On March 13, RUPJ in Belarus held the seventh annual “March of Memory” in Michael’s hometown. Led by Rabbi Grigori Abramovich, 200 people come together to honor the memory of those killed during the Holocaust. Michael shared the history and more about the march: “On March 12, 1943, the Nazis declared Grodno judenfrai, ‘cleared from Jews,’ by killing tens of thousands of Jews. Out of nearly 30,000 Jews who lived in Grodno before 1941 (56% of the city’s population), only 200 people survived. This year, the Ambassador of Israel, the representative of the local government, the head of Chabad in Belarus, as well as Russian Orthodox and Roman Catholic priests and their congregants took part.

Seven years ago, Michael represented the Jewish community at a meeting in Minsk with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State of the Vatican (pictured in first photo). This was a great starting point for conversations with Catholic representatives for Michael’s interfaith work.

Michael shares more about his work: “The topic of my Zschool capstone is the Interfaith Dialogue Center in Belarus. I supervise a project with the same name in our organization. Its uniqueness lies in the fact that it is built on the Jewish concept of Tikkun Olam (Repairing the World). I believe that in the crisis in my country, and especially with the war in Ukraine, the Jewish community should build bridges of friendship, mutual support, and peace with other religious groups. In January, as a part of this project, we held a memorial ceremony dedicated to the International Holocaust Remembrance Day, which was attended by the heads and representatives of other faiths in Belarus, as well as 25 diplomats. We also held an educational festival, The Hour of Jewish Knowledge (photo 2), together with representatives of the Minsk Catholic community.”

RUJP in Belarus is now preparing for the 18th annual International Cantorial Festival. Michael shares more: “Previously, HUC students who came to our communities in Belarus took part in it, but over the past two years, due to the pandemic, we can’t invite HUC students in person. We continue to do this together with our partners in Belarus, Austria, and the US in various formats. We are also planning several Passover Seders in Minsk. I will visit reform congregations in other cities to meet with their boards and staff and participate in Passover Seders. In May, we will hold a conference for Jewish educators in Gomel.”

Michael reflects on his inspirational work and time at HUC: “I started various nonprofit organizations in my life, operating on the principle of learning by doing. I receive first-class knowledge about innovation, business design, and fundraising at the Zschool, which helps in my work, especially in crises. My choice has always been a liberal Jewish community, where I can grow spiritually both as a Jew and as a modern person. In addition, I have 18 years of experience in organizing the HUC students’ visits to our communities in Belarus, which allowed me to learn about the school. Zschool builds a special educational space for creativity and professional growth of students.”

Learn more about the Zschool at zschool.huc.edu

Photo 3: Michael with representatives of The Jewish Agency for Israel (JAFI) at the Beit Simha Center in Minsk