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The Jewish oasis of secular life had its own
contemplative version of Yom Kippur.

LARRY DERFNER ISRAEL CORRESPONDENT

s the start of Yom Kippur
approached, a sound truck
drove up and down the
streets of my neighbor-
hood, announcing the onset of the
holiday, urging people to fast and
pray. This truck also travels
through my neighborhood just
before each Shabbat, calling on
people to repect its sanctity.
This truck wasn't here before
last year's Yom Kippur. It is a
new feature in the neighbor-
hood, a sign of the increasing re-
ligiosity that has overtaken
many Israelis, especially poor
and working-class Sephardim
like those who make up the
great majority of residents in the
section of town where I live, two
blocks from the Mediterranean
shore.
On bulletin boards and store-
fronts, posters tell of an upcom-
ing Jewish spiritual gathering
where "miracles" will occur.
"In many cases people got to
see their deceased relatives in a
dream, and saw that they were
happy," the poster reads. Bless-
ings for "good health and in-
creased income" will be granted.
At the local grocery store, On,
the owner, is tending to his last
customers before closing up. He
used to have a drug problem,
and has been in ruinous debt be-
cause of gambling. Yet, every
now and then he puts on his kip-
pah and, with other newly-pious
men in the neighborhood,
throws himself into fervent Jew-
ish study and observance. To-
day, Ori is wearing his black
skullcap.
On my block, Harav Kook
Street, however, the spiritual
quotient of Yom Kippur has
gone down. A year ago there was
a small Sephardi synagogue
across the street from me. On
every Shabbat and every _holi.
day the off-key voices of the con-

A

gregants chanting their prayers
dominated the atmosphere. But
the lot on which the synagogue
stood was sold, and the syna-
gogue was bulldozed. The lot's
owner is preparing to build a
five-story luxury condominium
there. The little synagogue
didn't stand a chance against
the prospect of $2 million worth
of condominia.
On one hand, the influence of
religion has grown among the
Sephardim in the neighborhood,
on the other hand the influence
of economic growth and the lure
of beachfront property has at-
tracted a few more secular,
Ashkenazi yuppies. Two such
families have moved into the
building next door in the last

Even in Tel Aviv,
even among secular
yuppies, some
things are sacred.

year, and have been at work re-
modeling their 60-year-old
apartments.
The absence of construction
noise from their building points
up yet another change in the lo-
cal way of life since last Yom
Kippur — the influx of foreign
workers. The Romanian con-
struction workers doing the re-
modeling next door are usually
at work on Shabbat, which
many of my neighbors see as an
infuriating infringement on tra-
dition and on their peace of
mind. But no one, of course, is
working on Yom Kippur. Even
. in Tel Aviv, even'among secular
yuppies, some things are sacred.
TEL AVIV page 82

