Jews in the Amazon Presentation with Rabbi Arieh Raichman

Join us for a special presentation on Sunday afternoon, July 19, at 2pm on Zoom. Rabbi Arieh Raichman, a former Houstonian and currently the Rabbi at Beit Chabad Manaus in the Amazon, will present, “Jews in the Amazon”!

During this talk, you will learn how a Jewish community survived and flourished in the Amazon rainforest. In the early 19th century, many young men from Morocco traveled to the region with hope of sending money back. It was the rubber boom period that made those that arrived successful. Surviving the Amazon had its challenges. Jewish education, kosher food, finding a Jewish spouse or even having religious books are just of the few challenges they had to overcome.

With time individuals created families and the rural communities moved closer to the Capital, Manaus. In 1910, a Rabbi arrived to guide them, but his time was short lived as he caught the yellow fever. In late 2009, Rabbi Arieh Raichman together with his wife and (today) six children opened a Chabad center.

They work with the local community and visitors in strengthening Jewish awareness and practice. They travel to smaller communities such as Porto Velho, Santarém, Obidos, Parintins as well. During the presentation, you will hear about the past, present, and future of the Jews in the Amazon. You will hear anecdotes about a Jewish nun and Indian and much more. It will leave you inspired and motivated to make sure that your next trip is to Amazon. The real one.

Please RSVP to Justin at Justin@hcrj.org.