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Jakarta Post

Learning to tolerate Judaism in Kazakhstan

Landmark: Beit Rachel synagogue stands tall in Astana, the capital city of Kazakhstan

Ahmad Junaidi (The Jakarta Post)
Astana, Kazakhstan
Sun, July 26, 2015

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Learning to tolerate Judaism in Kazakhstan

L

span class="inline inline-center">Landmark: Beit Rachel synagogue stands tall in Astana, the capital city of Kazakhstan. The largest synagogue in Central Asia becomes a symbol of tolerance between Muslim and Jewish.

It'€™s a cold and windy day in Astana, the capital city of Kazakhstan, and dozens of boys sit in a half circle in the corner of the Nur Sultan Mosque.

Wearing thick jackets and trousers and, some of them, Muslim caps, the children sit on the carpeted floor in front of small tables and listen to a young ustadz (religious teacher) instruct them in the basic rules and teachings of Islam.

Such a situation could be easily found in the mosques of Jakarta. Temirlan, a resident of Astana, explains that '€œthe mosque also has a madrassa where people, including children, learn Islam.'€

It'€™s a common scene in contemporary Jakarta to see children reciting the Koran in mosques. And so it is in Astana as well. Other similarities include the celebratory activities conducted during Ramadhan. Like in Indonesia, Muslims in Kazakhstan organize fast breaking events together in mosques.

There is a notable difference, however. Fasting in Kazakhstan is decidedly longer. Subuh morning prayers begin at 3 a.m., and fasting lasts 18 hours until maghrib evening prayers at 9 p.m. But despite the longer hours, perhaps fasting is not as difficult here in Kazakhstan as it is in Indonesia because the cold weather prevalent in this Central Asian republic does not induce an equivalent degree of thirst.

The similarities between Kazakhstan and Indonesia increase the confidence of Kazakhstan'€™s Ambassador to Indonesia, Askhat Orazbay, that the two countries can improve and deepen relations in the future.

As Orazbay said in Jakarta recently, '€œwe are predominantly Muslim countries. We are moderate Muslims. We can cooperate with each other.'€

Roughly 65 percent of Kazakhstan'€™s 18 million people are Muslims. These Muslims are largely Sunni Muslims who follow the Hanafi school of teaching. 30 percent of Kazakhstanis are Christian Orthodox, and the remaining 5 percent subscribe to Catholicism, Judaism and other beliefs.

To be sure, there are many similarities between Astana and Jakarta, and Kazakhstan and Indonesia. But there is one striking difference. In Jakarta, you will not find the presence of a synagogue.

Children sit and listen to a young teacher in a corner of Nur Sultan mosque in Astana. The situation is also similar in mosques in Indonesia.
Children sit and listen to a young teacher in a corner of Nur Sultan mosque in Astana. The situation is also similar in mosques in Indonesia.

While covering the Fifth Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions in Astana recently, The Jakarta Post visited the Beit Rachel synagogue. Beit Rachel is the largest house of Judaic worship in Central Asia.

Kazakhstani Rabbi chief Yeshaya Cohen expressed his appreciation for the government for its support of the local Jewish community. Such support included facilitating the development of the synagogue, and in the present day, working to strengthen religious tolerance between Muslims and Jews.

'€œThe important thing in religious tolerance is respecting the differences [among religions] and communicating in transparent dialogue,'€ Cohen told the Post at the synagogue.

He said that he was happy that the synagogue and other synagogues in Kazakhstan could serve the growing Jewish community in the country.

Funding for the synagogue was raised from donations from the Jewish community in Kazakhstan and the land was provided by the government. At present, the number of Jews living in Kazakhstan has reached approximately 30,000.

The synagogue was officially opened in 2004 by President Nursultan Mazarbayev, and has since become a symbol of how a Muslim country can build and sustain a peaceful relationship between Islam and Judaism. In most other Muslim countries, there exists a deep tension, and even hatred, between Muslim and Jewish communities. Indonesia, indeed, is not free of this hatred.

Love your neighbor: Rabi Yeshaya Cohen stands inside Beit Rachel synagogue in Astana, Kazakhstan. Cohen believes that tolerance could be reached respecting differences of religions.
Love your neighbor: Rabi Yeshaya Cohen stands inside Beit Rachel synagogue in Astana, Kazakhstan. Cohen believes that tolerance could be reached respecting differences of religions.

