[NYTr] Perennial "Cuban Jews" Story for Jewish Holidays
 
Date: Thu, 20 Sep 2007 01:30:46 -0500 (CDT)

Via NY Transfer News Collective  *  All the News that Doesn't Fit
 
Perennial "Cuban Jews" Story for Jewish Holidays

[Usually at this time of year we get the "Rabbi Goes to Havana" story
with elaborate tales of how there isn't enough kosher food, nor enough
people to dust off the Torahs, etc etc etc. This year they have a new
take: Optimism and glad tidings because Fidel is no longer running
things day to day (which was also true a year ago, but never mind...).
Here we have more of the same theme we got from the killer hijacker
story. 

The US seems to have figured out that Cuba is not abandoning its
revolution, so the new propaganda line is: Things are different with
Raul. In fact, we're told Cuba now has a "Castro-less Regime" [sic].
Maybe Raul's last name is really Schwartz. Who would've guessed?
Anything to keep the gusano fantasy factory going, sort of like Bush's
regime. But even for domestic US consumption, Guttman (or his editors)
were unable to portray Cuba's Jews in this article in any way as
oppressed, repressed or depressed for decades. It's hard not to admit
this when the woman Guttman calls the "head of the Jewish community"
testifies to her pleasure at meeting Fidel in person and inviting him
to an event, which he attended. The author even admits that Cuban Jews,
like all religious believers, have been protected from any violence,
since the beginning of the Revolution and that they all feel completely
safe in Havana -- which is probably the safest and least violent
country in the hemisphere. 

Even more amazing, the "Forward" managed to publish the story without a
slap at Venezuela, the most-favorite target since the glory days of the
Sandinistas in Nicaragua of the "anti-semite" smears. Aside from
Israeli backpackers, there is no mention of Israel or Zionism or the
substantial Israeli investments in joint ventures in Cuba. -NYTransfer]

Jewish Daily Forward - Sep 19, 2007
http://www.forward.com/articles/11653/

Community Finds New Life in Castro-less Cuba

by Nathan Guttman

Havana, Cuba - During the High Holy Days this year, an unlikely
community is celebrating not just the start of a new year but also the
beginning of a new era.

Adela Dworin, head of the Jewish community in Havana, can boast of more
than 10,000 volumes on Jewish literature at the Abraham Marcus Matterin
communal library in the capital. [All these books just
magically appeared, perhaps, direct from the alleged god by Special
Delivery, when Fidel had his surgery.]

At Rosh Hashanah services last week at Havanabs Beth Shalom synagogue,
a record crowd of 200 people was in attendance, with children running
in the aisles. Many of the worshippers were converts who came to
Judaism as recently as last January. For the first time since the Cuban
revolution, the Jewish community is growing and distant Jews are
returning.

During the past decade, the Jewish community has flown in a group of
rabbis every two years to lead Jewish conversion classes. The latest
class ended this January with 73 men each going through a ritual
circumcision at a local hospital. Most of them were on hand last week
for their first Rosh Hashanah as full-fledged Jews. [No comment.]

This was also the first Rosh Hashanah without Fidel Castro in firm
command of the country. [Uhhh... no -- Fidel handed power over
temporarily to Raul a year ago at the end of July, before his 80th
birthday.-NYTr] Castrobs health status has been a matter of widespread
speculation since the leader failed to surface the day of his recent
81st birthday. But while the uncertainty has had many here on edge, the
Jewish community is wearing a confident and hopeful face, which many
attribute to Castrobs unexpected openness toward religion since the
fall of the Soviet Union [which occurred 17 years ago, guys.]

bWe are on our way back from assimilation,b said William Miller, a
full-time communal worker who runs the local operations for the
international Jewish organization World ORT. [hahahahahahaha]

Today, Cubabs Jewish community consists of about 1,500 members, most of
them in the capital, Havana, which has three synagogues and a Jewish
community center. During last weekbs services at Beth Shalom, in the
relatively affluent neighborhood of Vedado, there was a mixed crowd:
older community members with younger families; many children, and the
inevitable presence of Israeli backpackers.

The service itself was conducted in Spanish, with some translation into
Hebrew and English. In a country where product shortages are a constant
concern, a last-minute snag almost left the congregation without honey
for the traditional blessings with apples. But an hour before the
holiday began, a batch of honey was found. [Since Cuba has a fairly
large honey industry, this probably didn't require anything close to a
miracle.-NYTr]

Shortages are a steady fact of life for every community in Cuba. To
address this problem, each year Canadian Jews send to Cuba a shipment
of kosher food packages, a gift that has turned out to be not only a
welcome addition to insufficient food rations but also a means to
attract Jews back to the community. [Little perks like that have a way
of bringing out the crowds to proclaim their loyalty loud and long to
whatever group is doing the donating. -NYTr]

The Passover handout of the Canadian food, which brings together not
only active Jews but also those who have little to do with the
community, serves as a chance to reach out and offer otherwise
disconnected Jews an opportunity to join the community.

bItbs a great way to get our message out,b Miller said.

