SHAVEI ISRAEL THAT CHANGED OUR LIVES

Aliya irreversibly transformed the Bnei Menashe

By Yochanan Phaltual - Shavei Israel Administrator, India

History is about people who have changed the world. Humanity has progressed from Agricultural revolution to the Industrial revolution and is now moving to an Information revolution.

Whatever their chosen field – from religions to politics, from science to literature, from pop-stardom to sport-stardom and from music to fashion – great people influence us and they changes the way we live in many ways.

One biggest changes that have and will have profound effects on human history is ALIYA, thanks to the organization SHAVEI ISRAEL that brought about Aliya and the only Jewish organization that actively opens the door to “lost Jews” who have decided to return to Judaism and desire to  return to Eretz Israel.

Michael Freund, the founder and chairman of Shavei Israel is among the “Top 100 Most Influential Jewish People in the World”. He is bracketed in the category along the famous Jews of the world today who change and influence the world and the Jewish life.

To mention few among the achelon of Top 100 Jewish lists were Mark Zuckerberg (Founder of Facebook), PM Benjamin Netaneyahu, Rabbi Ovadia Yosef z’’l (Former Chief Rabbi of Israel and spiritual leader of the Shas political party), Larry Page and Sergey Brin (Founders of Google), Steve Ballmer (CEO of Microsoft), Michael Dell (Founder and CEO of DELL Inc.), Israeli President Shimon Peres, Bob Dylan (Singer & Songwriter) and more.

In his interviewed in Maariv (media) in July 2013, Michael Freund said “Shavei Israel’s aim is to reach out to the descendants of Jews around the world and strengthen their relationship with the Jewish people and the state of Israel”.

Why so important is reaching out to lost Jews and bring back home to the Jewish people? Why Aliya and dwelling in Eretz Israel is so important?

Aliya is the return of the Jewish people from the exile in Diaspora back to the land of Israel. It is ascending and going up spiritually. It is transformation of self spiritually and changes of status.

The mitzvah to live in Eretz Israel is very great and important for it was the first mitzvah which was commanded by G-d to the first Jewish man “Avraham Avinu” – “Go forth for yourself….to the Land that I will show you” (Gen. 12). Our Great Khakhamim emphasis the significance of Aliya so much so that they say that dwelling in Eretz Israel is the equivalent of all the mitzvoth in the Torah.

Here lies the importance and value of Shavei Israel. If Google is the search engine for information around the world, then Shavei Israel is G-D’s search engine for the lost Jews and for making Aliya.

Over the last 10 years, Shavei Israel has been supporting, guiding and providing assistance to the Bnei Menashe and other lost Jews. The activities expanding and spreading in proverbial wings. Unfolding the Israel government freezing of the Bnei Menashe Aliya after an intense lobbying of government cabinet ministers and high level bureaucratic officials. Changing the mindset of Israeli politicians and the Chief Rabbinate Council. The historic official declaration of the Bnei Menashe as one of the 10 lost Tribes of Israel by the former Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Israel HaRav Shlomo Amar Shlita and setting up of Bnei Menashe Aliya Cabinet Committee in the Knesset. So much to tell and in which every bit counts.

Shavei Israel organization and its chairman Michael Freund have been leaving their mark on the world. It will continue to transform and revolutionize the Jewish world. And it will remain “One main engine” of the TORAH.

# This article is dedicated in Mazal tov to Shavei Israel for succeeding in getting the approval of Israeli Government to allow 899 Bnei Menashe to make Aliya to Eretz Israel.

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REDEFINING OUR RELATIONS WITH CHRISTIAN BRETHREN

By Yochanan Phaltual - Shavei Israel Administrator, India

I am not a trained comforter and at a time someone needs to console it is very difficult to know what to do and what to say.

Last week, Ortal a beautiful daughter of Ya’acov and Rivka Haokip died of acute heart problems. And the same week on Friday, when Tabitha Phalnei and her husband Eleazar Zara Singson were busily preparing for the Shabbat, their loving daughter Rakhel Lamvangnei disappeared mysteriously from home and whose current whereabouts is unknown or whose status as alive or dead cannot be confirmed as her location and fate is not known. Till today hundreds of volunteers for missing person searches were deployed in various parts of Churachandpur.

As I look at the parents of Rakhel Singson experiencing a devastating fear and pain, I could not use any of the typical clichéd that are typically used such as telling them “It will be okay”. Thinking about the future without their daughter brought me fear and dread.

As the brevity of the event sets I am ever thankful for the Christian friends who have continue to help to this day.

I think this is an opportune moment to redefine and change perceptions of our relationship with our Christian brethren.

We all know that religion plays a very crucial and central role in everyone’s life. Many people around the world are driven by their religion to keep themselves separated from other faiths. But at various point in time we are inalienable and inseparable parts of the larger community – humanity.

The Bnei Menashe case is a unique one that cannot be completely clubbed under the dichotomy “Judaism - Christian” divide. We are all from the same tribe MENASHE, only dubbed with different nomenclatures, Kuki-Chin-Mizo-Zomi. The reasons are mainly political, linguistic and geographical settlement.

When Christianity came to Manipur and Mizoram a hundred years ago, they brought many boons and disadvantages. They set free from the bondage of fear and superstitions mindset, spread Western education and many social transformation and revolutions.

But on the other side, they destroyed many of our legacy and heritage. We lost many of our rituals and customs, but they could not totally erased our customs and traditions which still bind us together till today whether we belongs to different faiths.

Our larger Christian brethren are always in times of sadness and disaster contributing the bigger role of kindness act. Last week, when baby Ortal died they were according to our forefather custom not to be given a burial place because the parents fail to observe the customary CHEN-JU, a settlement registration to the Chief or to Village Authority. However, the kind hearted Christian Chief of the village allowed us for proper burial in his village.

And in the case of the missing girl Rakhel, the volunteers were largely Christian. This is not the only first instance but a recurring happening in every society of Bnei Menashe. It is time to redefine our perceptions and attitude towards our Christian brethren.

Judaism never teaches us to hate or to be at war with other religion. Rather we are taught to love humankind and be a shining model for others. Though we have different religious practices and believes, we need to create religious harmony which is the key to peaceful co-existence.

It is time to appreciate the good deeds of our Christian brethren. Let’s pledge to work towards bringing religious harmony but not by interfering in the religious matter of other people and opposite any attempt to misuse the religion and create disharmony in our society.

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