Armenian Jewish Community Celebrates Purim for 10th Anniversary

Federation of Jewish Communities of the CSI
Thursday, March 31 2005

YEREVAN, Armenia – This year in Yerevan, the Jewish Community Center
‘Mordechai Navi-Chabad Lubavitch’ held two cheerful celebrations to
mark two particularly joyful events – the holiday of Purim and its
tenth birthday. As the sun went down, the Synagogue began to fill with
community members and guests, who came out to complete the first
commandment of Purim – to hear the ‘Megilat Esther’. A festive meal
with ‘Hamentaschen’ and other delicious kosher dishes was accompanied
with cheerful songs and Chasidic dances. On Sunday, a festive Purim
event took place at the Chamber Theater, where Sunday School pupils
showed their talents in a Purim show and the ‘Keshet’ Dance Group
performed an exciting Jewish dance. The Yerevan State Circus pleased
the audience with an unforgettable show, after which everybody
received traditional Purim gifts-of-food. “We hope that Mordechai
will never leave Armenia and that he will join us in celebrating
Jewish weddings and birthdays. We will also teach Jewish children
their native language, traditions and the Torah, for only this makes
for a healthy life of the great Jewish people,” expressed the Chief
Rabbi of Armenia, Gersh-Meir Burshtein. Apart from community members,
this Purim concert was attended by representatives of the President’s
Administration, as well as a number of other top officials – the Head
of the Department on Religious and Nationality Affairs, the
Coordinator of the government’s Humanitarian Aid Commission. Jews of
Armenia were also honored to share the joy of Purim and their 10th
anniversary with leaders of the other Diasporas in Yerevan and other
prominent figures. The Jewish community received an added boost with
the airing of a program on an Armenian TV channel, which profiled the
educational and cultural projects maintained by the city’s Jewish
Community Center, as well as highlighting the community’s
achievements.

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