Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Kaifeng undergoing unusual Jewish revival


TORONTO – The ancient Jewish community of Kaifeng, China, is experiencing an unusual revival, with many people interested in learning about their heritage. Shi Lei, a descendant of one of the original Jewish families of Kaifeng and a Chinese national tour guide, will speak in Toronto this month to raise awareness of his community.

The event, co-sponsored by Congregation Darchei Noam and the Canadian Jewish Asian Association, will be held on May 13, 7:30 p.m. (doors open at 7), 864 Sheppard Ave. West.

Shi Lei, 32, a graduate of Henan University, studied Jewish history and religion at Bar-Ilan University, near Tel Aviv, followed by studies at Machon Meir Yeshiva in Jerusalem.

The Kaifeng Jewish community hails from Persia and observes Sephardic tradition, he told the Jewish Tribune in an interview. For instance, the Torah case they use looks like a cylinder.  [...] 

5 comments :

  1. http://www.jewishtribune.ca/TribuneV2/index.php/201005123016/Kaifeng-undergoing-unusual-Jewish-revival.html

    More drey kops who insist they are Jewish.

    Which "yeshiva" would let these people in without a proper gerus?

    ReplyDelete
  2. You can't make this stuff upMay 12, 2010 at 9:05 PM

    Yiddish-speaking Nigerian national jumps bail after being charged in massive mortgage fraud scheme

    BY JOHN MARZULLI
    DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

    Wednesday, May 12th 2010, 4:00 AM

    Now that's chutzpah.

    A Yiddish-speaking Nigerian national has jumped bail after being charged in a massive mortgage fraud scheme.

    Real estate broker John Star went on the lam last month, a week after prosecutors in Brooklyn offered to let him plead guilty in exchange for 15 years in jail. Now the feds are likely to offer nothing - or, as Star might say, bupkis.

    A bench warrant has been issued. Star was free on a $200,000 bond secured with a home in Mount Vernon, Westchester County. He surrendered his Nigerian passport when he was arrested April 6 and is believed to be in the U.S.

    "Rather than us having to expend valuable resources looking for him, Mr. Star should be a mensch and turn himself in," said FBI spokesman James Margolin.

    Star, 39, learned Yiddish while growing up in Switzerland with Orthodox Jewish adoptive parents. He moved easily in Orthodox real estate sources and hatched a scheme that bilked lenders of $10 million, officials said.

    He and his accomplices submitted false loan applications that said properties were being purchased by credit-worthy buyers, authorities charged. Shortly after pocketing the loans, the defendants stopped making payments on the mortgages. Star's lawyer, Anthony Mamo, declined to comment yesterday.

    Anyone with information about Star is asked to call a confidential tip line: (212) 384-5000.

    Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/money/2010/05/12/2010-05-12_scammer_skipped_bail__not_kosher.html

    ReplyDelete
  3. http://www.jewishjournal.com/community/article/transgender_rabbinical_students_finding_equality_in_the_jewish_world_201005/

    Transgender Rabbinical Students Finding Equality in the Jewish World

    ReplyDelete
  4. Off the topic said...

    "More drey kops who insist they are Jewish.

    Which "yeshiva" would let these people in without a proper gerus?"

    Keifeng's Jewish heritage is very well documented. If a person from there claims to have at least Jewish maternal decent he/she should not be treated differently from anybody else.

    ReplyDelete
  5. '[He] attended yeshiva “as a special student of Jewish descent,” ... “We don’t actually go through any kosher conversion. It’s in our blood. I debated with some of the orthodox Jews. We pass our traditions patrilineally in China...Some young Jewish descendants might be interested in converting to Orthodox Judaism and going to study in Israel, but not all of us. '

    It's clear that Mr. Lei attend the Machon Lev Yeshiva under a special arrangement that acknowledges his Jewish roots while also making note that he is not actually Jewish. Nevertheless, it's disappointing that even after two years at the Machon Lev Yeshiva, Mr. Lei can say what he said above. It demonstrates not just a lack of knowledge of particular halachos regarding Jewish identity, but a more fundamental misunderstanding of the foundational role of halacha in Judaism.

    ReplyDelete

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