4 minute read
My report on places far and away
Marina Berkovich, JHSSWF President
In the 1930s, several European Jewish families seeking refuge from Hitler made their way to Barbados. Nidhe Israel Synagogue in Bridgetown, Barbados was rescued and restored by their descendants. The 1654 original was built by the Sephardim who escaped from Europe’s antisemitism, first to Brazil, then to Barbados. That community vanished 200 years later, when antisemitism caught up with them. Current Barbadian Jewish website states, “although we are a Conservative congregation, our community is made up of Reform, Liberal, Conservative and Orthodox members. We are bound by our belief in Judaism ...” They assemble on Fridays. We were there Sunday.
An Australian Jewish couple we met aboard our cruise ship had visited Casablanca before and led us to its Jewish treasure, hidden away in a tiny medina (market) alley. Would have never found it if not for these angels. We got there early, took and posed for pictures and were observed by many male passersby eyes. One man edged around the Australian male, whispered a barely audible “shalom,” then moved on without turning back. He was clad in a striped Moroccan garb. I have no idea if he was a Jew or a Jew-friendly Moroccan. One thing I know for certain, people who live in countries that do not persecute their Jewish neighbors are unafraid to be seen talking to Jews.
Ettedgui Synagogue is located on Rue Al-Aidi Ali Al-Maaroufi. It’s near the Casablanca port, which is commercial and walking out of its gate takes about 20-25 minutes on dusty roads amid heavy machinery. Most passengers who walked out with us, including some Jews, headed to the mosque. Incidentally, Israelis were not even permitted to disembark in Casablanca. Neither were passengers from 14 other countries.
Father’s Day found us in Belfast, Northern Ireland. On a bus tour, a prerecorded narration mentioned the former Belfast Hebrew Congregation, now Belfast Jewish Community. The entire city of Belfast never fully recovered from its “struggles,” and it pales in comparison to its Republic of Ireland peers Cork and Dublin.
Inside St. George’s Market, nothing caught our attention until a man with payoses and kippah popped into my husband’s view. Jacob de Rothschild, as he wants to be called, is the last openly religious Jew of Belfast. He’s been insulted and beaten and yet he proudly wears his Jewish attributes. A native of Belfast, he has lived in Israel but returned. Marguerite took over the adjacent booth from her Jewish grandmother who was Jacob’s friend. Both are Ashkenazi, descendants of Jews who’d escaped Russian pogroms. Their children, like most Jewish youth of Northern Ireland, left Judaism.
“There are several hundred of us in the country, only about 50 here, no rabbi. Too many antisemites. But Jewish tourists love to take my picture,” Jacob said. We sang a little “Hava Nagila” together, hugged and parted. Jews are less than half of 1% of the present Northern Ireland population. Maybe Hashem brought me there to offer encouragement. You can do it to “contact us” at collectablecurios.co.uk.
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