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“Living conditions are now better than 50 years ago for Jews in Iran”/Rosh Hashanah in Isfahan+Photos

SHAFAQNA- The special ceremony for the beginning of the Jewish New Year was held in accordance with the health protocols in the Keter David Synagogue (Kenisa-ye Keter David), the Central Synagogue of the Jews of Isfahan, Iran. 

On the sidelines of the ceremony, a fellow Jew who spoke to Shafaqna, referring to the Rosh Hashanah and the beginning of the Hebrew New Year, said: “This year, the Eid ceremonies were held in the synagogues in accordance with the health instructions.” Regarding the philosophy of Rosh Hashanah in Judaism, Egal Sassoon stated: “Since Hebrew and Arabic have common roots in Aramaic, the Rosh Hashanah means the beginning of the year.”

He added: “The basis of this holyday is based on the creation of Adam and the historical narration mentioned in the Torah. In these narrations, the process of creation of the world, the creation of Adam and other human beings are described, and the Jews consider the beginning of the Hebrew year as the Rosh Hashanah, which coincides with the creation of Adam, based on the dates mentioned in the Torah.”


This Iranian follower of Judaism, said: “Every year, during the first two nights of this Eid, the Jews of Iran hold a ceremony with a large crowd in the form of congregational prayers in the synagogues. There is also a table containing various symbols such as apples, honey, leeks, squash, beans, beets, dates and pomegranates to celebrate the New Year, each of which is called a blessing.”

He added: “Every year, Jewish families gather together to set up the Rosh Hashanah table and hold this ceremony. But this year, due to the spread of the Coronavirus, the ceremony was held in the synagogues in accordance with the health protocols and the chairs were arranged at a distance and with the presence of a very small crowd, and people, unlike previous years, were not obligated to attend the ceremony. In addition, no table was prepared this year, and each family held the ceremony separately.”

Sassoon added: The manner of performing this ceremony and the texts and prayers that are recited are the same in Iran and abroad.

“Apart from the religion we follow, being Iranian is very important to us. Jews in Iran date back to two thousand years ago, so we consider ourselves Iranians, Iran is our homeland and we have no problem living it. In recent years, our lives have become such that as much as we have social relations with our Muslim brothers, we do not have with our fellow believers,” said this Iranian Jew.

Sassoon added: “We do not differentiate between ourselves and others to consider ourselves as a minority. None of these issues now exist compared to the memories our grandfathers described of life in Iran 50 years ago and the persecution they were subjected to.”

He added: “The same view that we have and we do not consider ourselves separate from the Muslim community, they also respect us and this is a two-way relationship. It is true that those who live outside of Iran think that our life in Iran is difficult, but we live in Iran like other Iranian citizens.”

This Iranian follower of Judaism emphasized: Our religious ceremonies are held without any problems. We have a representative in Parliament. We have a special hall for weddings, circumcision and other ceremonies and we have our own freedoms. The current situation is not comparable to a few years ago, and living conditions are now better than 50 years ago.

Photos are taken during Rosh Hashanah 2019 at Central Synagogue of the Jews of Isfahan, Iran. 

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