Jews, Mormons to unite at B'nai Shalom Thursday

Jews, Mormons to unite at B'nai Shalom Thursday

(Ravell Call, Deseret News)


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SALT LAKE CITY — Members of multiple faiths will congregate Thursday at the semi-annual “B’nai Shalom,” an event that has united Jews and members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints since 1967.

A non-profit organization, B’nai Shalom is held twice a year on the Thursday before the LDS Church’s General Conference. Attendees will enjoy an evening filled with a potluck dinner, Sephardic music, dancing and a speaker, according B’nai Shalom president, Marlena Muchnick-Baker.

B'nai Shalom was started by three Jewish men and their families who converted to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They wanted to make that knowledge available to other Jewish people "who were looking for more than they had, more than they were raised with," Muchnick-Baker said.

During this week’s event, Patricia Argyle will address attendees about her parents’ death at Auschwitz during the Holocaust and how she found forgiveness of the Nazis, Muchnick-Baker said.

Muchnick-Baker said many of the attendees are Jewish and have memories associated with the Holocaust.

“We feel she will help us to look within ourselves and realize that (forgiveness) is a godly principle and he wants us to learn it,” Muchnick-Baker said.

Julie Gardner and her fellow musicians will play Sephardic music on their string instruments while Diana Isham sings, all while guests eat dinner. Edwin Austin, Jr., from the Brigham Young University Department of Dance, will lead guests in Hebrew dances after Argyle’s address, Muchnick-Baker said.


We're just people, we need to get passed all these boundaries, these territories, these fences.

–Marlena Muchnick-Baker, B'nai Shalom president


“Each gets to know the other better, it’s an interfaith social organization,” Muchnick-Baker said.

B'nai Shalom is interested in "attracting Mormons of Jewish lineage who want a better understanding of their Jewish Roots," Muchnick-Baker said in an email.

Nancy Hilton, a Jewish genealogist and a B'nai Shalom board member will assist Latter-day Saints in searching their Jewish ancestry.

B’nai Shalom translates to “Children of Peace,” and Muchnick-Baker said the event helps Jews and Latter-day Saints understand each others religions and become aware of the similarities and differences.

“We’re just people, we need to get past all these boundaries, these territories, these fences,” Muchnick-Baker said.

B’nai Shalom will take place at the Salt Lake Stake Center at 142 West 200 North at 6 p.m. Attendees may come at 5 p.m. to visit the genealogy corner, Muchnick-Baker said.

The event is free and open to anyone who would like to attend.

There are more than 700 members of B'nai Shalom in Utah, Washington and across the world. To learn more about becoming a member or the Seattle Chapter, visit its website.

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