Over the last 5-10 years, a strong community has emerged in the Kennedy neighborhood of Quito Ecuador. 30 – 40 former evangelicals or messianic “Jews for Jesus” decided that they wanted to practice traditional Judaism and would abandon all Christian theology. In the 2010’s, they were led by lay leader Yosef Franco, who also runs a Judaica store out of the synagogue (which is also his home). They established themselves as a Sephardic Orthodox group, but very few have been able to convert, as the mainstream Jewish communities in Ecuador have barely acknowledged their existence. Kulanu has tried to help them with Jewish educational resources and has helped set up visits of Hebrew Ulpan teachers and other American Jewish visitors when possible.
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Quito, Ecuador
40 adults and chilldren
Language: Spanish