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Congregant's Corner
May 2008

KM members Sonya and Bruce Sultan participated in a humanitarian mission to Cuba in March of this year. They collected medicines and toiletries for the cause and KM's community responded with great enthusiasm. The article below was written by them and, due to space limitations, was only partially printed in KM's VOICE. Here it is in its entirety:

We returned from Cuba the night of March 3. Our 2 weeks in Cuba were wonderful, inspirational and exhausting.

We visited and met extensively with members of the Jewish communities of Havana, Santiago de Cuba, Santa Clara, Guantanamo, Cienfuegos, Sancti Spiritus and Holguin. We visited (and in many cases experienced Shabbat services in) synagogues small and large throughout Cuba. We also visited four Jewish cemeteries, three of which include amazing and lovingly constructed memorials to the Shoah. We also saw another Shoah memorial which was built by the government in Habana Vieja (Old Havana). We visited the only remaining kosher butcher shop in Cuba and met with the schohet and butchers. That shop continues to provide kosher beef (food is rationed in Cuba and only Jews receive beef) and chicken to Jews in and around Havana (Jews outside Havana can not receive kosher meat regularly.

We found the people of Cuba to a person to be warm, friendly and welcoming of Americans, and the Cuban Jews were thrilled to receive us and grateful for the medicines and other humanitarian supplies we brought with us. We met with the doctors who run the main Jewish pharmacy in Havana and clinics in smaller communities. The doctors are highly trained and educated and completely dedicated to their work. Jewish community contributions make it possible for them to more fully serve their communities. Contributions come from the Joint Distribution Committee, B'nai Brith, UJA, the Canadian Jewish community, groups such as the Cuba-America Jewish Mission (with whom we traveled) and individuals. In addition to the money and goods provided by our group, we personally gave Tzedaka to various Jewish community leaders to utilize for their communities. Several other members of our group did likewise.

Jews are completely accepted and fully integrated into the life of Cuba. There is no anti-Semitism in Cuba. There are many problems in Cuba and life is hard there. But anti-Semitism is not one of the problems. There are no Rabbis in Cuba. Every several years Rabbis come, usually from Argentina, and perform marriages, conversions and brit milah ceremonies. Adult men who convert are circumcised in an out-patient medical procedure. Adela Dworin, head of the Patronata (the largest Jewish organization/synagogue in Havana) who invited Fidel to celebrate Hanukkah there in 1998, told of an experience visiting a group of men who had been circumcised at a clinic and had just recovered from their anesthesia. The men were so happy to finally be full members of the Jewish community they began to jump up and down with excitement. The doctors thought they were mishungana. During that same Rabbinic visit, 22 marriages were performed with all the couples under one large chuppah. One couple was in their 80s. The woman had just converted to Judaism after 60 years of marriage (they originally had a civil ceremony). She wanted to convert because her husband was a Jew who would be buried in a Jewish cemetery and she wanted her final resting place to be next to his. During the last 15 years since the government made the practice of religion more acceptable, Jewish teachers have come from Argentina to train teachers in Havana who then train teachers and community leaders in the outlying Jewish communities. The small community in Guantanamo had not received Jewish visitors from outside Cuba in 2 years. They were thrilled to spend time with our group and eagerly demonstrated and then taught us the Israeli dances they had been learning.

A Conservative Rabbi, Stuart Kelman, traveled as part of our group. Wherever we went, he led Torah study sessions in which we all participated along with members of the local community. I have never seen such enthusiasm for Torah study! The people are hungry for Jewish knowledge and asked question after question and offered their own interpretations. Many of the people are converts who have become passionate Jews. The young people celebrate their Bar or Bat Mitzvah. In Santiago de Cuba, the previous leader recently made aliyah to Israel. The community is now headed by Eugenie, an economist, and services are led by Julio, a University Bio-Chemistry professor, who married a Jewish doctor and later converted to Judaism. Their 18 year old son Alejandro (Alex) leads services alongside his father. In the Sephardic shul in Havana the men and women sit on opposite sides of the central aisle, but the services are led by women. At the Patronata, the Torah reader is a young Jewish woman (with an amazingly beautiful voice). Services are a mixture of Hebrew and Spanish. The melodies and prayers are either the same or hauntingly familiar. Stu (Rabbi Kelman) is also a Torah scribe and the various community leaders eagerly brought out their Torahs for him to check to be sure they were all considered Kosher (they were, although several needed small repairs).

At the Orthodox shul in Havana, the community leader stated they observe all rules of Halacha. When asked about intermarriage, he said they fully accept both partners of an intermarried couple, regardless of whether the man or the woman is Jewish, as long as they feel Jewish in their heart. Then, when a Rabbi comes and the non-Jewish partner is able to formally convert, they are encouraged and helped to do so. The Jews of Cuba are both passionate and pragmatic about their Judaism. As a result, the community continues to increase in numbers, knowledge and strength (while at the same time losing members who make aliyah to Israel) . On a political note, our visit occurred during an historic time of transition. We arrived on the day Fidel Castro resigned and during our stay his brother Raul Castro was selected to succeed him as President of Cuba. Most Cubanos we met (both Jews and non Jews) are hoping for change but are not very confident that meaningful change will be forthcoming. Some in fact worry that change could bring even greater economic hardship. Those who are more closely connected to the Party say that Raul is much more pragmatic and that change, particularly increased economic freedom, will come swiftly. Everyone hopes the US presidential election will bring an improvement in US-Cuba relations (IE a loosening of or better yet an end to the embargo) which would certainly help to make life better for all Cubanos.

A deeply heartfelt thank you to all the members of KM who contributed medicines, vitamins, new socks and underwear and other clothing, school supplies, Depends, and many other needed items for us to take to the Jews of Cuba. They thank you and we thank you both for your donations and for your encouragement and moral support. The KM community's generous response to our requests was extremely gratifying and heart warming.

B' Shalom

Sonya and Bruce Sultan