18 December 2019

Liberal Judaism is delighted to announce Lord (John) Mann as the keynote speaker for the upcoming Annual Fundraising Dinner at Goldsmiths’ Hall on Thursday 6 February 2020.

Lord Mann is the Government’s Independent Adviser on Antisemitism. He recently took up his seat in the House of Lords, having previously served as MP for Bassetlaw for 18 years.

One of the UK’s most recognisable faces in the battle against antisemitism, Lord Mann chaired the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) Against Antisemitism from 2005 until stepping down earlier this year to take on his new role.

During that time, he commissioned two major all-party inquiries into antisemitism and received the American Jewish Committee’s (AJC’s) Jan Karski Award in recognition of his commitment and work in the field.

Following the success of Liberal Judaism’s last dinner at Goldsmiths’ Hall, we are returning to the fabulous surroundings for another year. Join us under the candlelight to celebrate 118 years of Liberal Judaism.

You will hear and see stories from some of the ‘giants’ who made Liberal Judaism what it is today and others who will now shape its future.

As it has been 118 years, we are referencing the numerical significance of the number 18 in Judaism. Hebrew, unlike English, doesn’t have ‘numbers’, so numeric values are assigned to certain Hebrew letters. The word chai meaning ‘alive’ – and probably most popularly used in the phrase am yisrael chai (the people of Israel live) – represents the number 18.

Thus the Jewish world has seen the number 18 as an important one for centuries, and traditionally many Jewish families have given monetary gifts in multiples of 18 at weddings and b’nei mitzvah celebrations. We will be continuing this ‘most Jewish’ of traditions on our donor cards at the dinner.

As Liberal Judaism approaches its 118th year, we also want to focus on the important role that so many people have played in giving chai to our movement. Our fundraising dinner will celebrate those people and focus on ensuring that we can continue to be the home for your Jewish story for another 118 years.

If you would like to attend the dinner – whether as a community or an individual – please visit www.liberaljudaism.org/annual-fundraising-dinner.

If you would like to know about our sponsorship opportunities please email fundraising@liberaljudaism.org.