In Puerto Rico, Democratic Republic of the Congo,
El Salvador, Pakistan, and Indonesia
By Bonita Nathan Sussman
As vice president of Kulanu, my particular interest is in engaging new communities. This year has been a particularly fruitful one.
New communities come to Kulanu’s attention in several ways: They contact us through our web site after doing a search, an academic has made contact with them and found that they want more Jewish connection, or travelers have come upon them. Sometimes a local resident tells us about a new community developing in the area and shares information about us. Once someone in the community contacts us, we do an investigation to be certain that they really are who they say they are and that they are not a messianic community. We send a questionnaire to get more information, ask for photos, and then add them to our web page.
We are proud to say that we are not missionaries; we do not go out and “look for” communities to become Jewish. Rather, communities come to us. When a community requests it, we send information, teachers, Jewish books, ritual objects, and Torahs when deemed appropriate. We link them with resources as well as with other Jewish communities. We have a technology fund that
enable us to give the poorer communities internet access, computers, and, in some cases, help with electricity.
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico is home to Kulanu’s newest community which came to us in the last week of August 2018. This is a small community named Congregacion Ahavas Torah de Puerto Rico that claims descendancy from crypto-Jews, and was established a decade ago by Rabbi Larry Goldstein, a friend of Kulanu who passed away four years ago. They currently study with rabbis in New Jersey via Skype and visitors to their community, and they meet in various members’ homes. They are struggling to survive after Hurricane Maria in 2017.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo’s Luba tribe follows a strong Conservative practice. We were introduced to this community through Guershon Nduwa, another friend of Kulanu and the founder and president of the Federation des Juives Noir in France.
According to Kabuika, one of the leaders of the Jewish community, “Members of the Luba tribe are the Jews of Congo. Though it is the largest tribe and millions of the Luba people are aware of their Jewish roots, most feel disconnected and fearful of diving into their own heritage. The religious environment here in the Congo is not very open to anything other than Christianity and so they feel trapped.”
Kabuika continues: “However, when you talk one-on-one with people, they do admit wanting to learn more about Judaism. Some are shy but come to attend Jewish holiday events—about fifteen to twenty families join together at these times. Others are passionate about their Jewishness but may not be Jewish in the open, as they live with Christian parents. Quite a few have decided they want to convert to Judaism. While we consider ourselves a Conservative community, we sometimes attend services in Bet Yaakov Kinshasa which follows a Chassidic practice. We are connected to Jewish groups outside of the Congo such as the Federation des Juives Noir in France, and others.”
El Salvador
El Salvador’s many developing Jewish communities have reached out to Kulanu recently and in the past. San Salvador, El Salvador’s capital and largest city, is home to Comunidad Beit Israel. They hired Rabbi Elisha Salas who
worked in Portugal for twenty-five years, supported by the Israeli organization Shavei Yisrael, as well as by the local community. This community has about two hundred members, and about one hundred members still want and need formal conversion. They are observant Haredi Jews. Genie Milgrom, our coordinator for El Salvador and newest board member, is in touch with the Beit Israel community. She says, “Rav Salas tells me that the community is under tremendous hardship because they are keeping all the laws and sleeping in the synagogue on mattresses on the Shabbat and the holidays. Some are in their seventies and eighties and it kills him to see this kind of sacrifice. They are a very committed and pious group.”
The Batalia Shalom-Armenia community in Armenia, El Salvador has been helped by Kulanu in the past. Genie reports, “Rav Salas has been hired to take care of them as well. It is a forty minute drive from Beit Israel. The community members are humble, kind, and sincere. There are about one hundred to two hundred of them and they need conversions. Rabbi Salas is just beginning to work with them; in only three weeks he has been to see them three times and has given classes. Many quit their jobs so as not to work Saturdays, so poverty increases with observance. When I asked what they need, he said that Kulanu had already supplied all the siddurim and other Judaica items, and that they have a sefer Torah. He feels at first look that the ideal would be to try to open an inexpensive bakery in San Salvador. That would give jobs to at least eight to ten families.”
One and a half hours west of San Salvador, in Cara Sucia, is another small Jewish community. Maurilio Mejia is the community’s spokesperson, and we believe that there are twenty-three to twenty-five people, all un-converted as yet. We need to get more information but we know that they identify as Jews.
In San Marcos, El Salvador, there is a community of twenty to twenty-five people led by Mario Lara. While they see themselves as Jews, they are not engaged in Jewish learning at this time. There is also the Shema Israel community in La Libertad. Genie reports, “I spoke to Jorge, leader of the community, for over an hour today trying to understand. He was with the group of Beit Israel but separated. The community has about forty to fifty people. They identify as Jews, but none have converted. I asked him to talk to Rabbi Salas to get classes going. There is another
community led by Jorge Isaias that has sent us lovely pictures of their community. They have the Kulanu contact information if they need our help.”
Pakistan
In Pakistan, there is a group of about two hundred families who come out of the Noahide movement (a group that practices the seven laws given to the sons of Noah in the Book of Genesis). They are connected to Rabbi Yakov Cohen, director of The Institute of the Noahide Code, a United Nations-accredited NGO, which is dedicated to teaching Noahide practice, and to a woman in Pakistan who is connected to Rabbi Riskin of Ohr Torah Stone yeshiva in Israel. The community started in 1974, all the men are circumcised, and on Shabbat they come together regularly to study Torah.
Indonesia
Indonesia, the world’s largest Muslim country with 220 million people, is home to three Orthodox Jewish communities. Jakarta has a small traditional group of Jews and an Orthodox rabbi. On the island of West Papua in Timika and Jayapura are the synagogues of two fascinating, vibrant Orthodox communities. They claim descent from Anusim (crypto-Jews).According to their tradition, their families fled Peru after the long arm of the Inquisition found them. They took boats into the Pacific for the arduous journey, stopping in Japan before settling in Indonesia.
right): The community took off work and school just to wait for their
arrival from the airport. They sang, danced, and ate, but the community
was especially eager to start learning right away. Diana, with the guitar,
accommodates the entire community every Shabbat and holiday
They had a Torah with a silver crown. In the 1800s a missionary came, took the Torah and silver, burnt down the hut where they were housed, and left them with New Testaments. Today they have come back to Judaism and are practicing Orthodox customs. They are educated and all can read Hebrew and pray from the siddur and have even printed a translation of the Jewish prayer book. Kulanu has partnered with Ohr Torah Stone in Israel and has sent two couples to visit them. One couple visited for the month prior to and including Passover and Rabbi Keith and Nili Salem B’Simcha visited for three weeks before Rosh Hashanah. We even managed to get them a Torah! They are serious, devout people who want nothing more than to rejoin the Jewish people. We are delighted to connect with these blossoming communities and look forward to helping them learn and grow in their Jewish studies and practice.