JVN Blog

What do you get if you put 2,600 Jews in Warwick University, mix them with a whole host of differently themed presentations, lectures and discussions, and put the entire process in the hands of a few hundred volunteers? The answer is the Limmud Conference 2013. This conference, held on an annual basis, is a chance for Jewish people from the UK and around the world to come together and explore pretty much any Jewish-related subject of their choice. From mezuzahs to Medieval Christianity, from Deuteronomy to Doctor Who, from poetry to the peace process in the Middle-East, there really is something for everyone. Whatever makes you kvell, you’ll find a session about it here! And, if not, you can throw caution to the wind and host one yourself.

I’m writing this as a first-time Limmudnick, sitting at an impromptu acoustic jam

The Limmud Acoustic Cafe, featuring the finest musical, comedic and performing talent the Conference has to offer.

session as part of the Acoustic Cafe, in front of the bar at about a quarter to midnight. To be honest, there are few better ways to spend a Wednesday evening in my opinion.  The experience so far has been terrific. I’ve been to a whole variety of sessions, some concerning subjects I never thought could beget an hour’s worth of material relating it to Judaism. And Shabbat – well, it was truly one of the most memorable days of my life. It brought with it a certain sense of spirituality that inspired everyone to join together, often in raucous song, and exemplified one of the things that I think makes the Jewish people in Britain and around the world stand out from the crowd: our appreciation of what we can achieve as a community.

It is not only Shabbat that does this. In fact, the whole conference is embodied by an ethos of collective effort and community values. As I have already mentioned, hundreds of volunteers – around 700 in total – are responsible for everything to do with the conference, from the key elements such as booking the accommodation

Everyone at Limmud is encouraged to “volunticipate”.

for the attendees, down to the tiniest detail, such as arranging for a lollipop with everyone’s name on it to be put on the Friday night dinner table. The idea was to find the person whose lollipop you had in front of you, and it’s these little touches that make Limmud all the more special.

Limmud is based on what it has called “volunticipation” – the idea that any participant in the Limmud conference has an interest in making it the best event possible, and so anyone can volunteer their time to help make it a reality.  There is a team to do with each department (Shabbat, programming, resources and so on), each overseen by two or more co-chairs. And these are all managed by the Limmud Conference co-chairs, Richard Verber and Oliver Marcus, both of whom are old friends of JVN. The effect is remarkable and it is testament to the belief that volunteers really can make amazing things happen.

JVN is, of course, also playing its part. I’ve delivered two sessions on the Jewish values behind volunteering to an adult audience containing eight different nationalities, and a similar one for the 11-13 age group. And we oversaw a very special volunteering opportunity at a homeless shelter in Coventry on Wednesday, where people spent two hours of their time helping those less fortunate in the wider local community.

The Chief Rabbi spoke at Limmud for the first time this year.

All in all, Limmud has been a really exciting, fun and eye-opening time for all participants, with over 1,000 sessions to choose from! The theme for Shabbat was hineini, or “here I am”, based on the week’s parsha Shemot. It is what Moses said when he answered the burning bush through which Hashem communicated with him. It is no coincidence that this typifies the attitude of all the volunteers assisting at Limmud. When the call was made for people to make this year’s conference the most successful ever, they stood up and yelled “hineini!” – “here I am!” And they really have done a tremendous job. The bar beckons, and I reckon they’ve all earned a drink!