Mazal tov to the recipients of the “Moses, the African Jewish Leadership Awards” at Mimouna Association and the American Sephardi Federation’s 2nd Jewish Africa Conference in Rabat, Morocco: Malcolm Hoenlein (Vice Chair, Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations), HE Jorge Santos (Minister of Cabo Verdean Communities), HE René Trabelsi (Former Minister of Tourism, Tunisia), HE Ambassador Belaynesh Zavadia, Israel’s 1st Ethiopian-Israeli Ambassador, Shaun Zagnoev (President, South African Jewish Board of Deputies), and Andrea Berry (Strategic Director of the Pupkewitz Group).
The Sephardi World Weekly is made possible by Professor Rifka Cook, Maria Gabriela Borrego Medina, Rachel Amar, Deborah Arellano, and Distinguished ASF Vice President Gwen Zuares!
Click here to dedicate a future issue in honor or memory of a loved one
🖼️ “A Head like Two Heads: The Paintings of Shai Azoulay”
By Abraham Storer, Image
Hilulah by Shai Azoulay, 2013. Oil on canvas.
Meet Shai Azoulay, a religious Jew with decidedly mystical inclinations, a father of six, and one of the leading painters on the Israeli art scene. Azoulay works out of a second-floor studio in a Jerusalem industrial neighborhood: “It is a bare, spacious room—a working space in a working building. Below it is a shop that makes vinyl signs. Stencil scraps litter the loading bays and machine parts punctuate the stairwell… ‘It’s kadosh (holy),’ Azoulay exclaims.” How does Azoulay, the artist, approach observance of religious laws? “‘You have to imagine God… The rules have imagination in them. They’re inviting you to imagine.’”
Feature: Neta Elkayam sings Hak a-Mama at the ASF Film Festival 🎶🎙️
Neta Elkayam, 24th NY Sephardic Jewish Film Festival, Moise Safra Center, 7 April 2022
Hak a-Mama (“O Mama”) is a popular Judeo-Arabic folk song that was covered in 2015 by Moroccan singer-songwriter, Faisal Azizi. Neta Elkayam, the 2022 recipient of the ASF’s Pomegranate Award for Musical Achievement, put her own acoustic spin on the classic during the Moroccan Closing Night of the 24th New York Sephardic Jewish Film Festival presented in partnership with Mimouna Association at the Moise Safra Center.
🕊️“True partner in peace for Israel”
By Avi Benlolo, The National Post
Elmehdi Boudra, Founder & President, Mimouna Association
(Photo courtesy of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy)
A uniquely Moroccan kind of pluralism is being cultivated by the Kingdom, with political leaders openly professing that, “‘[W]e are not a wealthy country, but we are a country rich in values.’” As the Moroccan Muslim Founder and President of the Mimouna Association, Elmehdi Boudra, recently explained to the Jewish Founder and Chairman of The Abraham Global Peace Initiative, Avi Benolo, those values are enshrined in the Moroccan constitution and prominently displayed on a plaque in the Jewish Museum of Casablanca: “‘A sovereign Muslim State … the Kingdom of Morocco shall seek to preserve its diverse, indivisible national identity. Its unity is built on the convergence of its Arab-Islamic Amazigh and Saharan-Hassani components, is nurtured and enriched by African, Andalusian, Hebraic and Mediterranean constituents.’”
🎨“‘Blue like me’ – Siona Benjamin will visit Jewish Museum Milwaukee, to coincide with exhibit”
By Ron Golub, The Wisconsin Jewish Chronicle
Tikkun HaOlam by Siona Benjamin
“The blue woman,” we are told, “is Sinoa Benjamin’s icon.” Explains the Mumbai-raised Jewish visual artist who today calls New Jersey home: “‘I started building these characters, and I started thinking, what shade of brown should I paint?’” Benjamin, however, soon moved to blue. From a Jewish perspective, thick blue lines feature in the Israeli flag and tallit. At the same time, the sky and the ocean are blue: “‘And that kind of made me belong anywhere and everywhere… [I]t gave me this neutrality, creating a character that would come from anywhere …’” Benjamin’s exhibit, ‘Beyond Borders,’ opened this past week in Milwaukee.
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The American Sephardi Federation invites all individuals, communities, and organizations who share our vision & principles to join us in signing the American Sephardi Leadership Statement!
