Parallels Seen : Ethiopian Jews ‘Relive’ Passover

Passover, the ancient holiday commemorating the biblical story of the Exodus from Egypt, is “being relived” today by the Ethiopian Jews airlifted to Israel, according to some Jewish leaders.

“Once again the Hebrew children have found an African country inhospitable and are forsaking it for the land of promise,” Kenneth J. Bialkin and Nathan Perlmutter, national directors of the Anti-Defamation League of B’nai B’rith, said in a joint statement on upcoming Passover celebrations.

Ritual seder dinners will be held in homes and synagogues starting Friday evening. The holiday is observed for seven days in Reform Judaism and in Israel; eight days in Conservative and Orthodox Judaism.

U.S. airlifts have taken refugee Ethiopians with Jewish roots to Israel from the Sudan under diplomatically sensitive conditions. An estimated 6,000 to 10,000 Jews remain in Ethiopia, a persecuted minority within a Marxist-run nation.

Children in Blackface

At Temple Knesseth-Israel of Hollywood-Los Feliz, children with blackened faces practiced their roles for a seder that Rabbi Martin Levin said will illustrate the parallels between ancient Jews escaping from the Pharaoh and the more recent exodus to Israel.

“It is no coincidence that the airlift is called ‘Operation Moses,’ ” Levin said.

For the congregational seder next Friday, the synagogue’s children are divided into three groups--Ethiopians, Israelis and U.S. military personnel, Levin said.

“Our children need to know that liberation and freedom--universal themes associated with Passover--are continuing responsibilities to help Jews everywhere be free to return to our homeland,” he said.