History of the Jews in Rwanda
History of the Jewish community in Rwanda
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The history of the Jews in Rwanda begins in the early 21st century with the arrival of Jewish humanitarian workers, professionals, and business people. The community is concentrated mainly in Kigali, which houses a Chabad-Lubavitch center since 2019.
Agahozo Shalom Youth Village, a residential school for orphaned and vulnerable Rwandan youth, was founded in 2008 by Jewish American philanthropist Anne Heyman. It was modeled on Israeli youth villages for Holocaust orphans.
Some members of the Tutsi ethnic group believe they descend from ancient Israelites, a claim rejected by mainstream Jewish authorities.
History
The country's Jewish history began when foreign aid workers and development professionals started arriving in the 2000s.[1][2]
Passover Seder have been celebrated in Kigali since at least 2006, organized by Josh Ruxin, an American public health expert living in Kigali, and his friends.[1] Heaven Restaurant & Boutique Hotel, which was founded in 2008 by Ruxin and his wife Alissa, has served as a hub for Jewish life in the capital.[3]
Rwanda's Jewish community is concentrated in Kigali and served by the Chabad center.[4] Most community members work in development, aid, and business.[5] Chabad provides Kosher food, and Heaven Restaurant & Boutique Hotel usually provides a gathering place for Jewish visitors.[4][3]
Agahozo Shalom Youth Village
Agahozo Shalom Youth Village (ASYV) is a residential school for orphaned and vulnerable Rwandan youth. The school was founded in 2008 by Anne Heyman, a South African-born Jewish American lawyer and philanthropist, and is located in Rwamagana District. It is named after the Kinyarwanda word agahozo (lit. 'a place where tears are dried') and the Hebrew word shalom (lit. 'peace').[6][7][8][9] After realizing that 15% of Rwandan children were orphans, Heyman formed the village for the orphans of the Rwandan genocide, inspired by Yemin Orde, an Israeli youth village that housed Holocaust orphans after World War II.[10][8] She raised $12 million to start the organization.[8]
Today, the village has more than 500 students, with ages ranging between 14 and 22.[7][8] It provides education, vocational training, healthcare, and counseling for the students.[6] Tikkun halev (healing the heart) and tikkun olam (repairing the world) are the core principles of the village.[7][9]
The founder of the village, Anne Heyman, died in a horseback riding accident in 2014.[8][9]
Chabad of Rwanda
Chabad-Lubavitch first opened in Rwanda in September 2019, establishing the country's first synagogue and appointing its first permanent rabbi, Rabbi Chaim Bar Sella.[2][5][11]
Rabbi Chaim and his wife Dina Bar Sella moved to Kigali with their 8-month-old son.[2][5] The center is the ninth Chabad house in Central Africa, operating under Rabbi Shlomo Bentolila in Kinshasa.[2][11]
Before this, Jewish life in Rwanda was limited to occasional visits by yeshiva students through Chabad's "Roving Rabbis" program.[5] Torah classes, holiday programs, children's activities, kosher meals, humanitarian aid, and a soup kitchen are part of programs offered by the center.[4]
Regarding the establishment of the center in Kigali, Israeli Ambassador to Rwanda Ron Adam stated: "When I opened the new embassy here, the first thing I decided to do is to request Rabbi Bentolila to help me establish a Beit Chabad. Now that Chaim and Dina have come, I'm very happy. We've become a team!"[2][11]
During the Chabad conference in New Jersey in 2020, Rabbi Bar Sella highlighted the growth of Jewish life in Rwanda.[12]
Tutsi-Jewish origin claims
Some Tutsis believe they are descendants of the ancient Israelites. They claim that Tutsi originated in Ethiopia (biblical Kush) and migrated south to the African Great Lakes region.[13]
This view is primarily advocated by Professor Yochanan (Jean) Bwejeri, a Tutsi from Burundi and founder of the Havila Institute. He claims that the Tutsi are "Jews by birth" and that their ancestors ruled the South Kushitic Empire. Bwejeri tried to connect his community with mainstream Judaism by visiting an Orthodox synagogue in New York in 2002, where he spoke before the congregation.[13]
The claim is rejected by mainstream Jewish authorities.[13]
Rwandan-Israel relations
Rwanda maintains strong diplomatic ties with Israel, and the Israeli embassy was inaugurated in Kigali on April 1, 2019.[14]