Liberal Jewish Community of Amsterdam (Liberaal Joodse Gemeente Amsterdam)

The LJG Amsterdam is a dynamic and growing Jewish community with some 2000 members. Amsterdam is the largest of the ten liberal Jewish communities in the Netherlands united under the Dutch Union for Progressive Judaism.

In August 2010, its new Synagogue and Community Centre was inaugurated In the presence of His Royal Highness Prince Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands, the Mayor of Amsterdam, the Ambassador of Israel and many other officials including representatives of the EUPJ and the WUPJ. The impressive dedication service for almost 1000 people was led by Rabbi Menno ten Brink and marked a special moment in the history of the community. For the second time after the Holocaust our community has built a large synagogue of its own; proof of increasingly active Jewish life.

The new synagogue was chosen out of 400 candidates to win the 2010 Amsterdam Architecture Price. It has a spacious shul, a mikvah, a Beth Midrash, a library, classrooms, space for social- and cultural events and it can also be used as a meeting place for interreligious- and ethnic groups. In addition, the building provides accomodation for the Levisson Institute and the Dutch Union for Progressive Judaism.

The synagogue services and other religious meetings or events form the core activities of the LJG Amsterdam. There are also many social activities such as Café LJG, the 50-plus group, the youth group and every month an Oneg Shabbat meal on Erev Shabbat. The community also has an active Sisterhood. In addition, the community provides a great number of educational activities via the Study Centre, Youth Education (Talmud Torah) and the 18-plus learning group. The LJG Amsterdam plays an active role in inter-religious dialogue in the city.

The community has its own periodicals and website, which is found through a link on the website of the Dutch Union of Progressive Judaism (www.verbond.eu) or directly at www.ljgamsterdam.nl.