Thanks to Sahle Mengistu, Abraham Wondirad, Alemeshet Bayou and Rahel Alemu for their article, “The Kechene Jews of Ethiopia,” which now appears on Kulanu’s Web site. Kechene is an area of Addis Ababa where a very large community of formerly secret Jews now live. They are known for their pottery and other crafts. A Kulanu mission will be visitng this community this January. “Balej” is another name for this group of formerly secret Jews.
Â
And thanks to Dana Eitches, a student who served as a Kulanu volunteer with the Kechene community for a month last summer, for her wonderful photo album, Balej Jewish Community, Ethiopia, which we have recently published online at kulanu.phanfare.com. Dana Eitches is a student of art history at Princeton University, and you’ll share her fascination with getting to know this community and their craftsmanship.