Last week I left school mid-day on Wednesday to travel four hours by public shuttle to Guatemala City, where I celebrated Rosh Hashanah with a group of Guatemalans who converted to Reform Judaism. Converting to Judaism in any locale is a feat of perseverence, but it is especially so in a country which is .0064% Jewish, and in which there are no role models of non-ultra Orthodox/Lubavitcher Jews. For the majority of congregants of this congregation, the path to Judaism was solitary, difficult, and paved with layers upon layers of rejection from (the few other) Guatemalan Jews and sketchy-at-best behavior by opportunistic American rabbis. But after years of study and dedication, these individuals found each other, formed a community, and continue to deepen their connection to Judaism and to each other.
The community was one of warmest— and most informed, Jewishly— I have ever met. (One man taught himself Hebrew entirely by studying the one siddur he could get ahold of.) This year, a rabbi came from Los Angeles to lead services; this is the second time since the congregation's founding in 2000 that they have had a rabbi for the High Holidays. And oh, how enthusiastic all of the praying, singing, and reflection was! And seeing the Torah cover, made of traditional Mayan huipil fabric, was such a poignant symbol of the amalgam of cultures, histories, and affiliations embodied by the congregation.
