Beit Lameid, which has fully qualified teachers, takes great pride in being popular with the pupils and has maintained a high attendance rate over several years. Classes meet on Saturday mornings during term times and occasionally at other times for Festival Celebrations or Religion School services.

Click on the link on the left to see the Beit Lameid curriculum.

Conversion classes are run by the Rabbi.

Being Jewish in a Non-Jewish Society Today & Tomorrow

(Reflections of Five 12 - 16 Year Olds from Brighton & Hove Progressive Synagogue)

"Being a Jew means a lot to me. It's interesting, fun, a way of life and my identity. But it can be hard sometimes and creates dilemmas. Today not as many people go to synagogue as they used to. I think that in the future all religions will drop dramatically because of scientific research and discovery. The numbers of young Jews in Brighton & Hove will decline because we will probably go to Jewish places in North West London or other Jewish centres."

"I plan to carry on my Jewish life. Being a Jew in Britain can be hard, but if you try, you will be able to carry on a Jewish way of life and pass on your knowledge to other people. Being Jewish in a non-Jewish society is problematic and I can sometimes feel trapped. I do worry that anti-Semitism could get worse, and people will turn on Jews - but it will probably not happen. I think that being Jewish is also helpful and enlightening, and may become easier as well."

"It's hard to be a Jew today because some people may come down on you for being different. Due to the decreasing number of Jews in Britain, finding a friend to practise being a Jew with is harder. People are becoming more aware of Judaism, and not a lot of children in schools are anti-Semitic, so we can try and live a normal life -however, there are still racist people. In the future, I think the number of Jews in Britain will decrease - however I think it will be easier to be a Jew and to practise the religion. This is because people are realising that racism is wrong."

"Being a Jew in a non-Jewish society can occasionally be tough. Life is split in two as the majority of my friends are not Jewish, and so do not understand why I miss school sometimes for festivals, or have to miss going out shopping to go to a service. It can be hard to stand out from the crowd and be different. Today we have a small but good Jewish community - but in the future will this be the same? There is a declining population of Jews who practise Judaism. Hopefully, being an 'active' Jew will still be a large part of my life, but it does not seem to fit into what we are being taught in schools about concentrating on our careers."

"Being a Jew in a non-Jewish society involves trying to fit in with both worlds - being a chameleon and balancing the two. You have to work harder at 'being Jewish'. Often you're a 'token Jew', and need to explain yourself to other non-Jews. It's easier for me to be a Jew now because I don't have the work commitments I probably will have later on. Unless I move to somewhere more Jewish, I'll probably live in a secular society for the rest of my life. In the future, I will have to make and set aside time to do Jewish things. I will probably join the JSoc at whatever university I go to, and my choice of university will depend heavily on the JSoc and local Jewish Community "

 September 2002