Things were not always so encouraging. During Castrobs early years in
power, religion was officially shunted to the side in a fashion similar
to the Soviet Union, which was the guiding star for Castrobs regime.
Members of religious groups were not allowed to be part of the
Communist Party and were denied jobs in government and academia. Many
books by Jewish writers were banned at the time. On the other hand,
even during the early years of the revolution, Castro made sure that
religious groups were protected and were not victims of violence.

Most Jews fled to the United States. For the remaining community, the
small size and the taboo on religion led to a nearly 90% intermarriage
rate, according to some community members.

bThe old people kept on coming to synagogue, but they didnbt bring
their children and grandchildren,b said Miller, whose grandfather was
the previous president of the congregation.

Things began to change in the 1990s, after the collapse of the Soviet
Union.

While Fidel remained a strict atheist, his interest in religious
communities grew, peaking in a 1998 visit by Pope John Paul II. Later
that year, the Cuban leader convened a meeting with representatives of
all religions.

bHe shook my hand and kissed me on both cheeks,b said Adela Dworin, the
community president who has spent the past 37 years promoting Jewish
life in Havana. bI didnbt wash my face for two weeks.b

When it was Dworinbs turn to speak, she invited Castro to visit the
Jewish community during Hanukkah. Fidel said he did not know the
holiday, so Dworin explained: bItbs a holiday commemorating the
revolution of the Jews.b

Soon after, Castro came to the Jewish community center to celebrate
Hanukkah.

These days, the main goal of local Jewish leaders is to attract young
Jews who grew up in homes in which Judaism was hardly practiced or
there was only one Jewish parent. One of the centerpieces of this
effort is the conversion seminars for children of intermarried
families. Three rabbis come from Argentina, Chile and Ecuador every
second year. For men, the course ends with a circumcision overseen by a
mohel and a urologist. Havana has no ritual bath, or mikveh, so
converts use the ocean to finish the ceremony.

Among the most recent batch of converts was Daniel Motola, 28. He grew
up with a Jewish father but little knowledge of Judaism. Then two years
ago his grandfather asked him to carry on the familybs religious
tradition, and Motola jumped in with abandon. He is now the communitybs
librarian and also one of its main activists.

During Rosh Hashanah, Motola sat near a table reserved for the
so-called breligious group,b which studies and attends services on a
regular basis. At the table was Jeilo Montagne, 26, who started
visiting the synagogue seven years ago.

bI began looking for my roots,b Montagne said. bNow I come here because
of the community life. We meet here every Saturday.b

The biggest missing link is a rabbi. A decade ago, the government
allowed for a Jewish representative to go off to New York for rabbinic
training at Yeshiva University.

bWebre still waiting for him to return,b Dworin said.

In the meantime, two representatives from the American Jewish Joint
Distribution Committee in Argentina assist the community with services
and teaching. Community activities include holiday and Sabbath services
and a Sunday school attended by 60 children. Havana has its own kosher
butcher, though Jews are restricted in the amount of meat they are
allowed to buy, as are all Cubans due to rationing regulations.

Jewish life in Cuba, however, does come with some advantages, most
notably in the complete lack of any security precautions outside Jewish
communal buildings. While their neighbors in North America have gotten
used to seeing police cars parked outside synagogues during the high
holy days, Cuban Jews feel no need to take this precaution.

bLook, it is completely free,b Dworin said.

bWe never even think of having any guards,b she added. bWe are totally
safe being Jews in Havana.b

The bigger point of anxiety these days is the status of the countrybs
leader. Ever since Castro underwent surgery in the summer of 2006, his
health has been a steady source of speculation. The governmentbs
propaganda has insisted that Castro is still running the country b from
lengthy articles (titled bReflections of the Presidentb) in the daily
newspaper Granma to signs painted on buildings, congratulating the
leader for his 80th birthday, which passed more than a year ago.

But meanwhile, the Cuban government has at least temporarily
transferred power to Castrobs brother Raul, whom many in the country
view as the future. Observers say that the new regime will not likely
mean any big changes for the Jewish community.

bI cannot imagine any circumstances which will be negative for the
Jews,b said Julia Sweig, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign
Relations. Sweig said that the two leaders have the same views on
issues of religious freedom.

Dworin said there is some concern that any big changes in the economic
situation could cause some young Jews to leave for the United States.

bWe have these great young professionals who are active in the
community, but many of them still speak about leaving,b Dworin said.
bIf things improve here, maybe Cubans wonbt want to leave.b

                                 *
=================================================================
 NY Transfer News Collective     *    A Service of Blythe Systems
           Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us
            Our main website:   http://www.blythe.org
   List Archives:       http://blythe-systems.com/pipermail/nytr/
   Subscribe:     http://blythe-systems.com/mailman/listinfo/nytr
=================================================================