At the end of February 5 Russian speaking students from UMBC Hillel
visited Chicago to take part in Russian Shabbaton 2009.
Besides having a lot of fun and getting to know tons of people, they brought home some deep thoughts and creative ideas:
Maxim Srerebreni:
From the intense experience of the russian shabaton in chicago, i
have learned to appreciate myself through listening and learning
about the experiences of many people who i share a similar cultural
and religious background with. We are all the same in heart, thats
what i have learned and together we can continue to pass on the
experiences of revealing oursellves and sharing our cultural unity
with each other and to strengthen the russian jewish community not
only in chicago but her in maryland too.

Sam Khuvis:
It was interesting to see how Judaism
played different roles in people’s lives from religion, to culture, to a
way to meet people with shared experiences. I also enjoyed the discussions
on Jews from weird places, the Arab-Israeli conflict, and the importance
of names.
From my experiences in Chicago, I would love to bring events for Russian
Jews to UMBC. As well as the idea of having discussions about people’s
cultural differences among all Jews, not just Russian Jews, perhaps during
Shabbat Dinner, or even as a separate event. I also liked the prayer book
that was used with not only prayers but information about Judaism, the
Jewish people, etc.

Jane Charney is an active member of Russian Hillel of Chicago and was one of the staff members at the Shabbaton.
She is also a great writer and you can check out her article “Russian-speaking Jews face a conundrum of self-perception” at Oy!Chicago blog
What makes us Jews? Whether it’s blood, belief or cultural bonds, it can be hard to define exactly what makes us “Members of the Tribe.”
More pictures are HERE
So, the news about that is – If you’re Jewish and speak Russian, and want to make new friends, note that
UMBC Hillel is joining a group of Russian-speaking Jews from Philadelphia, Baltimore,
and DC and going to the Holocaust Museum and Georgetown in Washington, DC on Sunday,
April 5. We’ll leave Baltimore at 10:30 AM. Email Tanya for
more info ASAP as space is limited.