In Memory of the Modern Maccabees who have fallen in the line fire, HY”D
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The Sephardi World Weekly is made possible by Daniel Yifrach, Rachel Sally, Professor Rifka Cook, Maria Gabriela Borrego Medina, Rachel Amar, Deborah Arellano, & ASF VP Gwen Zuares!
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💥“Indian Bnei Menashe Jews miraculously survived Oct. 7. Now they’re fighting wars in Israel and India”
By Jordyn Haime, JTA
200 Bnei Menashe are estimated to be serving in the IDF
(Photo courtesy of Degel Menashe/JTA)
More than 100 Bnei Menashe Jews from the northeast Indian states of Manipur and Mizoram live in the town of Sderot along the Gaza border. No one from the Bnei Menashe perished on Oct. 7th, because prayers were being held in a new Sderot synagogue especially built for the community that sits east of the road where Hamas terrorists attacked. Says Rabbi David Lhungdim, “Had we been praying at the old site… the terrorists would have seen us because they were on the main road and shooting everyone that they see.” Today, approximately 200 young men from the community from all over the country are fighting in the IDF. Ironically, Bnei Menashe Jews in Manipur have also been targeted during the past eight months as “ethnic Kukis — the group to which the Bnei Menashe belong — have been targeted by the majority Meiteis.” Discussions are being held between the community and the Israeli government about bringing additional members of the Bnei Menashe community from India to Israel.
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Feature: The Bnei Menashe: Fighting Hamas in Gaza and Facing an Ethnic Conflict in Manipur, India💥🙌
Bnei Menashe children
(Screenshot courtesy of YouTube)
Members of the Bnei Menashe community of Indian Jews believe themselves to be descendants of one of the ten lost tribes, “Their forefathers sang a traditional song about crossing the Red Sea; they have a history of circumcising their children on the eighth day; and, rice-eaters, they once celebrated a springtime festival in which they ate unleavened bread.” Today, approximately 2,000 Bnei Mensahe live in Israel, and 5,000 live in India. The sons of the community in Israel are fighting Hamas, while the community remaining in India is under attack. Community leaders explained the dire conditions of Bnei Menashe in India to the Israeli government and asked to bring the rest of the Bnei Mensahe home. Indian News9 reports.
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📜“With Prof. Edwin Seroussi discussing - Rav Yisrael Najara (1555 – 1625): Gaza’s most famous Rabbi, Poet, and Preacher”
By Seforim Chatter Podcast
A print of Rabbi Najara’s Yah Ribbon Olam from Salonica, circa 1920s
(Photo courtesy of Virtual Judaica)
Israel Najara (1555-1625) was born in Tzefat when the city was the great center of Jewish Kabbalistic study and practice. He came from a family of Spanish exiles and, according to the great Hebrew University musicologist, Prof. Edwin Seroussi, “Judeo-Spanish was the language spoken at home, for sure.” What’s more, “The legacy of piyyut, Hebrew sacred song, from Spain, was also running through this family.” Najara’s journey to becoming one of the great payytanim of Jewish history ran through Gaza [include ASF website link], then a stop-over town for Jewish merchants moving between Egypt and the rest of the Land of Israel. Najara served the Gazan-Jewish community as a scholar, preacher, and astoundingly prolific poet. Argues Seroussi, “His output in poetry has no equal… almost through Jewish history, and I’m not exaggerating.” Najara’s burial site in Gaza was known until 1948, when the invading Egyptian forces destroyed Gaza’s Jewish cemetery. After the Six Day War, Israelis unsuccessfully searched for the remnants of Najara’s grave.
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The ASF’s Hamas War Resource Page features the latest appearances and articles by ASF Sephardi House Fellows!
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Please support the ASF with a generous, tax-deductible contribution so we can continue to cultivate and advocate, preserve and promote, as well as educate and empower!
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Hanukkah in Eight Nights: Bring the Past to Light
By Marian Scheuer Sofaer
Celebrate a family Hanukkah with dramatic readings about the feats of the Maccabees! In addition to the candle lighting blessings, Hanukkah songs, recipes, and sevivon game rules, this book incudes excerpts from ancient sources and vivid read-aloud stories by Moshe Pearlman for each night that will bring the riveting events of 164 B.C.E. to life. Good for school age children through adults.
My Life and Work: Chanukah Lamps
By Oded Halahmy
The Hebrew word Hanukkah means "dedication" and symbolizes freedom; Oded Halahmy has dedicated himself to honoring his Jewish roots and culture through artwork related especially to this holiday.
Oded once hosted a holiday party and invited many friends to light Hanukkah candles. Every year since, he has kept up the tradition of making a new Hanukkah lamp.
