Jewish Community-Building for Jüdische Gemeinde Hameln

Rabbi Arnold Zoref dedicates a mezuzah.

HAMELN, GERMANY — A special Jewish community-building program began in May 2000 for Jüdische Gemeinde Hameln — a Progressive congregation composed of 150 Russian émigré families — with the arrival of Rabbi Arnold Zoref from the United States. The congregation was chosen earlier in the year to participate in the Jewish Appleseed Foundation’s Clergy Corps program, which works with Jewish communities that are situated away from the Jewish “mainstream” or that struggle with unusual community challenges.

“We were looking for help,” explained Rachel Dohme, President of Jüdische Gemeinde Hameln. “I found the Jewish Appleseed Foundation on the Internet and wrote to Rabbi David, the Executive Director. When she said that she could send Rabbi Zoref to us, and she explained the Foundation’s philosophy and program, I could hardly believe it! We know that there is a long road ahead of us, but now we’re not alone. This is an exciting new beginning for the Jews of Hameln.”

Rabbi Arnold Zoref Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, Rabbi Zoref wanted to become a rabbi but was persuaded to pursue a more “practical” career as a professional photographer and color photo retoucher. He ultimately established his own professional photography laboratory. Ten years ago, Rabbi Zoref retired. With the leisure to study, he began his delayed quest for Rabbinic Ordination. After studying at Hebrew Union College and the Academy for Jewish Religion, Rabbi Zoref received rabbinic ordination from Rabbi Zalman Shalomi-Schacter and the Jewish Renewal Movement. Rabbi Zoref’s rabbinate is dedicated to serving the needs of Jews around the world. His work has taken him to communities like Fort Dix, in New Jersey; Kissimmee, Florida; Ixtapan DeLaSalle, Mexico; Prague, Czech Republic; Lake Como, Pennsylvania; San Juan, Puerto Rico; and most recently to Hameln, Germany.      Rabbi Zoref is married and has two sons and four grandchildren. He currently lives in West Orange, New Jersey.

A member of the Foundation’s Jewish Clergy Corps with extensive experience working with congregations around the world, Rabbi Zoref spent a month with the congregation in Hameln helping them clarify their needs and goals and laying the groundwork for an on-going program to help the congregation become economically and religiously self-sufficient.

“When I heard about this program, I was eager to enlist,” said Rabbi Zoref. “The situation in Hameln deeply touched my heart. The Jewish challenges for Russian Jews in Germany are many.” While in Hameln, Rabbi Zoref also served as Rabbi in residence, leading religious services, life cycle events, educational programs, and other activities. A professional photographer, he also created a photographic record of Jewish life in Hameln. His wife Gert also worked on the community’s behalf, cooking with synagogue members and collecting recipes for a planned cookbook.

The Jewish Clergy Corps Community Building Program is funded through donations to the Jewish Appleseed Foundation. The visit of the rabbi and virtually all costs for the development and implementation of the on-going program were subsidized by the Foundation. Also funded by the Foundation is the Jüdische Gemeinde Hameln Web site: jghreform.org.