Jewish awareness group establishes itself in Cape

STARTING FROM SCRATCH

By Laura Johnston ~ Southeast Missourian

Much like Moses and the Israelites wandered through the desert in search of the promised land, an area Jewish group has been trying to find itself a home.

Though far from having a synagogue and rabbi, the Jewish Awareness Group in Cape Girardeau has found a permanent site for its monthly meetings. The fledgling organization will gather at 7 p.m. on the first Friday of each month at Christ Episcopal Church.

"We're just starting from scratch," said Rhon Abraham, coordinator for the group.

There are about 12 members who gather for the monthly services that range from lighting candles, breaking bread and blessing wine to reading the Torah and holding a discussion on the Scriptures or just gathering together for a meal.

The last gathering was sort of a Hannukah party, celebrating the end of the eight-day Festival of Lights. The next major festival is Passover, which is held in the spring.

The Jewish Sabbath begins at sundown each Friday. Hannukah is more of a cultural holiday than a religious one and it doesn't require that Jews stop working. On the Sabbath, Jews are not allowed to do any work.

Living in a community without a large Jewish population requires an adjustment, said Abraham, who moved to Cape Girardeau from Burbank, Calif. She hasn't encountered any anti-Semitic behaviors and said many people are intrigued to learn she's Jewish.

But the lack of religious diversity can be tough. In the Los Angeles area, "Judaism is part of the background and so it's always there," she said. Here "you either have to create it or accept it."

She's working to create it.

Abraham's two daughters, ages 15 and 8, wanted to attend a Passover Seder so the family went to Paducah, Ky. While there, Abraham learned about the national Jewish Federation and a group that operates in Southern Illinois that has been a resource for the local group.

When Abraham first told them about the gathering in Cape Girardeau, "they had no idea there were any Jews in Southeast Missouri," she said.

Old synagogue

The Jewish community in Southeast Missouri was large enough decades ago to construct a synagogue that sits on Main Street. Long since closed, the building has been sold to Merriweather Investments, a company run by John and Jerri Wyman of Cape Girardeau. The Wymans have other plans for the former synagogue, which means the Jewish group cannot meet there.

In most Jewish communities, the synagogue serves as the center of the community where services are held on the Sabbath or festival days, congregational prayers are said and the place where the Torah and Talmud are housed and studied. The Torah is a scroll containing the text of the first five books of Scripture; the Talmud is a compilation of Jewish religious teaching and law.

Abraham is hopeful that the Jewish Awareness Group can soon get its own Torah and Talmud. "It would be nice to create a new temple," Abraham said, but those plans are far down the road.

For now the group is content to have a regular site for its meetings. And the membership at Christ Episcopal Church is happy to have them.

"We felt we had something in common in addition to our faith roots," said the Rev. Bob Towner, rector. Both have small campus ministries but are committed to continuing to reach students.

"We are proud to help them and give them a space that will help bless them," Towner said.

ljohnston@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 126