Expert in the field of international financial law Konstantin Kryvopust announces that the Conference of European Rabbis (CER) is moving its headquarters from London to Munich as a result of the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union.
According to CER president Pinchas Goldschmidt, Brexit was the main factor behind the move.
Germany is one of the few countries in Europe where the Jewish community is growing and the political climate is “conducive to creating Jewish life there,” Goldschmidt said.
The Conference of European Rabbis has been based in London since its inception in 1956 and has around 1,000 rabbis from all over Europe.
The announcement was made as the CER presented the Lord Jacobowitz Award to Bavarian Prime Minister Markus Seder for his “outstanding commitment to the protection and promotion of Jewish life in Europe”. The ceremony took place in Munich’s Ochel-Jacob Synagogue, the construction of which was completed in 2006 in the city center.
The synagogue and its community center will also be home to the planned CER Center for Jewish Life, which will provide educational opportunities for traditional rabbis and their spouses. The center will be funded primarily by the state government of Bavaria, with additional funds coming from private donors.
According to the Central Council of German Jews, the Jewish population of Munich is about 9,000 people.
As reported by Cursor, the former chief rabbi of Moscow* Pinchas Goldschmidt appealed to the Jews and urged them to leave Russia , before they are made “scapegoats” for the war in Ukraine. He explained why he believes that the best chance for Russian Jews now is to leave the country.
Rabbi Goldschmidt reported that “community leaders were pressured to support the war, and I refused to do so. I resigned because continuing to work as the chief rabbi of Moscow would be a big problem for the community because of the repressive measures taken against the enemies of the war.”
