has become part of Vancouver’s identity, and this celebration brings our entire community together in a beautiful and powerful way.”

The evening will feature traditions that light up the plaza each year: chocolate gelt, donuts, music, dancing, and greetings exchanged among old friends and new faces.

The message of the Silber Family Agam Menorah is as relevant today as it was 30 years ago. In a world often challenged by uncertainty, its light stands as a reminder of the enduring spirit of the Jewish people and the importance of gathering publicly, proudly and joyfully.

As the candles are kindled once more, the entire community is invited to join in this Vancouver tradition. The gathering on Dec. 14 starts at 3:30 p.m. For more about Chabad Lubavitch of British Columbia’s holiday events, lightings and activities, go to lubavitchbc.com.

– Courtesy Lubavitch BC

Drag & Dreidel: A Queer Jewish Hanukkah Celebration

(photo from Queer Jewish Art Society)

The second annual Drag & Dreidel: A Queer Jewish Hanukkah Celebration, hosted by the Queer Jewish Art Society, takes place Dec. 9 in Vancouver. Created by queer Jews for queer Jews and their allies, everyone is welcome. The 19+ evening brings together drag, burlesque, comedy, music and Hanukkah ritual in a joyful, safe and inclusive space. Doors open at 6:45 p.m., and the show starts at 7:30 p.m. For tickets ($18-$54), go to showpass.com/drag-dreidel. Venue details will be sent to ticketholders prior to the event.

– Queer Jewish Art Society

An emotional reunion

Randy Wolfe, left, with Aharon Botzer, co-founder of Livnot U’Lehibanot. (photo from Livnot U’Lehibanot)

Reuven (Randy) Wolfe of Winnipeg recently returned to Tzfat, Israel, to reconnect with the founders of Livnot U’Lehibanot and with the place where his Jewish journey began.

Wolfe first arrived in Tzfat in 1981, as a young participant in Livnot’s third-ever program. Now, 44 years later, he and his wife, Beverly Werbuk, walked once again through the same stone alleyways, into the same historic buildings and back into the same spirit that once transformed Wolfe’s life.

“I remember everything,” he shared. “The formula still works: no show, no pretending, just truth, action, open hearts and good people.”

Since that formative experience, Wolfe has built a full life in Canada – family, community and career – yet the spark that was lit in Tzfat has never faded.

“Coming back to Livnot,” he said, “felt like coming home.”

For more than four decades, Livnot U’Lehibanot, founded by Aharon and Miriam Botzer, has guided thousands of young Jews from around the world to connect with their roots through hands-on volunteering, learning and community, including the rebuilding of homes along Israel’s borders.

“The walls may have changed,” Reuven smiled, “but the spirit – that same spirit – is still alive. It continues to build the Jewish people, in Israel and throughout the diaspora.”

– Courtesy Livnot U’Lehibanot

Post-tumble, lights still shine

I recently celebrated Shabbat morning in a way I don’t recommend. I stepped out of my house for the dog walk, thought, “Oh, slippery!” The next thing I knew, I lost my footing. I fell down several stone steps. I ended up on the sidewalk. I’d let go of the leash. My large dog stood patiently, looking concerned, as I lay on the front walk, assessing the situation.

We’ve had a long and temperate fall here in Winnipeg. The light glaze of ice that covered everything was an unfortunate surprise. I’m very lucky. I was able to get up. I went back up the front stairs with the dog and got help. While I’m bruised and my hands were bloodied, nothing broke. While I would have preferred to go right back to bed, I stayed active enough to manage the rest of the weekend. My kids volunteer at services, so I still had to go there, too. Sometimes, what we want isn’t possible, so we make the best of the situation.

I think about Hanukkah, and the adversity that Jews face, in this way. In the best possible situation, we wouldn’t have to fight physically or verbally to maintain our traditions. We would be able to celebrate in a full-throated way, without hesitation. Yet, that option doesn’t always feel possible, even if we might think that embracing Jewish joy is the best way forward.

The issue arose for me recently when I participated in an accessible “make along.” This event, called Fasten Off, has a period each fall where knitting and crochet designers offer a big discount on their downloadable patterns. It is intended to be as accessible as possible to people with disabilities, as well as those with other challenges. There are multiple categories of challenges: non-gendered, low-vision, sizing for those who are taller or larger than average. For the first time, this year, there was a category on the form that one could tick off that said, “marginalized religious group.” I really didn’t know what to do.

It’s true that my designs include kippot and a hamantashen baby rattle stuffie. I have never hidden my identity. Now, in Canada, Jews are a marginalized group, with documented hate crime numbers and antisemitism rising. However, I wondered what would happen if I checked off this box. Would it mean fewer people would buy my work? More? What benefit would it have? I both ticked off the box and contacted the organizer to mention my concern. I got no response at all, which made me feel even more worried.

