Community Magazine October 2012

THEFUTUREOFANANCIENTCOMMUNITY The Planned International Syrian-Jewish Heritage Center This defining experience, which took place nearly 65 years ago, was pivotal in shaping the life of HachamAbraham, but it stands in stark contrast to the reality today. For starters, the former tormentors of Jews in Syria are being tormented themselves in a bitter civil war that continues to rage, but more importantly, not only does Rabbi Hamra no longer need to remove his kippa when he walks outside, he can now even dance through the streets carrying a sefer Torah, as he jubilantly did just last month in a one-of-a-kind gala celebration that captured the community’s heart. The unique, triple-Torah dedication event at Ahi Ezer Congregation in Brooklyn on September 23 rd , hailed the rededication of two historic scrolls from Damascus, which were rescued from Syria by Mr. Habib Bagdady, and the dedication of a new Torah in memory of the great sage, Rav Haim Vital z.s.l . (1543-1620), who lived in Damascus for many years. The celebration was a fitting platform with which to announce plans for the International Syrian Heritage Center (SYC), a brainchild of Hacham Abraham, who currently leads the Syrian-Jewish community in Israel. To understand the deeper purpose and profound significance behind the SYC, we must first seek to better understand Rabbi Hamra. Though his warm demeanor and boundless energy leave little doubt about his pure intentions in dedicating his life to Syrian Jewry, Rabbi Hamra’s smile and charisma mask the struggles and tribulations that he endured during decades of oppressive rule by the Syrian Regime. FRANCES HADDAD "When I was five years old, attending Talmud Torah in Damascus, my friends and I wore our kippot in the streets with pride,” recalls Hacham Abraham Hamra, the last Chief Rabbi of Syria’s Jewish community. “But one day, Arab children grabbed our kippot from our heads and began to toss them in the air while yelling insults. Afterwards, Hacham Moshe Mishaan z.s.l., the principal of the Talmud Torah instructed us to wear our kippot only during school hours and to remove them when we walked outside…” 28 COMMUNITY MAGAZINE