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April 16, 2004/Nisan 25 5764, Vol. 56, No. 30
Chabad rabbis get together in Phoenix
LEISAH NAMM
Managing Editor
Chabad rabbis from cities in at least nine states will convene in Phoenix April 23-25 for an annual conference for Chabad emissaries of the Western region.
As of press time, 20 rabbis were registered to attend the conference to share ideas, discuss problem solving and exchange information about programs in their communities, said Rabbi Zalman Levertov, director of Chabad of Arizona.
Some of the main concerns they will address center around education, Levertov said. This includes the education of their own children, who often attend out-of-state schools, and ways to reach out to children in their communities.
The Western region rabbis meet once a year. (Many also attend an annual inter-national conference in Crown Heights, N.Y.)
"We enjoy each other's company, and we enjoy sharing and sitting together and being there for each other," Levertov said.
States represented at next weekend's conference include Arizona, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Oregon and Utah.
All 12 rabbis from Arizona Chabad centers will attend the conference, Levertov said. "We all work for the same cause - reaching out to the community - so it's beneficial to all of us."
Chabad invites the community to attend Shab-bat services at 7 p.m. Friday, April 23, and 9:30 a.m. Saturday, April 24. The visiting rabbis will speak on different topics throughout the day. There will also be a Melave Malcha (Shabbat party) 8:30 p.m. Saturday, April 24. All programs will take place at Chabad of Arizona, 2110 E. Lincoln Drive, Phoenix.
"The spirit will be very lively so it will be good for people to come and ex-perience it," Levertov said. "They'll see that they're not part of just one Chabad, but we're all part of a larger unit."
According to the Web site of the Chabad-Lubavitch headquarters, based in Brooklyn, N.Y., "Chabad" is a Hebrew acronym for the three intellectual faculties of chachma (wisdom), binah (comprehension) and da'at (knowledge). The word "Lubavitch" is the name of the town in White Russia where the movement was based for more than a century.
"Today 4,000 full-time emissary families apply 250 year-old principles and philosophy to direct more than 2,700 institutions (and a workforce that numbers in the tens of thousands) dedicated to the welfare of the Jewish people worldwide," states the Web site.
There are six Chabad centers in the Valley: Chandler, Glendale, Central Phoenix, North Phoenix, Scottsdale and at Arizona State University.
Call 602-944-2753.
Contact the writer at leisah_namm@jewishaz.com.
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