Back to My Roots
January
2003
There I was, in Hungary, the place of my birth and my early rabbinic
years. I understood every word people spoke, I had no problem communicating
and I was able to find my way around the labyrinths of the gorgeous,
metropolitan city of Budapest. I spent time with my many childhood friends
and close family members. Yet, I felt like a visitor, a tourist, in
my own native country.
In today's Hungary there are only two officially recognized Jewish
movements, Orthodox and Neologue. In spite of the valiant efforts of
the Lubavitch group, which maintains a small synagogue in Budapest,
Orthodoxy appeals to just a few hundred people. The main stream has
always been Neologue, which in American terms, used to be something
in between Reform and Conservative Judaism. The very term Neologue is
of Greek origin and means "new thought." Adherents to the movement,
which was organized in the 1860's, were conservative in religious practice
while their ideology was liberal.
The Jewish community has changed so dramatically in these last couple
of decades, especially since the fall of Communism. Today's Neologue
Temples are much closer to the American Young Israel Synagogues (Modern
American Orthodoxy), than to the Conservative movement with which they
officially affiliate and identify. I observed that Berkeley's Beth Israel
grants more rights to women than any of the Neologue Temples in Budapest.
The emerging rabbinic leadership absolutely does not tolerate egalitarian
services. The average member has lost any commonality with their religious
and spiritual leaders. Out of Hungary's one hundred thousand Jews, only
ten thousand are affiliated with synagogues that are under the umbrella
of the Union of Hungarian Jews.
In Hungary, not dissimilar to many other European countries, generous
government allocations support all religious institutions, including
the synagogues. In spite of the fact that voluntary contributions are
minimal, the smooth financial functioning is assured. Interestingly,
the well-paid staff of the Union is neither observant nor religious.
In contrast to the Orthodox and Neologue synagogues, the newly formed,
small Reform Jewish community of Hungary, Sim Shalom, is supported by
donations from its congregants and members of its British sister synagogues
as well as by subsidies from the World Union for Progressive Judaism.
It is not supported by the Hungarian government since it has not been
recognized by the other two historic Jewish movements. The only way
Sim Shalom could become eligible for aide would be to register as a
new religious sect, not as a Jewish community. Clearly, this is not
an acceptable compromise for the community.
During my stay in Budapest, I spent many hours with Rabbi Katalin Kelemen,
the first and only woman rabbi in Hungary, discussing, among other things,
the fate of Hungarian Jews and the future possibilities that might open
up for the Jewish community of Hungary. I also attended Shabbat eve
services, which are held in a rented apartment. The living room functions
as the sanctuary, the dining room as the study hall and the bedroom
as the office. Embarrassingly, the flat I rented was much larger. I
felt at home since their services are quite similar to ours. They are
conducted by three soloists and the rabbi. Katalin's style was rather
informal as she taught her inexperienced but enthusiastic audience.
I also gave a teaching, and led a discussion. I could not help but notice
that, of the forty people in attendance, all were either over 55 or
under 30 years of age.
The tale of Sim Shalom's Torah scroll reveals so much about Hungarian
Jewish history and perhaps allows us a glance into the promising future
of this unusual congregation. Let me quote from a sermon Katalin delivered
in Zurich, Switzerland at the annual conference of the World Union for
Progressive Judaism.
"The theme of our Conference is: Progressive Judaism beyond the Shoah.
Very symbolic of what is happening is the tale of our Torah scroll.
Our Sefer Torah was originally the personal property of a Hassidic
Jew from Ujfeherto in North Eastern Hungary, who managed to survive
the Shoah. When he made Aliyah to Israel, the baggage allowance was
too small to include a Torah scroll, so he left it in the care of
his non-Jewish daughter-in-law."
"Many years later, shortly before he died, he asked the daughter-in-law
to see that it gets into the hands of Jews, who would use it. A common
acquaintance, Aranka Sos, herself a survivor of Auschwitz and one
of the founding members of Sim Shalom, heard about the existence of
this scroll. Sim Shalom wanted to get a Sefer Torah. And it was just
when Rabbi Fred Morgan was paying one of his many visits to Budapest.
He went with some members of our community to see the scroll and they
were surprised and delighted to find that it was in excellent condition,
only needing minor repairs to some of the edges where mice had chewed
a bit. Fred bought the Torah on the spot and on behalf of his community
North West Surrey Synagogue in Weybridge donated it to Sim Shalom,
after it was repaired."
"Now on Simchat Torah, after we have blessed our children, and
when everyone at Sim Shalom is taking a turn at dancing with our resurrected
Sefer Torah, for us God does exist, and we no longer miss Him so."
Paraphrasing the prayer we recite at weddings, may I add, "O God, may
there always be heard in the cities of Hungary and in the streets of
Budapest, the sounds of joy and of happiness, the voice of the groom
and the voice of the bride, the shouts of young people celebrating,
and the songs of children at play.
B'virkat shalom,
Ferenc
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