The Jerusalem Post recently published a feature article describing the important cooperation between the International Center for the Study of Ethiopian Jewry at Ono Academic College and the University of Gondar in Ethiopia. The format of the article was an interview with the Center’s founding director, Rabbi Dr. Sharon Shalom.
The article with Rabbi Dr. Shalom sharing a critical insight about his work. ““Our purpose . . . is not to prove that the members of the Ethiopian Jewish community are really Jewish – because the Jews of Ethiopia are Jewish! We do not deal with issues relating to the color of one’s skin or other matters regarding external identification. Rather, we are dealing with identity.”
Rabbi Dr. Shalom makes the point that the Ethiopian Jewish community is, among many other things, the living repository of biblical era Jewish practice. He says, ““These are traditions that the Jewish people forgot, and we are accepting these traditions for the Ethiopian community.” A key mission of Ono Center’s is to uncover these traditions and treasures of Ethiopian Jewry.
One of the ways the Center does this is by hosting international conferences about various aspects of Ethiopian Jewry. At a recent conference, representatives of Ethiopia’s University of Gondar participated. Prior to their Aliya to Israel, many Ethiopian Jews lived in Gondar.
Following this conference, the researchers at the University of Gondar invited their Israeli colleagues for a reciprocal visit. Then recently, the University of Gondar announced the establishment of a center at the university that will study the Jews of Ethiopia and will be operated with the assistance of Ono’s International Center for the Study of Ethiopian Jewry. Rabbi Dr. Shalom called this development “historic” and noted, “This shows that the Jews of Ethiopia are an important part of the culture and history of Ethiopia.”
Other areas of cooperation between Ono and the University of Gondar include: student and lecturer exchange programs, research partnerships and the publication of a research journal.
The complete article can be found at: https://www.jpost.com/special-content/a-partnership-of-ono-academic-colleges-study-of-ethiopian-jewry-and-the-university-of-gondar-733171
