Imagine a man whose life, accomplishments and legacy were so extraordinary that he was the link to our past, preserving it forever. He was a role model and a guide for all of us to emulate in the present and his achievements will shape the future of the Jewish world for many generations to come. This man was Sam Catton. He was small in stature, but larger than life—a man of mythical proportions.
Thousands of people joined together at Ahi Ezer Congregation, on the 18th day of Tishrei, Hol Hamoed Succot, to pay respect to our beloved leader Hacham Sion Maslaton. It was a day set aside for simcha, a day where no eulogies can be heard, yet still people felt a need to attend what turned out to be one of the largest funerals our community has seen. Many were outside, listening from a loudspeaker, sitting in the Succah, or standing on the street, where the police had closed off Ocean Parkway out of deference for the crowd.
Rabbi Baruch Ben Haim was the guiding force of our community for over 50 years. He was born in 1921 in Jerusalem. He studied in Yeshivat Porat Yosef and was ordained by the great Gaon Rabbi Ezra Attieh, the Rosh Yeshiva, and by the Chief Rabbi of Israel, Rabbi Ben-Tzion Meir Hai Uziel. He served as a member of the Sephardic Beit Din in Jerusalem with Rabbi Yehuda Shako and Rabbi Ezra Attieh.
The Sephardic Community Federation (SCF) played a critical role in successfully reaching an agreement with the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOH) that would improve the health and safety of our children, and prevent the possible closure of yeshivot throughout New York City. The agreement came in the wake of newly proposed regulations by the DOH.
In a historic first for Brooklyn’s Sephardic community, a wide cross-section of key community leaders formed the Sephardic Community Federation (SCF), a non-profit organization, whose goals are to advocate for the Sephardic community and work with federal, state and city governments and agencies, suggest community campaign contributions, shape policy for community and for Jewish causes, and advocate for the community’s social service organizations.
Men from Aleppo and Damascus, Syria began to arrive in America during the early part of the 20th century. Soon they found that the opportunities America offered were vast, so instead of returning to their homeland, they brought their families here.
These men, some of them rabbis, others great men of vision, all of them determined and generous, were among the founders of our community.
The Final Installment of a 28-Part Personal History
Our Brooklyn community is about to celebrate the centennial anniversary of its first landing on the shores of the United States, the most powerful country, the most protective, the most welcoming refuge of the oppressed. There were never better hosts than the Americans for the Jews, not even Spain in its glorious periods of the 12th and 13th centuries, prior to their eventual expulsion. Almost all Jews in America are prospering.
In this context, the Syrian Jewish community’s development has been—and is—phenomenal. It will be recorded in history as unique.
Magen David Yeshivah High School students recently participated in a program which acknowledged the 65th anniversary of the destruction of the Jewish cemetery in Salonika, Greece, which included several speeches and a slide presentation. Learning about their ancestors, their history and their heritage, the students recognized the potential power of Sephardic Jewry globally and their ability to facilitate justice.
Over 150 people ventured outside their homes on a cold, blustery winter morning. They came out in force to show their strong support for Brooklyn native David Greenfield’s candidacy for the New York City Council.
Greenfield’s inaugural fund-raising event for his City Council run was hosted by Paulette and Morris Bailey. It was extremely successful, with Greenfield raising much needed funds for his race.
In olden times, Sephardic Jews in the Balkan states and Turkey were married very young. The girl was 14 or younger, the husband 18 or 20. It was considered a great humiliation for the parents if their children were still unmarried after that age.
The young people were not allowed to voice their inclinations or aversions in the choice of a partner. That was strictly the parents’ concern. Any opinion voiced by the girl or boy was considered a gross lack of respect. The parents also settled the details connected with the dowry and trousseau. The couple did not know each other until they were engaged. Even after the engagement they were permitted to see each other only on Passover and Sukkot an interval of six months. The young man visited his bride accompanied by his father. This was the only opportunity for him to risk a glance at her. Sometimes they would not see each other at all until their wedding day.
People have asked, “What does the Social Services Department at the Sephardic Community Center (SCC) do?” The SCC Social Services Department is a doorway to services, especially for people who may be faced with difficult life challenges but would not consider walking into a social services agency or seeking help from a therapist. Many people know the Center as the place to exercise and swim, watch children play in sports, go to summer camp, attend a social function, hear a speaker, bring their little ones to early childhood programs, or participate in trips. While involved in these activities, they also find supportive staff who lend a hand, provide a sympathetic ear and an understanding heart.
The Sephardic National Alliance, compromised of community leaders working together for the benefit of our community, have had many notable meetings throughout the years. Here’s a look at some of them.
We all carry our mobile phones with names & numbers stored in its memory but nobody, other than ourselves, knows which of these numbers belong to our closest family or friends.
The book we are about to describe will surely enhance the lives of all it touches. It will answer all your Judaic questions, offer insightful explanations to those answers, and guide this community as nothing ever has before. This is a book that every Jewish family will treasure, embrace and pass on from generation to generation. At long last, Mr. Jacob Kassin presents to you his Jewish guide- book, “Till Eternity” (Bechol Yom Avera-chicha).
