Bete Israel
The Bete Israel lived
isolated from most of the world, and from other
Israelites, until the past century. They were first
made known to the Western World by British
missionaries in the 1860s. Soon after that a Jewish
scholar, Joseph Halevy, went to see them for
himself. He found a people who observed the
Biblical commandments such as the Sabbath, feasts,
dietary laws, purification, sacrifices and
separation of menstruating women. They found it
hard to believe that Halevy was Jewish, since he
was white! But once he mentioned Jerusalem, they
excitedly asked him many questions about the holy
city. Like Jews all over the world, they looked
forward to returning to the Holy City!
Skipping to 1984, massive airlifts were operated
bringing Ethiopian Jews to their ancient homeland,
Israel. Operation Moses and Operation Joshua flew
almost 9,000 Ethiopian Jews out of Sudan. The Jews
had fled to Sudan to escape the famine, massacres
and government persecution that they were
experiencing in Ethiopia. Operation Solomon in 1991
flew over 14,000 Jews out of Addis Ababa, the
capital of Ethiopia, to Israel. This group of Bete
Israel had left the mountainous country area of
Gonder, where they had lived for centuries, to go
to Addis for this airlift.
Since the airlifts, Jews from the Bete Israel
community in Gonder have continued to migrate to
Addis, close to the Israeli Embassy. They do this
expecting to go to Israel like many of their family
members have. According to Israel’s Laws, they have
the legal right to move to Israel, both because
they are Jewish and because many of them have
family members already in Israel.
These families of the Bete Israel community have
moved into very primitive dwellings in Addis. The
one room structures can only hold two beds and have
small remaining space. These dwellings are sub
standard even by Ethiopian standards. They were
willing to live in these conditions temporarily
because they believed that they would soon be going
to Israel. But these temporary living conditions
have lasted up to 13 years for the members of the
Bete Israel community in Addis Ababa. The adults of
this community are not trained in employable skills
for the city. This leaves a community of people
that have either no income or a very low income,
that are living in really poor conditions with
little hope of getting out. This web site is
offering them an opportunity for an income that
will help.
Bete Abraham
The Jewish people in
Kechene (a section in Addis Ababa) are now called
the Beta Abraham. They separated from the original
Bete Israel community, which lives in Gonder,
several hundred years ago. The fact that they are
descendants of the Bete Israel is documented by
many historians.
In the late 1600s a leader emerged in Ethiopia that
started an empire in the area that is now the
Kechene section of Addis Ababa (the capital city of
Ethiopia). The land was mostly forest area that
needed to be cleared and farmed. This leader
realized that the Bete Israel’s tool-making and
farming skills would be very helpful to developing
his empire. He convinced many of the Jewish people
to come work for his empire for in return for land
of their own. He also required that they convert to
Christianity.
These Jews had the choice of continued persecution
and lack of rights versus the offer to be
appreciated, respected and rewarded with land
owning privileges. Many Bete Israelis accepted the
offer to work for this ruler in return for land.
They left the Gonder area to live and work for this
leader.
Like the Jews of Spain, some did abandon their
Jewish faith. But like the Marranos of Spain, many
kept their Jewish faith and practiced it secretly.
Today there are 15 secret Jewish congregations in
the Kechene area of Addis Ababa. They are the
descendants of those who continued their Jewish
faith and practices in secret.
The elders of the Bete Abraham community continue
to practice their Judaism in secret despite the new
government’s tolerance of all religions, just as
Marrano descendants also do today in Portugal. But
some of the younger generation of devout Jews have
asked, “Why should we continue to practice in
secret when our religion is now legal and accepted
by the government?” (although still prejudiced
against by some). They have separated themselves
completely from faking Christianity and practice
their Judaism with pride.
When they initiated their attempt to be more open
about their faith, they found themselves shunned by
their own Jewish community. They are learning to
find a balance between their zeal for practicing
their freedom of religion with respect for the
practices of the elders. These individuals call
themselves Zionists, and besides practicing their
faith more openly, have also started an
organization to help their fellow Jews called EZRA
(Ethiopian Zionist Rehabilitation Association) and
birthed the idea of this web site to accomplish
that!
Who Are the Ethiopian Jews Waiting for Emigration to Israel?
The Jewish Ethiopians, or
Bete Israelis as they are commonly known, have
lived in the mountains in the northern part of
Ethiopia for at least two thousand years, in an
area called Gonder. They were farmers,
blacksmiths, potters and weavers, selling their
products to their neighbors and people in the
surrounding areas.
As has been the history of Jews all over the
world, the Bete Israel experienced prejudice
and unjust persecution from the people around
them. They were not allowed to own land nor
were their trades looked upon favorably,
despite the obvious necessity of their products
to those who purchased them. Derogatory terms
and false accusations abounded for them not
only because of their trades, but also because
of their devotion to their Biblical traditions
that separated them from those around them.
In the 1860’s, some of these Jews migrated to
the Addis Ababa area (capital city of
Ethiopia). Others migrated to Addis Ababa more
recently and some still remain today in the
Gonder area.