The first immigrants from Morocco arrived in Yeroham in 1954, and then in waves of immigration – the largest of which, in the early 1960s, tripled Yeroham’s population. Their integration into Israeli society was accompanied by pressures to “assimilate” into the secular, Ashkenazi ethos; but they resisted and created synagogues and institutions, and an ambiance that promoted and preserved tradition, as well as traditional foods and music, as expressions of their unique Jewish identity.

This session will reveal some of the stories of second-generation Moroccan Israelis living in Yeroham who retain or have returned to their roots – and how the promotion of a holistic, traditional (as opposed to ‘religious’) Jewish identity has a message for contemporary Israeli society. We will also learn how sfinj is prepared and how to sing a piyyut (“the soundtrack of Jewish life”, according to Yair Harel, founder of the Piyyut website – nli.org.il).

People we will meet include: Dr. David Biton, Yeroham-born to parents who immigrated to Yeroham from the Atlas Mountains in Morocco, David is head of the Jewish Studies Department at Ono College, and a pioneering researcher of Moroccan rabbinical thought and writings; Shula Knafo, Yeroham-born to parents from Spanish Morocco, is one of Atid Bamidbar’s Culinary Queens and an indefatigable entrepreneur and volunteer among local welfare-supported families; and  Dr. Tehila Meged-Book, Israeli-born to a Moroccan father, who returned to her Moroccan roots in piyyut and Torah reading; she works as a doctor at Soroka Medical Center in Beer Sheva.

There is no fee, but please RSVP for planning purposes. This event is held virtually on Zoom. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the event. For more information, contact Program Director Ilene Tatro at itatro@cbisd.org.

CSP Partners: Beth Israel (San Diego, CA), Brotherhood Synagogue (Gramercy Park, NYC), Congregation Beth Shalom (Seattle, WA), Congregation B’nai Tzedek (Fountain Valley, CA), Congregation B’nai Israel (Tustin, CA), Jewish Collaborative of Orange County, CA, Shomrei Torah Synagogue (San Fernando Valley, CA), Temple Bat Yahm (Newport Beach, CA), Temple Beth El of South Orange County (Aliso Viejo, CA), Temple Beth Emet (Anaheim, CA), Temple Beth Ohr (La Mirada, CA), Temple Beth Tikvah (Fullerton, CA), Temple Beth Shalom (Needham, MA), Temple Beth Sholom (Santa Ana, CA), Temple Emanuel (Newton, MA), Town & Village Synagogue (NYC, NY), University Synagogue (Irvine, CA), Valley Beth Shalom (Encino, CA) & Walnut Street Synagogue (Chelsea, MA)