Jeneration in Prague
Last month a group of students visited Prague with Jeneration, as Sophie Lipton, Jeneration Fieldworker explains:
A group of 14 students jetted off to Prague on Jeneration’s Euro-trip led by Jeneration Fieldworker and Rabbi Benji Stanley, Reform Judaism’s Young Adult Development Rabbi who was the educator. The trip was informative, engaging and an all round great weekend. The group was taken on an informative journey, continuously focusing on the themes of community, creativity and consciousness. On the first day, we focused predominately on the Jewish history of Prague, visiting the Jewish Quarter, exploring the oldest running synagogue in the Old-New Synagogue and reflected on the Holocaust in the Pinkas Synagogue. After exploring the Jewish Quarter, we also discovered what Jewish life was like for Progressive Jews in the 21st century, by attending the Progressive Jewish community, Beit Simcha’s Shabbat service.
The next day gave a more historical overview of the city. We explored the Prague castle, where we also held our shacharit service, overlooking the magnificent view of the city. Our journey continued into Wenceslas Square and other historical locations where a bigger picture of the communist regime of Prague was painted. In the evening, the group became even closer when we took part in a fun, team building activity where teams had to solve different scenarios, using logic and team work. After a fun filled Saturday we finished off the day with havdallah in the heart of Prague.
Overall the trip was filled with thought provoking questions, enabling everyone to make their own informed decisions both in Prague and in the future.
Michael Lewis, a University of Nottingham student who participated on the trip said:
“The Jeneration trip to Prague was a truly fantastic experience. The educational themes of the weekend were community, creativity and consciousness and Rabbi Benji Stanley was excellent at challenging us with these themes throughout the weekend. On the trip we visited so many fascinating sites and had incredibly engaging discussions that I can only recommend thoroughly for as many people as possible to attend future Jeneration trips and events. It was incredibly fulfilling, rewarding and ultimately a fantastic way to engage in Judaism and the idea of community”.