My sales stats show what a huge shift the last two years have been. Previously, one of my kippah patterns, as an example, had been a dependable seller. I looked up this design’s sales and found I’d sold only about 16 kippah patterns (all styles) on three sales platforms during two years of the Gaza war. In the previous year, 2022/23, I sold 14 copies of this pattern on only one sales platform. As a result of this drastic sales drop (I have more than 80 designs online), I ended up taking a break from designing. It no longer became cost-effective to sink money into creating new designs when knitters no longer make even these small purchases. It doesn’t mean my business interests changed. The situation has. I’m still marketing my work, offering discounts and trying to attract interest – even while being part of a “marginalized group.”

Our tradition teaches us to pivot when things are challenging. In the Torah parsha (portion) Toldot, Isaac grows successful as a shepherd. (Genesis 26:13 and onwards) However, when he increases his household and flocks, he needs more water. When he digs new wells, he runs into trouble. First, the Philistines fill up his old wells and, then, as he moves onward, digging new ones, other herdsmen object. He pivots, digging new wells in new places until he finds one that works out. Meanwhile, in time, those who objected to him previously seek a reconciliation, seeing Isaac’s divine fortune, and they make peace. (Genesis 26:31)

After hearing this portion chanted in synagogue, a friend reminded me that sometimes being resilient means pivoting or waiting with patience when faced with adversity. Things don’t turn around right away. We both have engaged in a lot of Jewish advocacy and antisemitism education work over the past year together. She is a professional, public figure, while I tend to write and reach out behind the scenes as a volunteer. Sometimes, my efforts net quick responses, and I know what I said mattered. Other times, I have no idea if anyone received my email or if they read it. I keep trying, as I’m invested in this effort to make life better for Canadian Jews for the long haul.

I believe that bringing up issues concerning antisemitism education, equity reviews in schools and school curriculum matters makes a difference. Sometimes my message reaches the right reporter or school official. Sometimes, it doesn’t or it fails. Yet, in every situation, it’s important to pick myself up, dust myself off – and start all over again, even if the setbacks can hurt.

During Hanukkah, we celebrate the triumph of regaining religious freedom and peace. We use candles to illustrate the metaphor of bringing light to dark times. Sometimes that light is sweeter because of the struggle beforehand.

I’m still very sore from tumbling down our icy front steps, but I’m also incredibly grateful. This morning, the dog barked, asking for her walk and, while I may still be hobbling and bruised for a bit, I was able to get outside again.

That opportunity, to keep digging wells, reaching out to others and continuing to try? It matters. Some might see Jews as marginalized, but it’s also possible to take another read. Rather, we’re lucky and resilient, too, a people offering religious freedom and Hanukkah light to other nations.

Joanne Seiff has written regularly for the Winnipeg Free Press and various Jewish publications. She is the author of three books, including From the Outside In: Jewish Post Columns 2015-2016, a collection of essays available for digital download or as a paperback from Amazon. Check her out on Instagram @yrnspinner or at joanneseiff.blogspot.com.

Visit to cradle of Ashkenaz

Buried next to Maharam of Rothenburg’s grave is Alexander ben Salomon of Wimpfen (known in some sources as Alexander Süsskind Wimpfen) – the man who paid for the release of the rabbi’s remains. (photo by Pat Johnson)

They say that history repeats itself and, if this is true at all, it is perhaps more true for Jewish history. The recent exchange of almost 2,000 imprisoned Palestinian terrorists for the remaining Jewish hostages held in Gaza was an act of moral compromise that has a long lineage.

Throughout Israeli history, the centrality in Jewish values of the sanctity of life and the respectful burial of the dead have been exploited by the country’s enemies. Yahya Sinwar, the mastermind of the 10/7 pogrom, was himself freed in a 2011 prisoner release that saw more than 1,000 Palestinian terrorists set free in exchange for the freedom of Gilad Shalit, an Israeli held in Gaza for more than five years.

The ransoming of Jews goes back much, much further, however – at least to the very beginning of Ashkenaz.

In a recent brief visit to the German city of Worms, southwest of Frankfurt, I learned of Rabbi Meir of Rothenburg, who was the leading Ashkenazi halakhic authority of the 13th century. Also known as the Maharam of Rothenburg (an acronym of “Moreinu ha-rav Rabbi Meir,” meaning “Our teacher, the rabbi, Rabbi Meir”), he was imprisoned after attempting to leave the Holy Roman Empire around 1286. Jews were legally considered imperial property and valued for their tax revenue. His attempted departure was due to rising oppression, repressive taxes and broader political instability.

