Minutes of the annual general meeting of the Cardiff New Synagogue Guild 10 January 1990, Cardiff

Description

Minutes of the annual general meeting of the Cardiff New Synagogue Guild held on 10 January 1990 in Cardiff. The minutes include a brief Chairman and Treasurer's report on the Guild's activities for the previous year, which raised £7,177.61. The minutes also record that "sadly" no one felt able to volunteer for a number of posts and it was therefore decided the committee could not be formed. It was noted that this could lead to "considerable financial loss" for the synagogue. The minutes are included in a Cardiff New Synagogue Ladies' Guild Minute Book, 1979-1990.

The Cardiff New Synagogue Ladies' Guild, a women-only volunteer group, was established in 1950. The ladies of the Guild organised religious, fund raising and social activities for the Synagogue - from the annual garden parties, to the food of festivals and to talks held in members' homes, as well as acts of tzedakah (justice or charity) and community welfare. The Ladies' Guild ceased to exist in 1986. In its place, a new guild formed that was open to both men and women, which focussed more on fundraising for the Synagogue.

The Cardiff Reform Synagogue was founded in 1948 as the Cardiff New Synagogue. The following year, it became a constituent member of the Movement for Reform Judaism. Born in reaction against the more restrictive traditions of the Orthodox Judaism of Cardiff Hebrew Congregation, such as the prohibition of driving on the Sabbath and the ban on interfaith marriages, the new Synagogue appealed to immigrants who had fled war-torn Europe, where the Reform movement was already well-established. The congregation worships in a converted Methodist Chapel on Moira Terrace, acquired in 1952.

Sources:
'The History of the Jewish Diaspora in Wales' by Cai Parry-Jones (http://e.bangor.ac.uk/4987);
JCR-UK/JewishGen (https://www.jewishgen.org/jcr-uk/Community/card1/index.htm).

Depository: Glamorgan Archives.