We were very busy at the start of the month. Some of us were privileged to see the Archbishop of Canterbury as he attended a short service at the Norwich Hebrew Congregation. What an unassuming, gentle man and he talked of peace and conciliation.

A couple of days later, we did some singing with Gershon and we particularly focused on the Halleluyah prayer (psalm 150). During the service, Gershon introduced this as our song of the week and the response was great – we really sung our hearts out. We were delighted to be joined by members of the Norwich Hebrew Congregation for our Shabbat morning service. This meant we had a large congregation and there were some good conversations between different community members afterwards.

On the Sunday morning, for the first time, our community laid a wreath for Remembrance Day. It was particularly poignant this year as the date marked the 100th anniversary of the end of World War 1.

The following Sunday, some of us gave the Peill Room a make-over ready for our Chanukah gathering. This is a good opportunity to get to know Gershon better and meet others in a more informal way. There’ll be plenty to eat –latkes, donuts etc. We’ll be lighting the candles, singing the songs and playing the dreidl game. Try and come along and there’s NLJC apple juice to purchase at £3 a bottle!

Then on Saturday we have a Shabbat morning service including the baby blessings of Jacob and Eli. Please come along and celebrate with Donna and Oly’s and Leiat and Ros’ families. We’re very pleased to welcome Leiat as a member of our community. By then, we’ll be on the seventh day of Chanukah and by way of a finale, there will be a giant Chanukiah lit in front of the Forum at 6.30pm, on Sunday 9 December. Those of you, who went last year, know that it is quite something and there are hot latkes and donuts. So there’s a lot to choose from – Happy Chanukah to you all!

Chag sameach!

Annie