As I write this article sitting in sunshine in the gardens of a luxury hotel in Mallorca, I am drawn to compare my good fortune with those of the twinned community which my synagogue helps to support. But that is to jump ahead so let me start with some background. 

I am a member of Radlett & Bushey Reform Synagogue situated in the leafy Hertfordshire village of Radlett. The synagogue is a member of the Movement for Reform Judaism which has for many years, helped fellow Jews living in what used to be the Soviet Union. Under the Communist regime, the worship of any religion was strongly discouraged and Judaism was no exception to this rule. Following the break up of the Soviet Union, a number of independent republics were created and religion again began to flourish. In 1996, my synagogue was asked if it would agree to be twinned with a Jewish community in the former Soviet Union, and more by luck than judgement, we were twinned with a new Jewish community in the Belarussian city of Grodno, situated near the border with both Poland and Lithuania.