Oct 11, 2021

Celebrate Sigd With the Ethiopian Jewish Community

You’re invited to join The Jewish Agency for Israel on Wednesday, November 3 at Noon (EST) for a virtual celebration of Sigd, a holiday focused on renewal and redemption. Hear from Rabbi Dr. Sharon Shalom, who immigrated to Israel alone from Ethiopia with Operation Moses and now teaches at Bar-Ilan University and serves as a rabbi of the “Kedoshi Yisrael” community in Kiryat Gat; Sigal Kanotopsky, Northeast Regional Director at The Jewish Agency and Aveya Dese, an Ethiopian-Israeli singer and songwriter. Brought to Israel by the Ethiopian Jewish community, Sigd has been recognized as a national holiday in Israel since 2008. Traditionally, in Ethiopia, Jews would go to a mountain and pray in the direction of Jerusalem. In Israel, Ethiopian Jews go to Jerusalem and pray for those who have not yet arrived in Israel and those who perished en route. More than a holiday celebration, it is an opportunity to raise Ethiopian Jewish visibility and educate Israeli Jews about their customs. Click here to register for the event.