Ohio Jewish Chronicle. (Columbus, Ohio), 1994-05-19, page 01 |
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ft- i h If i r f ! I* } < if if" ' I w' r THE The Ohio Jewish Chronicle Serving ( aliirr,bu\ and tm ( entra' Oh o Jew si*, fotrirum'ij "unci W22 VOLUME 72 MAY 19,1994 NUMBER 20 9 SIVAN 5754 Israel and PLO sign self-rule accord page 2 T.ATtlfi Pa^iiic* ."A itA/tniirn if lowers for Living' award ••j ; ; pa^e4 WeMer Heritage Village to honor Eleanor Resler - ,- , page 10 Tenth Annual ABOUT THE COVER '~ , / First graders have fun learning Hebrew in the newly-created Jewish School in Sofia, Bulgaria where Jewish students come from all over the city - „'to be together and to study Hebrew, Photo by * TJebprah Kazis., ' EARLY DEADLINE The deadline, for the June 2 issue of the OJC is noon on Thursday, May 26. The OJC Office will be closed on Memorial Day, l'lb^i Vt lin. ,wt . I ol umbti , Hli i o 'I J 2 n v $n,The dlironicle '- '• Fifty^ears Ako,...,.,....v '*. l?0*tv^flSC4^^*-«^...♦,.**.•»*..•*,.44».«...*..4U*--****.5"-»-4^»-*-tt ' "*^'i_" yy .t, ' ^M- '* >v .-.*> * **,: ; Ir IWNews ,.^......„f...f .;..?...„.. .;..«. W'M.„ !«•;. f ^jL4fi«*y-ciei;t..i:„.:» ;.,,..i'.,;..ly.-L.W«.»v.i^ ^,N^ GrimajralAoii.^^ :ri^i«sSArf,'*-''•'*«'- 'l ^ s-i<ry-■*■*'»*"' 4§; M^ft»«i.»pM'-»M**'»*0**}«0**l*>?»->*»^^ * .... * i r v * "K ' <?<eiit*$ \ FfCW^JMIIl-'st'ijM.^ ^ y^ip-r#Q'SfWp^K*#*»*^*+f'*»i^'»*#^ m^5JS-mg|g»%ftM1 1-11-1 * raiTTTiTi fJVAlUllJ*, Bulgaria's Jewish community — Small, unique and vibrant Third In A Series By Deborah Kazis Flying from Warsaw to Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria, I wasn't at all certain of what I'd find. Bulgarian Jews? Are there any? Are they just like any other East European community? As soon as I landed I knew something was different. This is not Eastern Europe. Sofia is a lovely old city surrounded by mountains and buzzing with activity. The sun is shining and there's a strong Mediterranean feel. Turkish and Greek influences are obvious in the food, music and bustle ofthe city. Small cars zoom around the cobblestone streets, crisscrossing over train tracks and dodging in and out among the bright yellow and orange electric trams whizzing by. Bulgaria's Jewish community has the same bustle and excitement. Beit Ha'am, the House of the People, is the community building and the center of Jewish life. Little kids rush by as I make my way to my first stop—the office of Eddie Shwartz, chairman of "Shalom," the main organization of Bulgarian Jews. "Jews have been in Bulgaria since the firSt century," he tells me. "You can ask who were the first people to live, here — Bulgarians or Jews? Bulgaria's 6,000 Jews make up one ofthe oldest communities in Europe. Almost all are Se- phardic, and many ofthe older people speak Ladino — a mixture of Spanish and Hebrew. Most of their ancestors , came to Bulgaria after being expelled from Spain during the Inquisition. "How long has your family been here? I ask Victoria Me- lamed, a young member ofthe community. "Oh, I'm not exactly certain," she says casually, "but I can trace my family's roots in Bulgaria back to 1375." ',' During The Holocaust Bulgaria doesn't feel like a graveyard, as does so much of Eastern Europe, simply because it isn't one. No specter of death hangs in the air as it does in Poland. Concentration camps, mass graves and monuments to murdered Jews don't dot the countryside. None of Bulgaria's 50,000* Jews were killed in the Holocaust. Bulgaria was allied with the Nazis, and the Jews were sent to labor camps and faced severe discrimination. Jews from Macedonia and Thrace — areas annexed by Bulgaria — were sent to Treblinka, but the government refused to deport the Jews of Bulgaria despite persistent Nazi demands. Fact and legend are mixed in the stories of Bulgaria's King Boris being summoned to Germany and poisoned by Hitler for not deporting the Jews and of Bulgarians being ready to lie on train tracks to physically prevent the deportation of their Jewish compatriots. The entire community survived the war, and the majority left for Israel. Bulgarian Jews escaped Hitler, but those who stayed could not escape the devastation of 45 years of oppressive Communism which enforced an official policy of complete assimilation in Bulgaria and isolation form the <•outside Jewish world. All Jewish education was stopped. Young people were forbidden to come to the community center or synagogue and were