Please also 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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Jewish Women from Muslim Societies Speak
Published by the American Sephardi Federation and Hadassah International Research Institute on Jewish Woman at Brandeis University
Jewish women from Morocco, Egypt, Turkey, Lebanon, and Iran were invited to share their personal stories. It could be said that these women's voices are from the last generation of Jews to have an intimate personal knowledge of the Muslim world, the enormous diversity within and among Middle Eastern Jewish communities.
We hope that these essays, told through the medium of vivid personal stories, will stimulate discussion about contemporary dynamics in the Muslim world and raise awareness of Jewish women’s history in North Africa and the Middle-East.
From Generation to Generation: a Legacy of Faith and Tolerance
By David S. Malka
From Generation to Generation: a Legacy of Faith and Tolerance is dedicated to the memory of Rabbi Shlomo Malka. It honors his memory as a Jewish scholar, a spiritual leader, and a great humanitarian.
David S. Malka is publishing this text as his personal contribution to legacy of Malka family, in the hope that this generation will re-discover their patriarch's teaching and advance his message of faith and compassion on to the next generation.
From Generation to Generation: a Legacy of Faith and Tolerance is a message of love, tolerance, and pride in one's heritage.
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Upcoming Events or Opportunities
The ASF Institute of Jewish Experience presents:
Bringing Jewish Law to the People: The Moroccan Approach
Rav Yosef Messas was born in Meknes, Morocco. He served as the Rabbi of Tlemcen, Algeria and later as the Chief Sephardi Rabbi of Haifa. Rav Messas sought to improve the halakhic attitude to the questions of modernity and the changes of time. Rabbanit Shira Marili Mirvis will discuss Rav Messas’ history, some stories about his life, and present some of his most impactful rulings.
On Sundays at 12:00PM EST
19 June
“On Wine & Peace”
Rabbanit Mirvis will present Rav Messas’ approach to those who don't keep Shabbat and our positive relation to them.
26 June
“On Women & Jewish Practice”
Rabbanit Mirvis will present Rav Messas’ approach to women learning Torah, prayer and keeping the mitztvoth.
*Registration is required for each session
(Ticket per session: $10)
Sign-up Now!
About the speaker:
Rabbanit Shira Marili Mirvis is the Rabbanit of the Shirat HaTamar congregation in Efrat. Prior to that, she was a Fellow at Midreshet Lindenbaum’s Institute for Halachic Leadership where she became certified in the topics of Shabbat, Niddah, Chuppah and Kiddushin, Brachot, and Issur V’Heter. In addition to being Rabbanit of Shirat HaTamar, she is involved in the community as a member of the city council's education committee, a member of the mikvah committee, volunteers for the “Chevra Kadisha” (burial committee), and answers halachic questions. At the same time, Shira manages a Vlog called “Daf MiShelahen” on the topic of Daf Yomi in collaboration with the Hadran organization in addition to a podcast about the weekly Parsha called “Parsha Mishelahen” with Makor Rishon. Shira is a member of the Beit Hillel Rabbinical Organization and takes an active part in the Meshivat Nefesh website in responding to halachic questions. Shira is a Fellow in the Mandel Program for Leadership in Jewish Culture. She has a bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Informatics from Bar Ilan University and lives in the Tamar neighborhood in Efrat with Shlomo and their five children.
Sponsorship opportunities available:
info@americansephardi.org
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The ASF Institute of Jewish Experience presents:
Exclusive Authors Series with Haim Jachter
Join us for New Works Wednesdays with Rabbi Haim Jachter as he discusses his new book “Bridging Traditions: Demystifying Differences Between Sephardic and Ashkenazic Jews.”
Wednesday, 22 June at 12:00PM EST
(Complimentary RSVP)
Sign-up Now!
About the book:
As the rabbi of a Sephardic synagogue for over twenty years who is himself of Ashkenazic descent and trained in Ashkenazic yeshivot, Rabbi Haim Jachter has a unique vantage point from which to observe the differences in customs and halachot between Ashkenazim and Sephardim. In Bridging Traditions, Rabbi Jachter applies his wide-ranging expertise to explicating an encyclopedic array of divergences between Ashkenazic and Sephardic halachic practice, while also capturing the diversity within different Sephardic communities. Bridging Traditions is essential reading for Jews of all origins who are interested in understanding their own practices and appreciating those of their brethren, and in seeing the kaleidoscope of halachic observance as a multi-faceted expression of an inner divine unity.
