Ono Conference – “Our Judaism – History of Ethiopian Jewry and its Heritage”
On April 4, 2002, Ono Academic College hosted the conference “Our Judaism – The History of Ethiopian Jewry and its Heritage” in its Dganit Auditorium. In addition to Ono, other co-sponsors included: the Ministry of Culture and Sport, the Zalman Shazar Center, the Aaleh Batamar Association for the Study of the Heritage of Yemenite Jewry and its Culture, the Azrieli Center for Israel Studies at Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Yeshiva University and the American Sephardi Federation’s Institute of Jewish Experience.
The conference aimed to present a complete picture of the state of research on the history of Ethiopian Jews and knowledge of the main trends in current research on the subject. The conference was attended by some of the most important scholars in the field of Jewish history and the heritage of Ethiopian Jewry, as well as by leaders and activists from the Ethiopian community in Israel. The conference combined aspects of history, heritage and society and presented a broad range of knowledge about the history of Ethiopian Jews.
Selected presentations included:
- The connection between the Jews of Ethiopia and Israeli society: MK Chili Tropper (Minister of Culture and Sport), Dr. Reta Alamu Nega (Ambassador of Ethiopia), Prof. Tova Hartman (Dean of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences), Prof. Avi Bareli (Director of the Ben Gurion Center for Research on Israel and Zionism, Ben Gurion University), General (Res.) Aharon Zeevi Farkash (Director of Shazar Center)
- A traditional Musical Prayer Service led by Ethiopian Jewish Leaders (Kessim) and accompanied on Saxophone
- Research on Ethiopian Jewry – From Explanation to Understanding: Rabbi Dr. Sharon Zeude Shalom, Founder and Director, Ono’s International Center for the Study of Ethiopian Jewry
- Ethiopian Jewry and Rabbinic Tradition: A Meeting and a Dialectic
- Traditions and Customs of Ethiopian Jewry in Ethiopia and Israel
- Preservation and Conservation
- Between Ethiopia and Israel
- Our Judaism from an International and Diverse Perspective: Prof. Don Seeman, The Department of Religion and the Tam Institute for Jewish Studies, Emory University: An Ethiopian Jew Goes to Uman and Prof. Ephraim Isaac, Director Emeritus) Institute of Semitic Studies, Princeton: Ethnic Diversity of the Jewish People
- Sources of Knowledge About Ethiopian Jewry: Prof. Galia Tzabar, Pakeda Abeba, Dani Adamasso, Nili Venezia, Prof. Esther Meir-Glitzenstein
- Conclusion with Conference Chairs
