"WORDS ARE AIR. BUT THE AIR BECOMES THE WIND, AND
THE WIND MAKES THE SHIPS SAIL". Arthur Köstler
We present you valuableArticles and meetings
outthe first Jewish magazinePost-war Hamburg, 2009-2011.
Dr Felix Epstein
(sel. A.)
Chairman of the LJGH
Yakov Feldman
(sel. A.)
editor-in-chief
Dear friend,
You are holding the "starting issue" of the journal of the Liberal Jewish Community in Hamburg (LJGH). This magazine is intended not only for readers of the Jewish faith, but for all those who are interested in "Jewish" topics: Jewish life, Jewish art and also Jewish politics (if one can even speak of such). This does not mean that only devout Jews can write articles for our magazine or that only Abraham, Sarah and Moses can be its main characters. As you know, Jews were involved in everything that happened in the world. And even when they weren't involved, our "friends" always made it appear as if Jews were involved. Therefore, within the pages of our magazine, we can boldly mix and match articles on all sorts of subjects, as long as they are well-written and interesting. And you – our readers – decide how attractive and interesting our magazine will be.
In our magazine, as in every other magazine, there are permanent sections that you will also find in the next issues. However, there is not yet one category in this issue: letters to the editor. Of course not, because there were no readers yet! But now that there are readers, we very much hope that there will also be the first letters to our magazine. Write to us about anything that's burning under your nails, criticize us - and that's the main thing - let us know if you have new suggestions and ideas.
As usual on such occasions, we wish the "newborn" a long life and good health - so many, many readers!
Shalom!
dr Felix Epstein (sel. A.)
Chairman of the LJGH (2009)
Dear Readers!
"WORT СЛОВО מילה" – is the first post-war Jewish magazine in Hamburg! It is also deeply symbolic that its publisher is the "still young" Liberal Jewish Community. We are an artistic-journalistic and socio-political magazine intended for both German-speaking and Russian-speaking readers. We try to build "bridges" between history and the present, between history and our everyday life.
Germany... the home of the great philosophers, scholars, poets and composers. Many invisible historical and spiritual threads connected the German Jews with their homeland. In their eyes, they were not just citizens of Germany, they felt a deep connection to this country. They all genuinely considered Germany their homeland. Unfortunately it all ended with the insane attempt at the "Final Solution of the Jewish Question" - with concentration camps and with the crematoria ovens. The statement made by Rabbi Leo Baeck in New York in 1945 after his liberation from the Theresienstadt concentration camp was very significant:
"For us Jews from Germany, a historical epoch has come to an end. Such an epoch comes to an end whenever a hope, a belief, a confidence has to be finally buried. It was our belief that German and Jewish spirit on German soil meet and become a blessing through their marriage. This was an illusion - the epoch of the Jews in Germany is over once and for all".
That's what the majority thought at the time. It seemed that there was no future in Germany for the surviving Jews, that their thousand-year sojourn on German soil was at an end.
But life taught us better: Jewish communities have sprung up again in Germany, and the emigration of Jews from the countries of the former Soviet Union has breathed new life into these communities. It is now important to introduce these people to the centuries-old traditions of the Jewish people, to their history, religion, literature and art. We hope that everyone who wants to can get to know this rich spiritual heritage.
We invite you to work together and to friendly, confidential conversation about everything that is most important and interesting for you.
Yours sincerely, Jakow Feldmann(sel. A.)
Editor-in-Chief (2009)
Editor:Liberal Jewish Community Hamburg
Editor-in-Chief:Yakov Feldmann (sel. A.)
Vera Venediktova – editor of the Russian part.
Barbara Hörnicke – editor of the German part.
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All rights reserved.
Reproduction only with the express permission of the editors. The individual contributions reflect the opinion of the respective author, not necessarily the opinion of the editors.