One of the fun things about working with Jewish communities around the world is the holidays. Getting a peek into the traditions, culture, variety and style in each unique community reminds us how there really is “70 faces to the Torah…” – and to all...
Now, more than 3 months since the start of the ethnic violence that has devastated the Bnei Menashe community in Manipur in northeast India, thousands remain homeless and with no end in sight. There are about 500 refugees in Churachandpur who fled their homes and are...
Two years ago, a group of women from Beit Shemesh got together to warmly embrace the newest Bnei Menashe immigrants with gifts of Judaica and more. One of those women, Brenda Ganot, opened a branch of Heritage Judaica in Israel, based in Beit Shemesh, and...
Colombian-born Rabbi Asher Abarbanel, our much-loved representative in Cali, Colombia, and his wife Margalit, had something special to celebrate with the community he serves: the brit milah of his first-born son. Rabbi Asher was thrilled to announce the good news, and the brit was celebrated...
Growing up in Mizoram as a member of Bnei Menashe in the mid-nineties certainly came with difficulties. You would typically be teased by other kids for being Jewish and mocked for “not believing in Jesus.” That was certainly the case for Esther Kolnoy before she...
Shavei Israel communities from different parts of the world shared photos with us of them at services and in mourning for the destruction of the Temples and remembering other tragedies in Jewish history that happened on Tisha B’Av, the annual fast day on the 9th...
Bnei Menashe girls from Nof Hagalil learn the traditional bamboo dance of Mizoram in advance of Aliyah Day. Their teacher, Dena Relte, made aliyah herself from Mizoram in 2014. In fact, it would probably hard to find a qualified teacher of this complex dance who didn't...
Between the Stone and the Flower:The Duality of the Conversos covers the incredible journey of Genie Milgrom and her decades long quest for her Jewish lineage. Genie, a close friend of Shavei Israel, was born in Havana, Cuba and raised in Miami with a full...
It's been almost 13 years since Rabbi Yehoshua Ellis was appointed to serve as the emissary for Shavei Israel in Katowice, Poland, and he, and his wife, Raissa, made the move there from Jerusalem. After 5 years in Katowice and 8 in Warsaw, working side...
The summer is a time when kids are out of school. And while many kids go to camp and travel, not everyone has the resources to do this and many children are left with nothing to do. With the support of Keren Kayemet L’Israel (KKL), a...
