RECENTLY ELECTED Jerusalem Chief Rabbi Aryeh Stern delivered the sermon at the Great Synagogue last Shabbat. Although chief rabbis of the state, of Tel Aviv and of Netanya have delivered sermons at the Great Synagogue in recent years, there was no chief rabbi of Jerusalem to do so in more than a decade. Now there is a chief rabbi of Jerusalem who will be reaching out to the wider community. During Hanukka, his appearances will include the Mamilla Mall for the fourth annual Chabad of Talbiyeh Hanukka celebration. Stern will be on hand for the lighting of the first candle on Tuesday at 6:15 p.m. The musical entertainment will be provided by Yonatan and Aron Razel. There will be special guests and entertainment on each night of Hanukka, with supermarket kingpin Rami Levy and members of the Fraenkel, Shaer and Yifrach families joining forces with Chabad for the lighting of eight candles on the final night of the festival on December 23. IT SOUNDS like the title of a book, Shabbat on Wednesday, but that's the solution that Rena Quint came up with as a means of continuing to see those of her friends who used to be frequent Shabbat guests in her home or she and her husband, Rabbi Emanuel Quint, in their homes. Because time tends to have a detrimental effect on people's mobility, some of her friends can no longer walk the distance to her house on Shabbat, nor can she and her husband walk to theirs. The solution is a midweek luncheon, namely Shabbat on Wednesday, so that friends of long standing can drive or take a taxi and thereby not lose contact with one another. THOSE WHO missed the recent pre-premiere screening at the Konrad Adenauer Center of East Jerusalem West Jerusalem can make up for the lost opportunity on December 18 when the documentary will be screened at the Jerusalem Cinematheque within the framework of the Jewish Film Festival. The film demonstrates, through singer-guitarist David Broza, how music can break down political barriers and other hostilities. SOME OF the Cinema City store owners are complaining that business is very slow and that people go to the complex just to see movies and not to do shopping. But that may change during Hanukka, when special live programs for adults and children will take place within the large cineplex, providing opportunities for parents to shop while their children may be watching the Pe'ima Dance Troupe or actress Dawn Lenny-Gabbay, who has starred in various children's series on television. MEGA-PHILANTHROPIST Morton Mandel, whose generosity is reflected in numerous educational and cultural projects throughout Israel, has had an avenue named after him in Yeroham. Through the Mandel Foundation, Mandel, together with his brothers Jack and Joseph and his wife, Barbara, has donated many millions of dollars to projects such as the Mandel School for Advanced Studies in the Humanities at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem; the Mandel Wing for Jewish Art and Life at the Israel Museum; the Mandel Leadership Institute in Jerusalem and its Educational Leadership School; the Lunada Children's World Museum in Beersheba; Mandel Programs for the Haredi Community; the Mandel National Library for the Archeology of Israel and Mandel National Archeological Archives; the Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design; the Negev Foundation, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev; and the Israel Association of Community Centers. All in all, the Mandel Foundation has contributed close to $400 million to projects in Israel. Morton Mandel, the most visible member in Israel of the Cleveland, Ohio, Mandel family, was in Israel this week for the avenue-naming ceremony. Accompanied by Yeroham Mayor Michael Biton, foundation president Prof. Jehuda Reinharz and foundation CEO Moshe Vigdor, a smiling Mandel, who has included Yeroham in his largesse and has contributed extensively to its economy and its educational facilities, toured the Yeroham campus.
