“We have been working closely with GLJC for a number of years and are excited about joining a bigger community with more to offer our members,” explained its chair, Mark Walton. “We hope we will now have more to offer people in the wider area and we will be promoting what we do.”
His Gloucestershire counterpart, Natalie Towle, said the amalgamation would produce a congregation with a combined membership of around 150.
Services will be held at different venues in the Three Counties on at least a monthly basis.
Gloucestershire also said goodbye to Rabbi Anna Gerrard at a joint service with HJC attended by more than 70 people.
Rabbi Gerrard — who joined GLJC in 2009, a year after its formation — has decided to take a break from ministerial duties. Shul president David Naydorf thanked her for her contribution to its growth.
The service also featured the acceptance of three new GLJC members into Judaism and a speech from Mohamed Fahili, the founder of the Charles Clore Centre in Akko, which brings together Jews, Christians and Muslims.
