7 Green visited Wimbledon District Synagogue recently and had the opportunity to use all their senses as they explored the beliefs and practices of the Jewish faith.

Many girls were able to touch and hold important religious artefacts, not least the decorative and symbolic coverings of the Torah Scrolls. They were also given the opportunity to see the scrolls first hand, making sure they didn’t breathe too heavily on these most expensive and sacred objects. They ate the Challot, special loaves eaten on Friday night, the start of the Jewish Sabbath. Significantly, the girls also heard a great deal about the Jewish faith and were fantastic at asking and answering lots of questions.

Iyata, Fatmed and Sia wrote the following:

On 16^th May we went to the synagogue and were very excited. We were introduced to two male members of the Jewish community who let us wear the Jewish skull cap (kippa). They told us about the holy cabinet (Ark) which include the Torah scrolls and let us unravel them. After that we split into two groups with one group studying the Torah and the other visiting the Shabbat table. We were given some plaited loaf and grape juice.

We really enjoyed the visit, it was a good experience and we liked seeing what a Shabbat table looked like. Thank you Mr Sanders and the RS Department for giving us the opportunity to go.