Nazarbayev once stated that Kazakhstan would be willing to '€œact as a bridge between Islamic and Jewish countries.'€ In pursuit of this ambition, the President has hosted a number of conferences and meetings all aimed at promoting dialogue and acceptance between Muslims and Jews.

In October 2002, for example, the Kazakhstani city of Almaty hosted the Euro Asian Congress of Rabbis, and members of the congress were personally welcomed by Nazarbayev. The goal of the congress was to develop a Rabbinate strategy to strengthen inter-religious and multi-confessional harmony in the face of some ugly modern realities, and to assess how religious Jewish communities should react to the changing landscape of the early 21st century.

Kazakhstani tolerance and acceptance of Judaism has a long history. At the beginning of the 20th century, when many European and Russian Jews faced severe and brutalizing discrimination, Kazakhstan offered them a place of relative safety and security.

Jewish communities in Indonesia can be traced back to the Dutch colonial era. At that time, Jewish communities lived in peace in several areas throughout the countries, such as Pasar Baru in Jakarta and the Kayon area of Surabaya.

Many Jews reportedly married with the surrounding locals.

The number of Jews living in Indonesia declined markedly with the fall of Dutch power. Most returned to the Netherlands, while a small number remained living in the archipelago after the declaration of independence in 1945.

Hatred and anti-Semitism is on the rise in Indonesia. Some attribute the amplification of anti-Semitism to the prolonged conflict between Israel and Palestine. Select Islamic groups, and Islamist political parties, often exploit the conflict between Israel and Palestine as a way to garner attention.

Insight: A guide explains to visitor of Khazret Sultan Mosque in Astana. The Central Asia largest mosque becomes tourist attraction, besides other modern buildings in Astana.
Insight: A guide explains to visitor of Khazret Sultan Mosque in Astana. The Central Asia largest mosque becomes tourist attraction, besides other modern buildings in Astana.

The downfall of president Soeharto in 1998 brought in Reformasi and seismic changes to many aspects of Indonesian life. Although it is still very small, the Jewish community in Indonesia began to grow after Soeharto'€™s collapse.

They have since established an organization called the United Indonesian Jewish Community (UIJC). In Manado, the capital city of North Sulawesi, a group of 30 Indonesian Jews has built a synagogue.

The administration of the predominantly Christian province even helped them to build a Menorah as a symbol of tolerance between the people in the area. In Bekasi, on the eastern outskirts of Jakarta, several followers of Judaism conduct religious activities, although these activities are conducted in secret.

Jews in Indonesia cannot operate openly because there is still a deep well of hatred toward Jews in the country and anti-Semitism is entrenched in Indonesian Muslim communities.

A recent poll by the Indonesian Survey Institute on religious tolerance revealed that more than 70 percent of Muslim respondents said that they would not want to have a Jew as a neighbor. The response is interesting because the number of Jews in the country is exceedingly small. UIJC, as reported by tempo.co, claim that they have 2,000 members throughout the country.

Some observers have argued that hatred toward Jews has been whipped up and promoted by Islamist political parties who wish to use Israel-Palestine as a way to gain votes. Furthermore, some observers have argued that certain interpretations of Islamic teaching that stigmatize and in general do not tolerate minority religions, including Judaism, have added to the increase in anti-Semitism in Indonesia.

Kazakhstan demonstrates that beside religious leaders, both Muslim and Jewish, the state has a significant and important role in building up religious tolerance.

The Fifth Congress of leaders of World and Traditional Religions saw leaders from Islam, Catholicism and Protestant Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism and Buddhism, drawn from 29 different countries including Iran, India, China, Malaysia, France Russia and the Vatican City meet together to discuss the subject of tolerance.

In the plenary session of the congress, Nursultan Nazarbayev cited a gallup survey that stated the 60 percent of the world'€™s population still followed a religion.

He was convinced that religion could play a positive role in establishing a peaceful world society.

Dress for the occasion: Female visitors  wear Muslim robes provided in Khazreth Sultan Mosque in Istana. The mosque which is opened in 2012, is claimed to be the largest mosque in Central Asia.
Dress for the occasion: Female visitors wear Muslim robes provided in Khazreth Sultan Mosque in Istana. The mosque which is opened in 2012, is claimed to be the largest mosque in Central Asia.

'€” Photo by JP/Ahmad Junaidi

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