.44111K, 0 .""'""411111111111111111111111111111111MINIMP 6- 41111. 416011111111111111111110. CERTAIN SUMMER TRADITIONS /UST KEEP COMING BACK. \`,/tAtft /1 Jewish Renaissance in Eastern Berlin OTHERS COME BACK BETTER THAN EVER! RUTH ROVNER SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS Announcing the new Camp Sea-Gull for Girls. T Since 1955, the Schulman family has ofFered traditional summer camping in a nurturing, fun-filled environment. Now we're back, with an exciting new format for girls ages 7-16. 4 At Camp Sea-Gull, your daughter will learn new skills in a setting that encourages personal growth, success and life-long friendships. Our program includes tennis, soccer, sailing, canoeing, horseback riding, drama, arts and crafts, overnights and much, much more. We offer three and six-week sessions, a 3:1 camper-counselor AIP. ratio, a high quality staff and limited enrollment. f CAMP SEA-GULL To find out more, ask for our brochure. Call bill Schulman at 616-547-6556 or Jack Schulman at 810 -851 -1318.oti Lc tr:t2sti g e bhewaeustff wLeZOlae% ix. 08580 Boyne City Road, Charlevoix, M I 49720 UNIVERSAL WATCH REPAIR LARGEST FACILITY IN MICHIGAN REGULAR WATCH BATTERY Coupon Expires Jan. 19, 1996 SEIKO, WITTNAUER & CITIZEN AUTHORIZED MATERIAL DISTRIBUTORS Experts in repair & restorations of all repeaters multiple chronographs & antique time pieces 1 Yr. Warranty - Estimates on request UWR is not an Authorized Repair Facility for any of the companies listed above Except Universal Geneve. 28411 NORTHWESTERN HWY. AT BECK RD. SUf E 250 SOUTHFIELD, i11 (810) 358-2211 C/3 w C/D w sec THIS PESACH BE PAMPERED AT THE WORLD FAMOUS THE ARIZONA BILTMORE Phoenix, Arizona CC RESERVATIONS: (305) 925-0077 OR (602) 924-0077 Master Card IF YOU HAD CALLED CADILLAC TRAVEL YOU WOULDN'T BE SITTING HERE NOW READING 14164 pov/E THIS ! c,Er To et4.my EibtEbillaSE AF FECT? AREN YOU WORT IT ? 358* 5330 Cholov Yisroel (available) Glatt Kosher LU H- cA318 YOU'D BE CRUISING OR SURFING OR SUNNING WE ACCEPT Touch A Life. The United Way. he domed synagogue is a striking sight. Its Moorish facade is graceful and or- nate, and its central dome soars upward and seems to pierce the sky. Around this dome are two smaller ones. All three are gilt- rimmed and gleam in the sun- shine. Visitors stand across the street to get a better look. Some point their cameras toward the domes. Others just stand and admire the sight. Ever since it was rededicated last May, this synagogue in east- ern Berlin has drawn thousands of visitors. They came not only to admire its beauty but also be- cause of what it represents: a re- birth of Jewish life, a symbol of hope. Even before I visited Berlin, I had read about the New Syna- gogue, as it's called. Once it was the pride of Berlin's Jewish com- munity, one of the greatest syn- agogues in Europe and reputedly the largest in the world when it was completed in 1866. But this great synagogue was set ablaze in Nov. 9, 1938. That was the night when synagogues all across Germany were at- tacked, and this one was not spared. It barely escaped total de- struction. Soon, it was taken over by the Nazis, who used its interior as a storeroom. Still later, for four re- lentless days in November 1943, it was heavily damaged during the Allied bombing of Berlin. Afterwards, it lay in ruins. But in 1938, an extensive restoration project began. And when East and West Germany were reunified and the Berlin Wall came down, the German government undertook to com- plete the restoration at a cost of almost $50 million. Slowly, painstakingly, the golden dome was restored to its original beauty; the facade was renovated; inside, it was trans- formed into a Jewish culture cen- ter, with exhibits of Jewish life in Berlin. Last May, over 4,000 people attended the gala rededication ceremony and heard Berlin May- or Eberhard Diepgen call the dome "a symbol of hope and self- understanding for this city." Since then, the synagogue has become a major attraction in Berlin, visited by Jews and non- Jews, tourists and native Ber- liners, Americans, Europeans, Israelis, and many others. Like so many other travelers to Berlin, I, too, made the syna- gogue a top priority IA hen I visit- ed Berlin. A subway transported me easily from the heart of west- em Berlin. A subway transport- ed me easily from the heart of western Berlin to the stop near Oranienburgerstrasse, where the synagogue is located. Getting off, I saw the golden dome dominating the view. A cluster of Israeli tourists was sanding outside, admiring the graceful facade. Even though it was an ordi- nary Tuesday afternoon, people were standing in line waiting to be admitted to the exhibits with- in. This is not a functioning syn- agogue — its huge sanctuary would be impractical in Berlin to- day; the interior is now a culture center with a number of well-de- tailed exhibits about Jewish Berlin. Inside, the exhibit room was devoted to the synagogue itself. One display presented the key dates in the synagogue's event- ful history, from the tart of con- struction on May 17, £859, to the rededication on May 7, 1995. Another display detailed the restoration effort and its difficul- ties, especially since so many ob- jects had been destroyed. But not everything was de- stroyed. On display in a place of honor in the center of the room was a fragmented marble plat- form, the bimah was discovered under a concrete floor which the Nazis had installed when they used the sanctuary as a store- room. Other objects — precious be- cause original — were also dis- covered after the renovation began and were on display, in- cluding the eternal light and a marble wash stand. Also in this room was a scale model of the New Synagogue, which allowed visitors to picture the grandeur of the original syn- agogue with its huge sanctuary. The second exhibit room focused more generally on Jew- ish life in Berlin, loot h past and present. One exhibit detailed Jewish life in the days when the syna- gogue was the center of an active Jewish community, with social welfare agencies, clubs, and more. Then, too, there was a photo display of scenes from modern Jewish Berlin. For three years, starting in 1992, photographer Michael Kerstgen took photos of scenes that would capture Jew- ish life. A Russian Jewish wedding, a Maccabea ball, a bar mitzvah, a