Join me in Morocco

Dear Friends,
Many of you have asked about traveling with me on a Jewish heritage trip to Morocco, and I am delighted to tell you that the journey is coming together.  I have been working with Makor Educational Journeys/IGT Israel & Global Travel to build a stimulating itinerary and program to discover and take in Morocco’s rich Jewish history and encounter the Muslim Morocco of past and present.

Jews have been in Morocco since the destruction of the First Jerusalem Temple and successfully mingled with Morocco’s Berber culture to develop and maintain their own unique expressions of Judaism.  Jews settled throughout Morocco’s cities, including Fes, an intellectual center, and Meknes, once Morocco’s capital city. 

We will visit the modern city of Casablanca, home to Morocco’s largest Jewish community today, as well as ancient synagogues and magnificent mosques.  A stop in Rabat will include the Royal Palace.  We will traverse narrow alleyways where Spanish Jews dwelled following their expulsion from Spain and climb over the Atlas Mountains to the bustling and enchanting city of Marakech.

We will have plenty of time to explore Morocco’s bazaars and shops and will learn about Moroccan Jewry’s deep attachment to its past and the rabbis who led the community through two millenia of minority status that ultimately led to the large migration of Moroccan Jews to the State of Israel.

I will soon share a detailed itinerary and pricing with the entire congregation, but knowing that so many have already expressed interest, I wanted to ask you to save the dates.  More information to follow soon!

If you know that you are interested in being added to the list for more information, please respond to this email.

Sincerely,
Rabbi Max Weiss