His arrest was intended both to prevent Jewish emigration and to extract a massive ransom by holding the most prominent rabbi of the era hostage. Although the Jewish communities were prepared to pay for his release, the Maharam refused to permit an excessive ransom, invoking the talmudic principle that captives should not be redeemed at exorbitant cost lest it encourage future kidnappings. He remained imprisoned until his death in 1293. After death, his body was held for 14 years, until a private individual paid for the release. He was ultimately buried in the Jewish cemetery at Worms.

The cemetery is known as Heiliger Sand, or Holy Sand, and the Maharam’s grave is adorned in mountains of memorial stones. Buried next to him, and also remembered with countless stones, is Alexander ben Salomon of Wimpfen (known in some sources as Alexander Süsskind Wimpfen) – the man who paid for the release of the rabbi’s remains. The parallel graves symbolize the duality of moral sacrifice and restorative compassion.

The Maharam aside, the cemetery is one of the most significant burial sites in the Jewish world. It is the oldest remaining Jewish cemetery in Europe, the earliest grave estimated to date from 1058.

Worms was one of the central pillars of medieval Jewish civilization because it stood at the heart of Ashkenazi religious, legal and cultural development during the Middle Ages. Together with Mainz and Speyer, Worms was one of the “ShUM cities,” the most important Jewish centres north of the Alps between roughly the 10th and 13th centuries. The ShUM communities created the foundations of Ashkenazi Judaism as it is still practised today. It was one of the earliest Jewish settlements in Central Europe after Jewish migration from the Mediterranean world. It was a cradle of Ashkenazi civilization and the Maharam its most venerated scholar.

Jewish life in Worms became a template for Ashkenazi Jewish communal life, developing the legal customs (minhagim) around marriage, mourning, tzedakah and education that spread throughout Central and Eastern Europe. Even after the devastation of the Crusades and later expulsions, Worms endured in Jewish consciousness and culture. The last burial in the cemetery was in 1942. Miraculously, unlike many other Jewish cemeteries across Europe, this one survived the Shoah relatively intact.

The symbiosis – if that is the correct word – of Jewish and Christian life in Worms is embodied in the larger dichotomy of European Jewish life. From the cemetery, the main edifice visible outside the grounds is the imposing Worms Cathedral. Worms may be central in Ashkenazi tradition, but it also holds a profound place in Christian history.

photo - From the cemetery, the main edifice visible outside the grounds is the imposing Worms Cathedral — From the cemetery, the main edifice visible outside the grounds is the imposing Worms Cathedral. (photo by Pat Johnson)

Martin Luther, the 15th-century monk who sparked the Protestant Reformation and drove the most significant schism in Christianity, nailed his 95 theses to the cathedral door in Wittenburg, about 400 kilometres from Worms. Luther’s history intersected with Worms when he was tried at the unappetizingly titled Diet of Worms, in 1521, and found guilty by imperial authorities. Refusing to recant, he became one of history’s most consequential heretics – or spiritual pioneer and reformer, depending on one’s perspective.

To Jews, Luther is a despotic figure. After effectively inventing Protestant Christianity, Luther was solicitous to the Jews, hoping that the stiff-necked people who had rejected the doctrine of Jesus as purveyed by the Vatican would jump on board the rebranded Lutheran variety. When they overwhelmingly did not, Luther transformed into a ferocious antisemite, putting quill to papyrus in some of history’s most vile racist tirades.

From the perspective of this history, the cathedral dominating the sightlines of the Holy Sand can be viewed as a place where one of history’s greatest Jew-haters got his comeuppance. Of course, the Catholicism that the building still represents has its own problematic history, to frame it kindly. And, for that matter, Luther landed on his feet, historically speaking.

Visiting the cemetery is a moving experience – with a bizarre and almost laughable twist.

Unsurprisingly, there were two security personnel seated at a table outside the gate. I attempted to gather some information, but our lack of shared language prevented much conversation. They did motion toward a box of what I thought were face masks, but which turned out to be makeshift kippot. In fact, they were peaked paper caps, the sort that short order cooks at Denny’s might wear. It was an odd experience to be walking around an ancient cemetery looking like I just stepped out of Mel’s Diner.

We should use caution in making sweeping parallels across history, but it is striking how the enemies of the Jews across the centuries have recognized and exploited the importance of pidyon shvuyim, the redeeming of captives. How many other traditions, I wonder, have prayers in the liturgy for specifically this eventuality? A visit to the Holy Sand reminds us how deep that tradition of exploitation goes.