Over the years, other ancient Middle Eastern symbols from Oded's Iraqi heritage began to appear in his lamps: the pomegranate, Hamsa (hand), lion, palm tree, palm frond, crown, and horseshoe.
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Upcoming Events or Opportunities
The American Sephardi Federation, the Sephardic Jewish Brotherhood of America, the Sephardic Foundation on Aging, and Shearith Israel League Foundation proudly present:
Bendichas Manos:
The 7th Annual New York Ladino Day
Curated by Jane Mushabac and Bryan Kirschen
Featuring:
Rabbi Marc Angel, author and editor of 38 books, and a 2023 International Sephardic Gala Honoree for his decades of remarkable community leadership.
Rachel Amado Bortnick, teacher and founder of the renowned online group, Ladinokomunita, now in its 25th year with 1500 Ladino-speaking members worldwide.
Elizabeth Graver, author of the groundbreaking 2023 Sephardic novel Kantika, and long celebrated for her prize-winning fiction.
Sarah Aroeste, singer/songwriter, and Susan Barocas, foodwriter/story-teller, a duo whose “Savor” program of songs and talk about Sephardic cuisine is garnering raves here and abroad.
Sunday, 21 January at 2:00PM EST
In-Person @the Center for Jewish History
Sign-up Now!
Tickets:
Early Bird General Admission $20 (regular General Admission $25)
VIP $36 (includes VIP seating and reception)
(Early Bird offer expires on 17 December)
Since 2013, Ladino Day programs have been held around the world to honor Ladino, also known as Judeo-Spanish. January 21st marks New York’s 7th Annual Ladino Day hosted by the American Sephardi Federation.
Ladino is a bridge to many cultures. A variety of Spanish, it has absorbed words from Hebrew, Turkish, Arabic, French, Greek, and Portuguese. The mother tongue of Jews in the Ottoman Empire for 500 years, Ladino became the home language of Sephardim worldwide. While the number of Ladino speakers has sharply declined, distinguished Ladino Day programs like ours celebrate and preserve a vibrant language and heritage. These programs are, as Aviya Kushner has written in the Forward, “Why Ladino Will Rise Again.”
© Ioannina, mid-19th century Sephardi & Romaniot Jewish Costumes in Greece & Turkey. 16 watercolours by Nicholas Stavroulakis published by the Association of the Friends of the Jewish Museum of Greece, Athens, 1986.
Please support the New York Ladino Day with a generous, tax-deductible contribution so we can continue to cultivate and advocate, preserve and promote, as well as educate and empower!
Sponsorship opportunities available:
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The American Sephardi Federation presents:
Convergence: Arabic, Hebrew, and Persian Calligraphy in Conversation
Featuring the multilingual art of Ruben Shimonov Convergence creates a visual world where Hebrew, Arabic, and Persian languages interact with, and speak to, one another; a world where stylized letters and words dance together on the page; a world where cultures, religions, communities, and philosophies intersect.
Juxtaposing cognates from these ancient West Asian languages, artist Ruben Shimonov encourages the viewer to explore the deep-rooted connections between these tongues, as well as the multilayered and transnational identity of the artist himself.
On View in the Leon Levy Gallery
through 31 December 2023
@ the Center for Jewish History
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The American Sephardi Federation and Mimouna Association’s Rebuilding Our Homes Project present:
Re-Creation: Judaica by Moroccan Muslim Artisans
Explore the exhibition of Judeo-Moroccan art, Moroccan Judaica, cultural and religious objects, including Menorot, Mezuzot, Yads, Shabbat Candleholders, Seder Plates, Hallah Covers, and much more.
On View through 31 December 2023
@ the Center for Jewish History
As Moroccan Jewish populations largely left the mellahs (Jewish quarters) in the latter half of the 20th century, there was a danger that not only designs but even the traditional artisanal techniques needed to create them would be lost. Passed down from one artisan to another and perfected over time, these designs and techniques. ranging from vibrant patterns to intricate metalwork and soulful wood carvings, are expressions of Moroccanity and reflect the individual character of each city. The materials and craftsmanship of Rabat are different than Fez, and Essaouira is distinct from both.
Mimouna Association and the American Sephardi Federation’s Rebuilding Our Homes Project, a multi-year USAID-supported New Partnerships Initiative, brought three notable experts-Ms. Zhor Rehihil, Ms. Deborah Koenigsberger Gutierrez, and Ms. Meryem Ghandi to train Moroccan Muslim artisans in the history of Judeo-Moroccan art and guided them in re-creating Moroccan Judaica, which encompasses a diverse array of cultural and religious objects, including Menorot, Mezuzot, Yads, Shabbat Candleholders, Seder Plates, Hallah Covers, and much more.