Jerusalem Post - 06.20.2002

 

The Jerusalem Post

Our Man In Siberia: Khabarovsk's Habad, Soup Kitchen and Community Garages

By Elli Wohlgelernter

Hello from Angarsk, 50 kilometers from Irkutsk. Flew here this morning for a weekend retreat of the Institute for Jewish Studies, an organization run by Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz. 

Khabarovsk was a visit of less than 24 hours, but I did see a bit, and learned about the Jewish community. 

It's difficult to imagine that there are Jews living here, a place so far away from Western civilization, but there are. In Khabarovsk proper, about 6,000, out of a total population of 700,000. In the entire region, which extends northward to Kamchatka, there are some 20,000 Jews living in the region. 

It is, like many small communities in the former Soviet Union, still experiencing a Jewish awakening, after lying dormant for more than 70 years of Communist rule. 

There is no synagogue in Khabarovsk. Habad is building one, expected to be finished in 2004, on the very site where the last shul stood - in 1913! 

What they use for a synagogue meanwhile is one of the rooms of a three-room apartment that serves as the center of Jewish life, simply called the Kehilla. The ark stands in one corner, a TV rests on a wall mount in the adjacent corner, and on the walls are pictures of the Kotel and the Lubavitcher rebbe. 

The synagogue functions on Monday and Wednesday mornings, and Friday night and Shabbat morning, with somewhere between a dozen and 18 men making up each minyan - when they're lucky. 

There is a social service organization called Hesed that caters to the poor in the community. More than 1,000 families receive help, with 450 receiving food packages once a month, and 80 people coming to the Kehilla apartment every day for a hot meal. Another 40 have meals brought to their home. Hesed is supported by the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee. 

This morning I went for a jog, which is always a good way to see a city. One notices every couple of blocks a group of about 15-20 metal sheds. This is an example of a regional necessity - these are car garages, a must for the winter when the temperature hits 35 degree below. I'll stick to Jerusalem.

Related Stories:

Our Man In Siberia: Home, Weary, Amazed