Valley organizations join national Hebrew literacy drive

Heather Rawlyk

Friday, Oct. 31, 2003 | 5 a.m.

WEEKEND EDITION Nov. 1 - 2, 2003

Five Jewish groups in the Las Vegas area have joined a national campaign to teach Hebrew reading and writing.

Through the National Jewish Outreach Program's annual Read Hebrew America-Canada campaign, tens of thousands of people across the United States and Canada will learn to read and write Hebrew. About 1,400 free classes will be held at nearly 700 locations in 46 states and five Canadian provinces this month.

Read Hebrew America-Canada enables Jews with little or no background in the language to learn basic Hebrew reading skills. That allows them to connect with their Jewish heritage, follow along in a prayer book at services and help their children with Hebrew school homework, Rabbi Ephraim Buchwald, director of the national group, said.

Congregation Ner Tamid in Las Vegas held its second class on Thursday and will continue classes every Thursday at 6:15 p.m. until December, said Rabbi Jennifer Weiner, who teaches the course.

"It's a wonderful class," she said. "Everyone is very enthusiastic about learning."

Class members, mostly adults, have already learned the basics from the first few lessons, she said.

"Each page is a different lesson and they're already learning and reading Hebrew," she said. "They're learning several vowels and basic phrases. It's simple, but it's enough to make people excited and want to come back."

Weiner said the congregation wanted to be part of the nationwide event.

"We've been teaching an adult Hebrew class in the summer and through the year, but we wanted to start a new method of teaching and do something new and fun," she said. "We wanted it to be something that was more than just us, but something nationwide."

Learning Hebrew is an important step in connecting congregants to their heritage, Weiner said.

"It really connects people with their culture and allows congregants to participate more in services," she said. "When you can actually read the word on the page, it brings prayer and the services alive and makes you feel something."

According to the program, the campaign is timed for November so that people can rekindle their heritage after the Jewish high holidays. This may be especially useful for those who felt frustrated or lost in Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur services due to their inability to read Hebrew.

Several other classes are being offered throughout the city. Locally the reading and writing courses are being offered at:

For more information, visit the web at www.NJOP.org or call 1-800-44-HEBREW.