Chief Rabbi makes Hong Kong visit

The Chief Rabbi and Valerie Mirvis have just concluded a four day visit to the Jewish community of Hong Kong.

The community has traditionally looked to the Office of the Chief Rabbi for guidance on key matters relating to practices and procedures within the community.

This was the first visit paid by Chief Rabbi Mirvis to Hong Kong since he became Chief Rabbi. At the Carmel Preparatory School and Elsa High School, the Chief Rabbi was  deeply impressed with the standard of Jewish education and the facilities provided for the Jewish children of Hong Kong. He also enjoyed spending time with the organisers, managers and teams of Maccabi HK.

The Chief Rabbi with pupils of Carmel Elementary School, Hong Kong pic.twitter.com/RYHpTQ4Ftc

— Chief Rabbi Mirvis (@chiefrabbi) November 2, 2014

On Shabbat, the Chief Rabbi spoke at a special Friday night dinner, addressed the community on Shabbat morning at the Ohel Leah Synagogue and spoke at a special Seudah Shlishit. On Motzei Shabbat he spoke once again at a well-attended Melave Malka. The Chief Rabbi praised Hong Kong Jewry for being a truly outstanding community.

He said, “It was an inspiration for me to witness at first hand the impressive vitality and growth of the Hong Kong Jewish community. Valerie and I were moved by the warmth and commitment of so many Jewish families who are contributing to the development and expansion of high quality Jewish facilities in Hong Kong.  

Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis is the 11th Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth, and was installed on 1 September 2013 in an historic ceremony attended by HRH The Prince of Wales, the first time that a member of the Royal Family has attended a service for the Installation of a Chief Rabbi.

Trustees of Ohel Leah Synagogue said “We in the Hong Kong Jewish community have enjoyed a long standing relationship with the office of the Chief Rabbi for many years.

We were delighted to welcome Rabbi and Mrs Mirvis to our unique community, and we were inspired by Chief Rabbi Mirvis’ various talks. They spent time at our school, synagogue and Maccabee sports club, and made a very positive impression on everyone they met”, said Mr Jeremy Amias, Trustee of the Ohel Leah Synagogue Charity.