in the rabbinical office of Bet Shemesh, Kess Hadane is seated
between two of his sons in a warm family portrait. This iconic
moment drew us deeply into a poignant social and religious
reality. Kess Hadane, once in charge of twenty-five synagogues
in the large Jewish town of Ambover, does not have access to an
Ethiopian synagogue for his own Sabbath worship. Instead, he
assists the rabbi of a local Israeli synagogue and prays
Israeli-style. Yet his children thrive in the Promised Land,
distinguishing themselves in pursuits denied to the older
generation. Emanuel (on left) is a captain in the army, and
Rabbi Yosef, educated in the rabbinical school of Turin, Italy,
during the 1970s, is the chief rabbi of the Ethiopian Jewish
community in Israel. We had scheduled the interview only with
Kess Hadane and Rabbi Yosef. Captain Emanuel was a surprise and
welcome visitor, but without permission ahead of time from the
Army Spokesperson's Office, we could not interview him. we came
to Israel, the rabbinate told us that