Community Magazine October 2019

TISHREI 5780 OCTOBER 2019 37 between 1926 and 1942 when over 50,000 Jews entered from Eastern Europe, and Russia, Bessarabia, and Poland. As elsewhere in the world, the late 1930s saw a steep rise in anti-Semitism. Yiddish newspapers and Jewish organizations were shut down, and The Protocols of the Elders of Zion (the fabricated anti-Semitic text purporting to describe a Jewish plan for global domination) was published. By 1945, with the adoption of a more democratic constitution in Brazil, anti-Semitism decreased. In this regard, Syrian and Lebanese Jews entered a much more hospitable environment than did their Ashkenazi brothers. Still, there were challenges to overcome. Brazil remains a third-world country – the gap between rich and poor is stark, and people cannot depend on government assistance to ease their lives. Even today, Brazil is struggling to establish a fully functioning democracy. But for São Paulo’s Jews, the 1950s until the 1970s was a golden age. Because of President Juscelino Kubitschek's "Plano de Metas" (National Development Plan) Brazil flourished economically. Jews from the Levant who gambled on making new lives for themselves and their families in this remote area of the world benefited financially. Within five years, Brazil became a renowned economic and industrial hub. Syrian Jews thrived in business and finance, especially in the fields of imports, textiles, construction, and manufacturing. During this period, they established Talmud Torahs , as well as hesed organizations, women’s philanthropic committees, and youth movements. Syrian and Lebanese Jews did not speak Portuguese, Brazil's primary language, but most spoke Arabic, French, Italian, Ladino, and English. French and Italian are Latin-based languages, and many picked up Portuguese quickly. More Immigrants Spark Influx of Rabbis and Teachers A decade later, a second large wave of Jewish immigration from the Levant began to arrive. In 1975, with the start of the second Lebanese civil war, most Jews escaped a quickly collapsing Lebanon that was ripe with anti-Semitism. Many of these refugees moved to São Paulo, now the indisputable industrial center of Brazil. Joining them were Jews from SouthAmerica, especially fromArgentina and Chile, aswell as from Israel. As the community grew, rabbanim and teachers were imported from outside the country; Rabbi Jacob Garzon from Caracas, Venezuela was among those who came. By the mid-1990s, other renowned talmidei hachomim joined Beit Yaacov’s rabbinical council. These included Rabbi Y. DavidWeitman, Rabbi Chahoud Chreim, and Rabbis Haimand AvrahamCohen. Years later, Rabbi Isaac Shrem returned to Brazil from Israel to lead the Veiga Filho Synagogue. Under the direction of these outstanding rabbinic leaders, Torah flourished. Looking towards the future, in 2000, the society built its second jewel. The Beit Yaacov School marked a significant accomplishment for the community and for Brazil. The school is housed in a multi-building enterprise extending over 32,000 square meters of land. It offers the best secular and democratically based education possible, while strongly committed to halachah and Jewish values. As Brazil’s first Jewish trilingual institution, it teaches Portuguese, English, and Hebrew. The school also provides numerous extra-curricular activities such as science classes, chess, sports, and production of the student newspaper. The school accommodates all Jewish children wishing to attend. Rabbi Eliyahu Rosenfeld and his wife Rivky run the Chabad Jewish Center in Alto de Pinheiro, a suburb of São Paulo. Rabbi Rosenfeld notes that many young professionals, who had sent their children to top-tier, non-Jewish schools, now choose Beit Yaacov because of its outstanding level of education. Congregação e Beneficiência Sefaradi Paulista Beit Yaacov Ibirapuera Park Ibirapuera Park is an urban park in São Paulo. It is the most visited park in South America, with over 14 million visitors last year. 2013 Launching of Cultural Center Memorializing Jewish Immigration to Brazil (L-R) Rabbi David Weitman, S. Paulo mayor Gilberto Kassab, former Gov. Claudio Lembo, and councilman Floriano Pessaro. Congregation Mekor Haim