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Ephraim Mirvis installed as UK chief rabbi Ephraim Mirvis installed as UK chief rabbi
(about 9 hours later)
In front of a synagogue packed with more than 1,000 guests, including the Prince of Wales, and Jewish and other faith leaders including the Archbishop of Westminster Vincent Nicholls, Ephraim Mirvis has been installed as the new chief rabbi of the UK and the Commonwealth. In a synagogue packed with more than 1,000 guests, including the Prince of Wales and Jewish and other faith leaders including the archbishop of Westminster, Vincent Nicholls, and John Hall, dean of Westminster, Ephraim Mirvis was installed as the new chief rabbi of the UK and the Commonwealth.
Prince Charles is the first senior royal to attend such a ceremony. Other guests included the Labour party leader, Ed Miliband, and the Metropolitan police commissioner, Bernard Hogan-Howe. Prince Charles, who wore a blue velvet skull cap embroidered with Prince of Wales feathers, became the first senior royal to attend such a ceremony. Other guests included Labour leader Ed Miliband, former home secretary Michael Howard, former foreign secretary Malcolm Rifkind, the scientist Lord Winston, the bishop of Lambeth, Nigel Stock, representing the archbishop of Canterbury, and Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe, commissioner of the Metropolitan police.
The ceremony was at St John's Wood synagogue in north London, the scene of the inductions of Lord Sacks 22 years ago to the day and of the late Lord Jakobovits, the first rabbi to sit in the House of Lords. One of Mirvis's first acts as chief rabbi was to tweet good wishes to Tottenham Hotspur in the afternoon's match against Arsenal "Good luck to @SpursOfficial in their match against @Arsenal" followed half an hour later by his thanks to Prince Charles for attending. Unfortunately for the chief rabbi, Tottenham lost 1-0.
The synagogue, first opened in a temporary building in 1876, and repeatedly rebuilt and extended over the next century until the present building was completed in 1964, has also held major services to mark national events including the coronation of George VI in 1937. The ceremony was at St John's Wood synagogue, north London, scene of the inductions of Lord Sacks 22 years ago to the day, and of the late Lord Jakobovits, the first rabbi to sit in the Lords. In his address, Mirvis spoke of his concerns about the situation in Syria and his hopes for peace in the Middle East: "As I stand before you today hostility is rife in Syria and we are witnessing some terrible atrocities, and also at this time Israel and the Palestinians are set on holding negotiations with an eye towards establishing a true and lasting peace.
Prince Charles previously attended a ceremony there marking the 50th anniversary of the founding of the state of Israel; he also attended the recent dinner celebrating the years in office of the outgoing chief rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks. Although the chief rabbi is generally viewed as the chief representative of British Jews, officially he only represents the United Synagogue, the major wing of orthodox Judaism in the UK. "In years to come I would love people to look back on this day and associate it with the time when finally we were on the path to beating swords into ploughshares in Israel and throughout the Middle East. May Almighty God bless our leaders with the wisdom to make wise and responsible decisions through these days, weeks and months of challenge." Mirvis also raised concerns about the rise of antisemitism, but said he was proud of communal attempts to combat it. "Most of all, I am proud of the fact that in our country, the fight against antisemitism is being led by successive governments and parliament and that is because it is correctly recognised that a threat against the Jews is a threat against our society."
Mirvis has already said, in an interview last week with BBC radio, that he is "totally committed" to working closely with non-orthodox synagogues, and that unity of the Jewish people was of enormous importance "we have enough problems from those on the outside" but did not commit himself to actually visiting such synagogues. He congratulated Prince Charles on the birth of his grandson, George, and thanked him for attending: "It is a reflection of the passion you have to work with the faith communities in this country. It is an expression of your desire to bring unity and to promote all the good things that we stand for."
He stuck to the Orthodox position on gay marriage, and on the possibility of women rabbis, though he insisted: "I would like to reiterate our genuine sentiment to every single Jewish man and woman, you have a home in our synagogues and we will make you feel comfortable, regardless of who you are." Although the chief rabbi is generally viewed as the chief representative of British Jews, officially he represents only the United Synagogue, the major wing of orthodox Judaism in the UK.
Mirvis, born in South Africa in 1956, the son and grandson of rabbis, served as Ireland's chief rabbi for seven years until 1992, and most recently has been rabbi at Finchley United synagogue. Mirvis, who was born in South Africa, the son and grandson of rabbis, and served for seven years as chief rabbi in Ireland, has already said he is "totally committed" to working closely with non-orthodox synagogues.
Sacks, who became chief rabbi in 1991, was admired for his scholarship and elegant rhetoric – he has been a regular guest on BBC Radio 4s Thought for the Day – but also was regarded as a divisive figure in his unfaltering support for the Orthodox right. He announced two years ago that he would retire this year on turning 65.
Although many regard Mirvis as an unknown quantity, there is optimism that he will be a more unifying leader. He was the first rabbi from the United Synagogue to welcome an imam to his synagogue when Finchley held a gathering with members of the local mosque.
Rabbi Laura Janner-Klausner, chef rabbi for the Reform movement, has said: "Luckily, he's a fabulous chap who is multi-skilled, so we'll see where he goes."
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