Early Beginnings

Travelers visit the Brazilian origins of America's Jews.

ALICIA NELSON

Special to the Jewish News

I

ntrigued by the lure of "Jewish
Brazil" and guides who had lived
in the country; a group of 21 peo-
ple followed Congregation Beth
Shalom Rabbi David Nelson on a
recent trip that included visits to Rio
de Janeiro, Ouro Preto, Salvador, Bahia
and Recife.
The itinerary was organized by
Connie Wolberg of Gateway Travel and
set up by the Rabbi Nelson, who lived
in Rio for two years after he completed
his studies at the Jewish Theological
Seminary in New York.
The group included two participants
from England, two from New Jersey
and 18 Detroiters: Rabbi Nelson and
his wife, Alicia; Randie Levin of
Bloomfield Hills, Sandy Lax of
Birmingham, Stan and Phyllis Berger
of Bloomfield Hills, Eli and Joanna
Berger of West Bloomfield, Anaruth
and Henri Bernard of Southfield, Betty
and Bernie Lis of Farmington Hills, Cy
Moscow of Bloomfield Township,
David Lebenbom of Bloomfield Hills,
Cecilia Benner of Pleasant Ridge, Betty
Singer of Southfield, and Connie and
Jerry Wolberg of Huntington Woods.
The highlight of the two-week trip
was a visit to Kahal Zur Yisrael, the
reconstructed museum on the site of
the oldest synagogue in the Western
world.
In addition to touring the sites, par-
ticipants also were educated in the
extensive history of the Brazilian Jewish
community. "I call it 'day school tour-
ing,''' said Anaruth Bernard, "because
we visited everything and then we
added the Jewish stuff"
Rabbi Nelson stressed that "to
understand the importance of Kahal
Zur Yisrael, you need to know the his-
tory of Recife and to travel back in
time."

Circumstances Change

The year was 1642. According to his-
torical records, life was very good for
the Jewish community of Recife. With
500 families and a rabbi who had come
from Holland, Jews enjoyed a life of

4/21

2005

72

Photos by Cecilia Benner and Maryjoan and Alan Mandel

Above: The group enters the
restored synagogue in Recife,
the oldest synagogue in the
Western world.

Right: David Lebenbom of
Bloomfield Hills and
Congregation Beth Shalom
Rabbi David Nelson enjoy a
Brazilian afternoon.

economic opportunity and religious
freedom.
All of that changed in 1654. The
Dutch lost power, the Portuguese took
over, and the Jews had three months to
sell off their goods and depart, or risk
coming before the Inquisition. Jews
who openly professed their Judaism
became victims of auto da fe, an act of
faith, which actually meant being
burned at the stake.
In order to survive, the Jews of
Recife boarded 15 ships for Amsterdam
where they could practice Judaism
freely. Unknown to many, Jewish
American history actually began follow-
ing the events that took place en route
to Amsterdam.
Pirates overtook one of the ships and
re-routed all 23 Jews aboard to Peter
Stuyvesant in New Amsterdam. They

hoped to sell them for ransom.
The story of how the Jewish com-
munity began in New Amsterdam (or
New York, as it later became known) is
well known in American history. That
American Jewish history actually began
in Brazil at Kahal Zur Israel is not so
well known.
Until recently, and despite many
efforts, historians were unable to locate
the historic congregation. It was finally
identified in 1999, and its structural
foundations were rebuilt. Though
records showed the synagogue had been
on the street originally known as the
Street of the Jews, the name of that
street was later changed to Street of
Born Jesus. It had been demolished and
replaced, first by a bank and, later, by
an electrical equipment shop.
Today, the synagogue is preserved as

a museum and was the main focus of
the Nelson-led trip.
The group davened Minchah at
Kahal Zur Israel. Rabbi Nelson chose a
special rendition of the prayer Shomer
Yisrael because of the significance of
God as the guardian of Israel. "It
seemed appropriate in this very historic
setting," Rabbi Nelson explained.
The group first stopped in Rio, with
a visit to one of the eight day schools in
the community. "Visiting with the chil-
dren as they learned Hebrew songs real-
ly touched my heart," Phyllis Berger
said.
There was grandeur in the Grande
Templo, a historic synagogue in the
heart of the city, and A.R.I. (Associacao
Religiosa Israelita), where Rabbi Nelson
worked many years ago.
A.R.I. Senior Rabbi Sergio
Margolies said, "I don't feel
uncomfortable in Brazil because
of any anti-Semitism. I feel
uncomfortable because of the
lack of concern for human rights
and the lack of opportunity to
break the cycle of poverty."
The next stop was Ouro
Preto, the historic capital of
Brazil in the 17th century. As a
UNESCO Heritage community,
the beautifully preserved build-
ings and cobblestones created a
backdrop for exploring Brazilian
history and the gold rush that occurred
there.
The next city, Salvador, Bahia, is
described by Brazilians as the soul of
Brazil. This city pulsates with music,
dance and African culture. The folklore
show was a highlight. At the city's syna-
gogue, the rabbi's talk about the history
of the community and the challenges of
keeping their young people involved,
\vas moving.
This was the fourth Jewish history
trip led by the Rabbi and Mrs. Nelson.
Previous groups were guided through
Argentina, Morocco, Spain and
Portugal and Italy.
This was the second trip to Brazil.
"This just seemed the year to return
to Brazil, knowing that the celebration of
350 years of American history really
started in Recife," Rabbi Nelson said.

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