Rabbi Baroness Julia Neuberger & Rabbi Lionel Blue with Keshet UK co-chairs Alma Smith & Dave Shaw
Tuesday 3rd December 2013
Last night, Keshet UK held a Chanukah reception at the Houses of Parliament, by kind permission of Mike Freer MP. Attended by over 80 volunteers and community leaders, the event was a celebration of our year of work promoting diversity and inclusion of LGBT people in the UK Jewish community.
Keshet UK is the forum working to champion the inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex and questioning people in all areas of Jewish life in the United Kingdom. We work with all parts of the Jewish community to support individuals and organisations who want to make the Jewish community a more welcoming and inclusive environment for LGBT people. Headline initiatives in 2013 have included:
• Delivering diversity training for over 100 people
• Working with Jewish schools to tackle homophobic bullying
• School workshops on Judaism and LGBT issues
• Coordinating LGBT-inclusion sessions at Limmud’s annual cross-communal Jewish conference
• Promoting a Jewish presence at London Pride
• Working with Stonewall on Hebrew language school materials
Mike Freer MP has strong connections with the LGBT and Jewish communities as the MP for Finchley and Golders Green and was forthcoming with his invitation to host this kosher event and tour of parliament as a celebration of Keshet UK’s achievements in 2013. In his welcome speech he said, “Looking in from the outside as a non-Jew, since the big debates over same-sex marriage in the past year I’ve personally seen a sea change of attitude in the Jewish community.”
Also attended was Stephen Williams MP - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government. In a message of encouragement he said, “Often you feel like you are treading on eggshells when bringing up the top of gender and sexuality in religion; several strands of the Jewish faith are now showing that you can be entirely comfortable with your sexuality and your religion. In order to achieve this, some people have to be the outriders within their own faith and I am glad that you are doing this within yours.”
Following on, guests were addressed with conviction by Rabbi Baroness Julia Neuberger who urged everyone to “Do something to promote Keshet UK – to be involved in talking to a congregation or communal leader who’s got to the stage of acceptance but hasn’t got to the stage of celebration yet. We all need to push at one button to make our community more gay friendly and more celebratory than it is now.”
In an emotional speech, Rabbi Lionel Blue - the veteran broadcaster and the UK's first openly gay rabbi - talked of the struggles his own generation had faced as LGBT people. He recalled the prejudice, fear and sadness that had led people he knew to take their own lives and led the room in reciting aloud the Hebrew blessing to give thanks for being alive and present on this day. Talking about the festival of Chanukah, he commented on a modern miracle – the social change that is leading to widespread acceptance for LGBT people in our society – by saying “Chanukah is a festival of wonder, and tonight is truly a wonder.”
Co-chairs Alma Smith and Dave Shaw said, “Keshet UK projects are run by a tiny yet dedicated and committed network of volunteers in their free time on miniscule budgets. We are proud of what we have achieved but know there is so much more to do to realise full inclusion of LGBT people within the British Jewish community. After experiencing the ruach here this evening we hope that more people will step forward to help realise this necessity and share our message.”
Chief Executive of charity Stonewall Ben Summerskill attended the reception and commented, “What a fantastic evening. Speakers from Rabbi Lionel to Stephen Williams MP pointed out that this wouldn't have happened even ten years ago and that's a sign of how Britain and so many people in our Jewish community are changing.”
For more information please email info@keshet.org.uk or visit keshet.org.uk
#KeshetUK @KeshetUK @mikefreermp @swilliamsmp @BenSummerskill
ENDS.
Last night, Keshet UK held a Chanukah reception at the Houses of Parliament, by kind permission of Mike Freer MP. Attended by over 80 volunteers and community leaders, the event was a celebration of our year of work promoting diversity and inclusion of LGBT people in the UK Jewish community.
Keshet UK is the forum working to champion the inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex and questioning people in all areas of Jewish life in the United Kingdom. We work with all parts of the Jewish community to support individuals and organisations who want to make the Jewish community a more welcoming and inclusive environment for LGBT people. Headline initiatives in 2013 have included:
• Delivering diversity training for over 100 people
• Working with Jewish schools to tackle homophobic bullying
• School workshops on Judaism and LGBT issues
• Coordinating LGBT-inclusion sessions at Limmud’s annual cross-communal Jewish conference
• Promoting a Jewish presence at London Pride
• Working with Stonewall on Hebrew language school materials
Mike Freer MP has strong connections with the LGBT and Jewish communities as the MP for Finchley and Golders Green and was forthcoming with his invitation to host this kosher event and tour of parliament as a celebration of Keshet UK’s achievements in 2013. In his welcome speech he said, “Looking in from the outside as a non-Jew, since the big debates over same-sex marriage in the past year I’ve personally seen a sea change of attitude in the Jewish community.”
Also attended was Stephen Williams MP - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government. In a message of encouragement he said, “Often you feel like you are treading on eggshells when bringing up the top of gender and sexuality in religion; several strands of the Jewish faith are now showing that you can be entirely comfortable with your sexuality and your religion. In order to achieve this, some people have to be the outriders within their own faith and I am glad that you are doing this within yours.”
Following on, guests were addressed with conviction by Rabbi Baroness Julia Neuberger who urged everyone to “Do something to promote Keshet UK – to be involved in talking to a congregation or communal leader who’s got to the stage of acceptance but hasn’t got to the stage of celebration yet. We all need to push at one button to make our community more gay friendly and more celebratory than it is now.”
In an emotional speech, Rabbi Lionel Blue - the veteran broadcaster and the UK's first openly gay rabbi - talked of the struggles his own generation had faced as LGBT people. He recalled the prejudice, fear and sadness that had led people he knew to take their own lives and led the room in reciting aloud the Hebrew blessing to give thanks for being alive and present on this day. Talking about the festival of Chanukah, he commented on a modern miracle – the social change that is leading to widespread acceptance for LGBT people in our society – by saying “Chanukah is a festival of wonder, and tonight is truly a wonder.”
Co-chairs Alma Smith and Dave Shaw said, “Keshet UK projects are run by a tiny yet dedicated and committed network of volunteers in their free time on miniscule budgets. We are proud of what we have achieved but know there is so much more to do to realise full inclusion of LGBT people within the British Jewish community. After experiencing the ruach here this evening we hope that more people will step forward to help realise this necessity and share our message.”
Chief Executive of charity Stonewall Ben Summerskill attended the reception and commented, “What a fantastic evening. Speakers from Rabbi Lionel to Stephen Williams MP pointed out that this wouldn't have happened even ten years ago and that's a sign of how Britain and so many people in our Jewish community are changing.”
For more information please email info@keshet.org.uk or visit keshet.org.uk
#KeshetUK @KeshetUK @mikefreermp @swilliamsmp @BenSummerskill
ENDS.
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