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Fall 2016 B’nai B’rith Magazine Also Details the History of the Jews of India

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The environment has been central to Judaism since Genesis. Due to rising temperatures around the world, climate change has become a much more pressing issue. In response, organized Judaism and Jewish environmentalist groups have worked actively to address the issue and attempt to stop global warming.
 
Also featured in this issue: In 1939 German Jewish refugees, then regarded as “enemy aliens,” were confined on the British Isle of Man.  Yet, culture and education thrived within the camps on the island. As the war went on, the internees were released and allowed to join the war effort to defeat fascism.
 
Elsewhere in the magazine: In the 1970s, Richard Bernstein, was one of a small number of blind boys becoming a bar mitzvah in the United States. In the years since, there have been efforts to make Judaism more accommodating for the sight-impaired, included a phone line providing times for candle lighting and for reciting specific prayers. Still, there is much work to be done.
 
On the other side of the world, there has been a Jewish presence in India for more than 2,000 years. Although the population has a rich history, there are now only about 5,000 Jews in the nation of 1.25 billion. However, the community continues, despite its dwindling numbers.
 
In his latest column, B’nai B’rith International President Gary P. Saltzman calls for greater civility in the nation. Now more than ever, it is time that tolerance and kindness return to the national conservation.
 
B’nai B’rith Executive Vice President Daniel S. Mariaschin dedicates his column to the importance of voting and discusses how politics played an important role in his life.