BS”D 3 Tamuz 5781 R. Luzzatto then (Mesillas Yesharim par. 3, chap. 2) touches on self-awareness, reminding the reader that Yirmeyahu was aware of the evils of his generation, saying that many were paying no heed to their actions and instead just kept doing whatever they were doing. Impulsiveness, as R. Luzzatto states, leads into wrongdoing. The text can be easily applied to the present day. I find that resisting against impulsiveness in the current world is much harder than – say – twenty years ago. The temptation to write and send text, to buy without thinking, is much greater than before the advent of instant communication. Messages are written and sent immediately without thought. They do not take hours to write – compared to a letter…
Plaques dedicated to the victims of the forced labour camps of Julag II and Baudienst were unveiled on the last 11 June at midday, on ul. Podmiłów and on the corner of Bieżanowska and Młodzieży in Kraków-Prokocim. Present at the ceremony were: Counsellor Tal Ben-Ari Yaalon, Chargé d’affaires, a.i., of the Embassy of Israel in Poland; the Chairman of the Council of the City of Kraków, Dominik Jaśkowiec; the substitute of the President of the City of Kraków, Bogusław Kośmider, the Chairman of the Council of the 12th district of Kraków, Zbigniew Kożuch; the Director of the Institute of National Remembrance (INR) in Kraków, Cecylia Radoń; the Director of the Galicia Jewish Museum, Jakub Nowakowski as well as counsellors of the City and of the 12th district,…
BS”D 3 Tamuz 5781 Shavua tov! Friday as usual we had our shabbat dinner. During prayers the synagogue was visited by many pious people and was filled with the joyous sound of prayers. Jews are welcome in the synagogue, whatever their minhag and we do not impose a single one on everyone. The Jewish Religious Community of Kraków, the beating heart of the Community and its true centre, has been helping Jews through the darkest times in the past decades. The dedication of those who work in silence in the Community, away from quick fame and gratification, is commendable. Their rewards in the world to come are immeasurable. After prayers we had our meal, in which, as every Saturday, English speakers, Polish speakers, Yiddish speakers – and…
BS”D 3 Tamuz 5781 We are now publishing a chapter by chapter summary of Majer Bałaban’s Historia Żydow w Krakowie i na Kazimierzu 1304-1868 (Kraków, “Nadzieja”, 1931) – History of the Jews in Kraków and in Kazimierz – which will be able to be found under the category “Bałaban” and “History”. We express our hopes that it might be useful. This is chapter one, tome one, pages three to fifteen, titled “Oldest News about the Jews in Kraków” The Jewish community in Krakow is, according to the author, not the oldest in Poland. Jews came to what is now Poland both from the West and the East, those in Krakow settling mostly from the West. Jews, however, were in Poland since the end of the 11th century.…
BS”D 1 Tamuz 5781 From our weekly life First of all, please accept my renewed bestest wishes for the new month. I hope the weather will stay warm and everyone will be able to enjoy the summer. The Community has been providing for centuries for our members in Kraków. In spite of wars, pogroms and medical emergencies, we have kept a safe place where Jews could feel at home. Language lessons, medical help, a meeting place for, in which we can meet and chat, the community is a haven for the troubles of daily life and the centre of Jewish life in Kraków. It seems sad to me that there are organisations that, using Judaism, seek self-promotion and claim that Judaism had, before their advent, disappeared from…
BS”D 30 Sivan 5781 Hodesh tov! Today we start Chapter 2 of Mesillas Yesharim, a chapter called “The Virtue of Vigilance”. R. Luzzatto begins by stating that the concept of vigilance refers to being careful about one’s actions. One should think about one’s actions and whether they are good or not. R. Luzzatto mentions being vigilant about one’s habits and not repeat them without thinking about them. Examining one’s habits is very important. Repetition leads to inattention and carelessness. One can begin to take things for granted and not be thankful everyday for one’s blessings. In the second paragraph R. Luzzatto states that paying attention would actually be common sense. Somebody who has minimal understanding should try to save himself and not lose his soul. R. Luzzatto…
BS”D 30 Sivan 5781 Post-traumatic distress syndrome is classified under F43.1 in the International Classification of Diseases. Its symptoms are usually flashbacks, nightmares and sleep disturbances. The patients display social distancing, lack of sympathy and a difficulty to feel positive emotions, as well as “emotional numbness” and are easily aroused, having exaggerated reactions to certain stimuli. The first generation will often display arterial hypertension, chronic pains, digestive complains and a lack of affect as well as depression and feelings of guilt. Common symptoms in the second generation are role-switching (feeling to have been the actual Shoah victim) with additional feelings of guilt and shame. They see themselves as “living memorial candles” and act accordingly. They have a higher psychological vulnerability and higher dependence. Neuroses, anxiety, fears and…
The Memorial Day for Jews of Dębica is organized by Ireneusz Socha each year to mark the first liquidation action in the local ghetto that took place on July 21, 1942. AGENDA July 21, 2021, Dębica 18:00 Former ghetto area (corner of Kosciuszki and Glowackiego Streets) Commemoration of 12,000 Polish Jews, including more than 2,000 Jews of Dębica, who were imprisoned in the local ghetto, made forced laborers and then were exterminated in the city or at the death camps in Bełżec and Auschwitz. May their memory be a blessing! May their souls be bound up in the bond of eternal life! 19:00 Willa Wiluszowka Hotel Synagogue in the life of a Jewish community – a lecture by Patrycja Pogoda Jewish inspirations – solo improvisations by Bartlomiej…
BS”D 24 Sivan 5781 Ludwik Flaszen, son of Feliks and Justyna (born Frischer) was born on 4 June 1930 in Kraków. He was a theatre and literary critic, writer, translator, essayist, theatre specialist and director. He was a co-creator of the Laboratorium theatre and worked for years with Jerzy Grotowski. He was awarded in the year 2000 the Commander Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland by president Aleksander Kwaśniewski. Among his best-known publications are: Glowa i Mur (Kraków, 1958), Cyrograf (Kraków, 1971). After the war began he emigrated with his family to Lvov. There, Soviet authorities sent the whole family to the region of the middle Volga and then to Uzbekistan, where they stayed until the end of the war. He came…
We extend an invitation to the ceremony of the unveiling of a dedication to the family of Aniela and Franciszek Szewczyk from Gruszow, organised by the voivode of Lesser Poland, the National Memory Institute of Krakow and the administration of Raciechowice, which will take place on 18 June 2021 in Gruszow (commune of Raciechowice, district of Myślenice) starting at 5 PM.