Rabbi's Blog

Last week was the best "Candlestick Return Ceremony" I have ever been to!

Outside of the obvious awesome food that we had, it also contained a few important surprises that I'd like to share with you. For me, there were 3 special features. Firstly, I really did not initially have a full appreciation for the level of care that the Erbe's took in holding onto to these candlesticks. They would have been fully justified in selling them when they were without income, trekking across Europe as they fled communist Poland. They were not just "schlepping these sticks", but considered themselves it's sacred custodians. Secondly, it was only revealed to us last Thursday that Julius Erbe insisted to the Gestapo that they not touch his Jewish employees, saving many of them from certain death. Wow!! Here we are celebrating the Candlesticks return, but the greatest service he had done for the Jewish People was actually Pikuach Nefesh (the saving of Jewish Lives)!! Thirdly, Harold (Julius' son) and his wife Faye are the sweetest people on earth; they are both so incredibly humble and gracious. It made the whole weekend special knowing what this meant to them.

In the course of the Centre's history, there will always be moments that last a lifetime... and last Shabbos was one of them.