I can’t say I really “have a rabbi” in the sense that I consult any rabbinic authority on matters in my life. Maybe I suffer for lack of rabbinic advice. Maybe I just haven’t found the right rabbi yet. (I guess I’ll add that to the “Eternal Quest” list.)
Well, if you’re Persian, and you want to ask a rabbi a question from your uniquely urgin’ for Persian perspective, now you’ve got a website of your own. The site’s founder, Eman Chayim Esmailzadeh, hopes it will be “a gateway for Iranian Jews to connect with religious leaders and their Jewish identity.” [via the Jewish Journal]
Want to learn more about the Persian community? Check out these articles in the new issue of PresenTense Magazine.
Rabbi Yonah
5/8/2007
Thanks Esther.
Check out the Thank you on the site and you might just see the name of a certain Rabbi that writes here on Jewlicious.
Chayim was my student at UCI!
Dennis Wilen
5/8/2007
All web roads lead to Rabbi Yo!
Jessi
5/8/2007
Intreesssssting
Well I am Persian (why do we still use that word?)
How very LA…but then again It seems to be a needed voice. It’s a very different outlook on life and Torah.
Though the whole American-Safardi pride thing can freak me out a bit.
Lori
5/10/2007
When will us Persian-Jews drop the hyphen and just join the rest of our nation? We are worse than Texans. Next we’ll want our own flag. Get over it everyone.
Jessi
5/10/2007
Nah I’d say the different safardi perspective, culture, minhag-whatever…is very very valuable.
I don’t agree with assimilating into mainstream askenazi Judaism, as far as our own minhagim goes. In every other way though.
It’s way worse in America, literally different communities within Iranian Jews don’t mix (tehrani-meshadi!) let alone with non-Iranians!
But ye I do wonder when the steams goona run out? How much longer can you keep your parents traditions?
themiddle
5/10/2007
The Syrian Jews seem to be doing a good job of maintaining their separateness.
Mike J.
6/22/2007
If you want to learn more about Persian Jews in America forget that Pretense magazine…check out Karmel Melamed’s blog:
iranianamerica...
He’s the only journalist that’s been covering the Persian Jewish community properly in the news media. I really enjoy his articles…very interesting, especially the one of the only Persian Jewish Holocaust survivor!!