When Rabbi Pinchas (Pierpaolo) Punturello’s grandfather died in Naples, Italy, his father’s Catholic family covered all the mirrors in the house where visitors came to pay their respects. Rabbi Punturello was very young at the time and didn’t pay much attention. But that act...
Nuestro emisario para los subotniks en Visoky, el Rabino Shlomo Zelig Avrasin, pasó un intenso mes de abril en su comunidad. Gracias a su arduo trabajo, dos mujeres más pudieron realizar su conversión en el tribunal rabínico de Moscú y sumergirse en la mikve ese...
Shavei Israel Chairman Michael Freund and Educational Director Rabbi Eliyahu Birnbaum recently visited the burgeoning Bnei Anousim community in Colombia. Here are some pictures. [nggallery id=246] ...
Shavei Israel Chairman Michael Freund and Educational Director Rabbi Eliyahu Birnbaum recently visited a remarkable group of Bnei Anousim in El Salvador. Here is a selection of the pictures they brought home with them. [nggallery id=247] ...
Every month the Bnei Menashe celebrate Rosh Hodesh - the holiday marking the first day of the month. The day includes classes, food, prayers and the "Seder Amenim" where Bnei Menashe women recite blessings over food followed by a resounding "Amen" from all the participants....
Every year, the Union of Italian Jewish Communities (UCEI), the official umbrella organization of Italian Jewry, organizes a seminar in the northern seaside resort town of Milano Marittima. This year, the seminar included for the first time Bnei Anousim from southern Italy. The 40 Bnei...
Shavei Israel's "Be'er Miriam" center has been busy planning some great activities in Katowice, Poland. Here's a photo gallery of some of the more recent events, including a concert for the holiday of L'ag B'omer, making yummy Israeli dishes at the "Israeli Cafe," and scenes...
Every year, Italy's Jews get together for a weekend seminar in a seaside resort. There is sumptuous kosher food, in-depth Talmud study and a program of Jewish arts. It is one of the highlights of the Jewish calendar for the entire Italian Jewish community...
Noemi, Varvara and Devora are three young women who were all on the periphery of the Jewish community in Katowice, Poland – interested but mostly isolated. Moreover they all faced financial difficulties, which made them personally and spiritually vulnerable. Their futures looked uncertain at best...
As the first copies of the first Bnei Menashe siddur rolled off the printing press last month, Tzvi Khaute was transformed. Khaute, who serves as Shavei Israel’s Coordinator for the Bnei Menashe, is normally a quiet, often times reserved individual. But now he has been...