told to be Bulgarians, not Jews. Robert Djerassi, a young Bulgarian who today runs the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) office in Sofia, has a quick smile and laughing eyes. He tells me about life under Communism. "When I came to celebrate Passover at the community center a policeman stopped me at the door," he says. "He told me this is only for the old people, and turned me away." Bulgarian Jewry Today But this community survived. And today, only three years into their freedom, Jewish life is thriving. Often throughout Eastern Europe, ,1 • i „ A Jewish man in Sofia, Bulgaria comes to the JDC-supported pensioner's club In the Jewish community center to eat, to play chess and to be with other Jews. Photo by Deborah Kazis. Jewish community buildings are used only by old men to reminisce in smoke-filled rooms. Not in Bulgaria. As I walk through the Beit Ha'am, the community center, I'm told that just three years ago people were afraid to be overheard speaking Hebrew. But, today the walls of this large four storybuilding are bursting with activity day and night. Colorful posters of Israel -brighten the halls. There's a Jewish library, a huge concert >hall, Jewish Agency, B'nai B'rith and Macabbee club offices. Here the Sunday school teaches over 130 kids, and Hebrew lessons are held throughout the week. There's a Jewish choir and a Union of Jewish Students. On the fourth floor the office of the Jewish newspaper is piled high with books and papers. Next door the Jewish Resource Center buzzes with activity. Young people, parents, little kids, rush in and out. Strong Turkish coffee and cookies seem always available. The walls are decorated with pictures — the skyline of Tel Aviv, sailboats in Netanya, a JDC calendar next to a colorful Benetton poster. A mixture of Hebrew, English and Bulgarian flies around the room as everyone works frantically on the computers, fax and copy machines. Jewish videos and books are everywhere. The TV switches back and, forth from Israeli TV to MTV. Rachel Brodie and Adam Weisberg, young American volunteers sent by JDC to help energize the community, are at the center of the activity. ' They teach Hebrew and lead seminars on all aspects of Judaism, and travel to small cities across the country to help celebrate Shabbat. When I'm there, Rachel patiently helps a teenage boy who wanders in with a question about the mystical Jewish world of kabbalah, see BULGARIA pg. 3
Object Description
Title | The OJC the Ohio Jewish chronicle. (Columbus, Ohio), 1994-05-19 |
Subject | Jews -- Ohio -- Periodicals |
Place |
Columbus (Ohio) Franklin County (Ohio) |
Creator | OJC Pub. Co. |
Collection | Ohio Jewish Chronicle |
Submitting Institution | Columbus Jewish Historical Society |
Rights | This item may have copyright restrictions. Online access is provided for research purposes only. For rights and reproduction requests or more information, go to http://www.ohiohistory.org/images/information |
Type | Text |
File Name | index.cpd |
File Size | 7111 Bytes |
Searchable Date | 1994-05-19 |
Format | newspapers |
LCCN | sn91075643 |
Date created | 2016-10-31 |
Description
Title | Ohio Jewish Chronicle. (Columbus, Ohio), 1994-05-19, page 01 |
Searchable Date | 1994-05-19 |
Full Text |
ft-
i h
If
i
r
f !
I*
} <
if
if"
'
I
w'
r
THE
The Ohio Jewish Chronicle
Serving ( aliirr,bu\ and tm ( entra' Oh o
Jew si*, fotrirum'ij "unci W22
VOLUME 72 MAY 19,1994
NUMBER 20 9 SIVAN 5754
Israel and PLO sign
self-rule accord
page 2
T.ATtlfi Pa^iiic* ."A itA/tniirn
if lowers for Living' award
••j ; ; pa^e4
WeMer Heritage Village
to honor Eleanor Resler
- ,- , page 10
Tenth Annual
ABOUT THE COVER '~
, / First graders have fun learning Hebrew in the
newly-created Jewish School in Sofia, Bulgaria
where Jewish students come from all over the city -
„'to be together and to study Hebrew, Photo by *
TJebprah Kazis., '
EARLY DEADLINE
The deadline, for the June 2 issue of the OJC is noon
on Thursday, May 26.
The OJC Office will be closed on Memorial Day,
l'lb^i Vt lin. ,wt .
I ol umbti , Hli i o
'I J 2 n
v
$n,The dlironicle
'- '• Fifty^ears Ako,...,.,....v
'*. l?0*tv^flSC4^^*-«^...♦,.**.•»*..•*,.44».«...*..4U*--****.5"-»-4^»-*-tt '
"*^'i_" yy .t, ' ^M- '* >v .-.*> * **,:
; Ir IWNews ,.^......„f...f .;..?...„.. .;..«. W'M.„ !«•;.
f ^jL4fi«*y-ciei;t..i:„.:» ;.,,..i'.,;..ly.-L.W«.»v.i^
^,N^ GrimajralAoii.^^
:ri^i«sSArf,'*-''•'*«'- 'l ^ s-i |
Format | newspapers |
Date created | 2009-11-23 |