Mazal tov to Yanna Begelman for her inspiring work in support of Tikva Children’s Home, which saves Jewish Odessan children and helps many marry and make Aliyah
Organizers were only expecting 100 people to show-up, but approximately 200 Jewish descendants of those who used to live in Kochi, India, recently arrived for a three-day celebration of the Paradesi Synagogue’s 450th anniversary. David Hallegua, a member of the Cochin Synagogue Trust, claimed that the festivities embraced more than just the synagogue, “It is a family gathering. A reunion of everyone who has a connection with not only the synagogue but also the city.”
Paradesi Synagogue, Cochin, India, 2017
(Photo courtesy of Rahel Musleah/Haddassah Magazine, 2017)
Kochi Jews in the Synagogue (Screenshot courtesy of The New Indian Express/Youtube)
The New Indian Express meets up with Jews from across the globe, who recently gathered in Kochi to celebrate the 450th anniversary of the Paradesi Synagogue.
Jewish reunion in Kochi, India, 7 December 2018
(Photo courtesy of Mathrubhumi)
Non-Jews in Kochi also joined in the celebrations surrounding the Paradesi Synagogue’s anniversary. Some even waved Israeli flags. According to Junaid Sulaiman, the Secretary of the Kerala Handicrafts Association: “We are grateful to the Jews because thanks to the presence of the synagogue, we are on the world map. And for decades we’ve been having a steady business as a lot of Jews come from all over the world to pray at the synagogue.”
CONTEXT
Since Biblical times, from Abraham’s journey to Egypt and the later Israelite captivity under the Pharaohs, the Jewish People have had close ties with Africa. Some Jewish communities in Africa are amongst the oldest in the world, dating back more than 2,700 years (Morocco, Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, and Algeria). Today, Jews and Judaism in Africa show an ethnic and religious diversity and richness almost unparalleled on any other continent.
CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS
A circle of emerging African leaders and researchers will analyze a broad spectrum of issues pertaining to the history and contemporary situation of Jewish Africa, including the role of Jews and the need of Jewish voices in African civil society, the development of Jewish space, perspectives on old and new African Jewish identities, and encounters between Jews and non-Jews in contemporary Africa.
TOPICS TO BE DISCUSSED
Jewish heritage in Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Ethiopia, Cape Verde, Uganda, and South Africa; Black African Judaism; the Future for Judaism in Africa; and preserving the memory and heritage of African Judaism in the 21st Century via the Diarna Geo-Museum and Atlas of Jewish History initiatives.
The central idea is to approach these topics from the point of view of Jewish African leaders. In doing so, the conference seeks to provide a platform and create a meaningful network of researchers and Jewish African leaders.
The American Sephardi Federation, Sephardic Jewish Brotherhood of America, and American Jewish Historical Society present:
A Festival to celebrate Ladino, the remarkable language also known as Judeo-Spanish.
Sunday, 10 February, 2:00-5:00PM Center for Jewish History
15 West 16th Street
New York City
Please register here
or call: 1.800.838.3006 Light refreshments will be served.
Celebrate Ladino in the company of highly acclaimed musicians and writers. Hear clarinetist Danny Elias; author Jane Mushabac's story, Seven Songs; composer Avi Amon's musical fantasy, Salonika; scholar Bryan Kirschen speaking on Ladino's rich culture; Rabbi Nissim Elnecavé on wisdom tales; and the Alhambra Ensemble's Songs of Courtship, Love, and Holidays with oud, violin, shawm, dumbek and voices.
Since 2013, when Israel's 5th President Yitzhak Navon endorsed Zelda Ovadia's idea of International Ladino Day, celebrations have been held in Jerusalem, Seattle, Istanbul, Madrid, Dallas, Forest Hills, Boston, and other cities. February 10th marks the Second Annual International Ladino Day at the Center for Jewish History.
Ladino is a bridge to many cultures; it's a Spanish language that includes words in Hebrew, Turkish, Arabic, and more. The mother tongue of Jews in the Ottoman Empire for 500 years, Ladino was the home language of Sephardim worldwide in the early 20th century.
Although today Ladino is only spoken by a small fraction of Sephardim, the interest in the language and its culture is experiencing a resurgence through distinguished university programs, publications, concerts, and events of many kinds.
Nosotros 2.0, which opened as a one-night pop-up exhibition on 11 October. continues in part as an exhibition in our Leon Levy Gallery.
On view until April
Center for Jewish History
15 West 16th Street
New York City
The Philos Project and American Sephardi Federation cordially invite you to “Nosotros," an exhibition composed of pieces by Latino artists celebrating the shared history and culture of Jewish and Latino communities, and expressing hope for a more positive future. Latin American artistry is rich with Sephardi and Crypto-Jewish allusions and symbols.
The exhibit is titled “Nosotros,” the Spanish word for “us,” and all of the art represents the growing relationship between the Jewish and Hispanic communities in New York and around the world. The exhibit is one of the many things Jesse Rojo, The Philos Project's Hispanic Affairs Director, is doing to bridge the gap between Hispanics and the Middle East.
Donate nowand your tax-deductible contribution will help ASF preserve and promote the Greater Sephardi history, traditions, and culture as an integral part of the Jewish experience!
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The American Sephardi Federation is located at the Center for Jewish History (15 West 16th Street, New York, New York, 10011).