the jewish community of cuba: between continuity and extinction

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134 Margalit BejaranoAs mentioned above, the existence of Jewish congregationsis facilitated bythe government, which pays the rent for their buildings andsupervisestheir legal functioning. None of the Jewish organizationshave altered their by-laws since the Revolution, and aretheycarefulto fulfill the formal requirements, including regular elections, paymentof membership fees, and preservation of records of meetings.61To theoutside visitor it may seem that the division among four synagoguesweakens the small existing community,but agitationof this fragilestructure might prove fatal. In addition, local Jews consider the preservation of their institutions as an existential problem, and the struggleto maintain all four organizations is a barrier againstindifference.Leaders of the communityare aware of the dangersof inner divisionand coordinate their activities to avoid further weakeningof theirforces. The Coordinating Committee, composed of the presidentsandsecretaries of the five communalorganizations,is essential both tohave a single voice vis-a-vis the government and for internal purposes.One of the major functions of the Coordinating Committee is the division and sale of products for Passover, receivedannuallyfrom theCanadian Jewish Congress.The role that these productsfulfill in thelives of Cuban Jews is incredibly important, since they often representthe onlylink with Judaism, especially for people livingin the interiortowns where no form of Jewish organization exists. There is no denyingthat several people buy Passover productsin order to supplement theirpoor diet, especially during periods of economicdifficulty. The abilityof the Jewish organizationsto sweeten the Jewish holidayswith aricher meal becomes their source of attraction; for children of assimilated families, the eating of a traditional dish becomes an expressionof identification with Jewishness.Passover productsare distributed free to people who cannot affordto pay for them; others are chargeda symbolic price which serves as asource of revenue to enable the Coordinating Committee to provideamonthly stipend for those in need. Manyof the worshipersat AdathIsrael are totally dependenton these stipends which are their onlysource of income. The Canadian Jewish Congresshas been the onlypipeline which has provided continuous assistance to a communitywhich had felt, for many years, disconnected and forgotten by the Jewish world.The general problems of the communitywere dealt with for overtwenty years by Moises Baldas, a devoted activist whostruggledtomaintain Jewish continuity,in particular through education and cultural activities. Since his emigrationto Israel in 1981, the President ofthe Patronato, Dr. Jose Miller, has acted as chairman of theCoordinatingCommittee. As such he represents the Jewish communitybefore the Oficina de AsuntosReligiosos, headedby Dr. Carneado,with whom he maintainsfriendlyrelations. He also joined the ConsejoThis content downloaded by the authorized user from 192.168.72.230 on Sun, 2 Dec 2012 04:14:50 AMAll use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
The Jewish Community of Cuba 135Ecumenico de Cuba ? the representative organizationof the Protestantchurches ? in order to guarantee the Jewish community the same rightsas their fellow Christians.In a publishedinterview Dr. Millerexplainedthe difficult political problem facingthe Jewish communityin lightof Cuba's hostilitytowards Israel. Accordingto Dr. Miller, all the Jews in the diasporaidentify with the State of Israel, that is, with its existence, but thisdoes notimply that they have to defend all its governments. Hestressed that Cuba had recognizedthe State of Israel and has neverdenied its rightto exist, but its international positiontowards Israel istotally unfavorable. This has led peopleto assumeerroneouslythatCuba's attitude towards Israel is reflected internally."The Cuban government had the tact, the delicacy,the sufficient intelligenceand subtlety to separateone thingfrom the other. We had to respondto thisattitude also with the same delicacyand the same subtlety.Our relations with the Cuban governmentare based exclusivelyon our faith, ourculture, our rightto Jewish identity."62It is obvious that the Jewish communityhas to separate betweenreligious identity and politicsin order to exist. It should be added thatduring her stay in Havana the author received the impression that theCuban publicis not necessarilyaffected bythe hostile propagandaagainst Zionism, and that traditionalsympathiestowards Israel andthe Jewish people have not disappeared and mightcome to the surfaceshould Cubachangeits Middle Easternpolicy.ConclusionObservation of the present situation of the Cuban Jewish communityindicate factors that might lead to its disappearanceas well as otherspromisingits continuity. Among the former, the mostsignificant aretrends of demographicdecline: emigration, agingof the Jewishpopulation,and assimilation. The lack of spiritual leadership,in particular of an ordained rabbi or mohel, is a serious obstacle to thepreservationof the Jewish family. The poverty of Jewish educationaland cultural activities cannotcompetewith those offered bythemajority society. Jewish continuityis also threatenedbythe fear toidentify with religious institutions, considered as a barrier to one's career. Whetherimaginaryor real, this fear seems to preventa largenumber of governmentally-employed professionalsfrom approachingthe community.The existence and functioningof the Jewish congregationsare amongthe mostimportantfactors that strengthenthe trends of continuity.With all their shortcomings,these institutions facilitate the provisionof religiousservices and maintain an active Jewish social framework.This content downloaded by the authorized user from 192.168.72.230 on Sun, 2 Dec 2012 04:14:50 AMAll use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
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