Voice of the Jewish News: That was the momentous year that was

So it’s (almost) farewell to 2022. It was another huge year for building relations with the Muslim world. The sight of the Chief Rabbi in the United Arab Emirates was hugely symbolic and a welcome dose of good news among the bad.

It was the year we grew. The total number of Jews in the UK was confirmed from census data as 271,327, an increase of about 6,000 since the last one ten years ago.

We now officially make up the loudest 0.5 percent of the population.

It was the year we shouted at one another over whether Jewish community leaders should be pressing the government to move the UK embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, after the Board of Deputies went ahead and did exactly that.

We lost our beloved Queen. By and large, the community tends to be a big fan of the royal family, so we shared in the nation’s grief when Elizabeth II passed away. King Charles III is a passionate friend of the Jewish community – long may he reign over us.

We lost several prime ministers, too, but the one we have going into 2023 seems to be saying all the right things about Israel and her enemies, giving us faith that despite the game of musical chairs, the government’s tune hasn’t changed.

It was the year we kept the UK’s only Jewish farm. Sadeh Farm in Kent has been operating for decades, in part as a kosher guesthouse, and had been due to close after its owners took it off the market, where they were asking for £1.5m.

It was the year the government tried to close a loophole allowing yeshivas to teach only a narrow religious curriculum by forcing them to register as schools.

Around 1,000 strictly-Orthodox Jews protested by reprehensibly wearing a Holocaust-era yellow star.

It was the year we threw our door open physically and metaphorically for Jewish refugees from Ukraine.

The country has a rich and long Jewish history, as Jews have for helping those fleeing war and persecution. After all, we know it well.

It was the year we got serious about screening those with Ashkenazi Jewish heritage for genetic diseases. The NHS changed its criteria from anyone with a past family problem to anyone with a Jewish grandparent, making tests far more accessible.

It was the year that the law finally caught up with men who refuse to grant their former wives a Jewish religious divorce (a get). Alan Alti Moher, who did just that, was jailed for controlling and coercive behaviour, which is now a crime.

Surely 2023 will be quiet by comparison. Surely?