About the speaker:
Rabbi Haim Jachter is the rabbi of the Sephardic Congregation of Teaneck. He serves as a Dayan on the Beth Din of Elizabeth and has acquired an international reputation of excellence in the area of Get administration. He is also teacher at Torah Academy of Bergen County. He is a member of the Rabbinical Council of America’s Halacha Committee and Chairman of its Igun Resolution Committee. He is frequently sought out to assist communities in establishing and managing their Eruvin, and is the Rav HaMachshir of our eruv. Rabbi Jachter’s ordination is from Yeshiva University where he also earned his Master’s degree in Jewish Philosophy.
Click here for more about the book.
Sponsorship opportunities available:
info@americansephardi.org
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The ASF Institute of Jewish Experience presents:
Exclusive Authors Series with Mark Schneegurt
Join us for this episode of New Works Wednesdays where Mark Schneergurt discusses “Anthology of Religious Poetry from the Mexican Inquisition Trials of 16th-Century CryptoJews.”
Wednesday, 29 June at 12:00PM EST
(Complimentary RSVP)
Sign-up Now!
About the book:
A century after being expelled from Portugal, cryptoJews in Mexico, false converts to Christianity, could not speak of their beliefs for fear of becoming embroiled in the imprisonment, torture, and death in flames that characterized the Inquisition. Without written texts, the Jewish liturgy lost, clans of cryptoJews created a unique body of religious poetry, connecting them to the Laws of Moses, seeking redemption from sin, or hoping for an escape from their embittered lives. The Carvajal clan was led by Luis el Mozo, an alumbrado, a mystic, and his Judaizing sisters. Once discovered to be secretly practicing Judaism, years of suffering at the hands of the Inquisitors were meticulously recorded in the transcripts of their long demeaning trials. The Carvajal's friends, spouses, children and grandchildren were implicated as Judaizers, with many being reconciled by the Church to secular authorities to be burned alive at massive public ceremonies. The burning of Luis and his sisters was the main attraction for cheering crowds at the auto de fé of 1596 in Mexico City. The cruelty of the Inquisitors was matched by their attention to legal detail and testimonies made at trial. Buried within thousands of pages of transcripts, hiding in library special collections of rare books around the world are the only remnants of the religious poetry that sustained cryptoJews hiding in Mexico. Anthology uncovers these hidden treasures!
About the author:
Mark A. Schneegurt is an author, educator, scientist, and entrepreneur. His books range from scholarly works on science, religion, and literature to popular books on The Beatles. He has authored 80+ publications and has made 200+ public presentations of his works.
Sponsorship opportunities available:
info@americansephardi.org
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The ASF Institute of Jewish Experience presents:
Exclusive Authors Series with Joyce Yarrow
Join us for New Works Wednesdays with Joyce Yarrow discussing her new book “Zahara and the Lost Books of Light”!
Wednesday, 6 July at 12:00PM EST
(Complimentary RSVP)
Sign-up Now!
About the book:
Seattle journalist Alienor Crespo travels to Spain to claim the promise of citizenship offered to the descendants of Jews expelled from Spain in 1492. As she relives history through her vijitas (visits) with her ancestors, Alienor also confronts modern-day extremism and commits herself to protecting an endangered “Library of Light” – a hidden treasure trove of medieval Hebrew and Arabic books, saved from the fires of the Inquisition.
About the author:
The author of five novels, Joyce Yarrow was born in the SE Bronx, escaped to Manhattan as a teenager, and today does most of her traveling through her writing.
Joyce has worked as a screenwriter, singer-songwriter, multimedia performance artist, and member of the world music vocal ensemble, Abráce.
She is a Pushcart nominee, whose stories and poems have been widely published. She considers the setting of her books to be characters in their own right and teaches workshops on “The Place of Place in Suspense Writing.”
Click here for more about the book.
Click here for the Spanish edition.
Sponsorship opportunities available:
info@americansephardi.org
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The Greek Jewish & Sephardic Young Professionals Network in partnership with the Association of Friends of Greek Jewry present:
Special Young Professionals Tour of Jewish Greece
(Summer 2022)
Join to trace the roots of our families, visit the beautiful cities of Thessaloniki (Salonika), Veroia, Kastoria, Ioannina, Athens, and Rhodes, and connect with other young Jews in Greece.
Check out the full itinerary here!
For more information email GreekJewishYPN@gmail.com