Students and teachers of the Chalom Sunday School in Izhevsk celebrated the Day of Jewish Knowledge. The Chalom school is part of the Achdut Sunday School network of the Federation of Jewish Communities of Russia.
The event was also attended by students and teachers from the Armenian Sunday school, run by the Armenian community of the Udmurt Republic. In all, 62 children, aged 3 to 17 years, attended the Day of Jewish Knowledge program.
Students from the Jewish Sunday school acquainted their guest-students with the rich history and customs of the Jewish people, its language and cultural gifts. There was a meal for all of the participants. The youngsters from the Armenian and Jewish Sunday schools exchanged gifts and took a group photo together.
The Day of Jewish Knowledge also presented an opportunity for the visitors to learn about the activities of the Jewish Sunday school and for the teaching staff of the two Sunday schools to share innovative ideas.
“In Udmurtia, this is the first time that Sunday schools from diverse cultures and religions have met. This experience is very important,” explained Elena Kostenkova, director of the Chalom Sunday school. “We can help each other by exchanging information. We certainly had a lot to discuss with our colleagues.”
The Jewish Sunday school operates with support from the Joint Center for Jewish Culture of the Republic of Udmurtia (under M. E. Goldin) and the Jewish community of Izhevsk (chaired by M. Golub). The event was supported by the Internal Policy Office under the Presidential Administration and the Government of the Udmurt Republic.