For many St. Louis Jews under the age of 60, the first time many of us ever heard the word Uganda was in 1976, when terrorists hijacked an Air France plane to Entebbe, Uganda. There, the terrorists separated passengers into Jews and non-Jews. Israel’s eventual rescue of the hostages, later known as the “Raid on Entebbe,” shaped how a generation understood that part of the world.
But there is another Jewish story connected to Uganda, one far older, quieter, but much more hopeful than the one that lived in our memories. And next month, that story is coming to St. Louis.
Who are The Abayudaya?
The Abayudaya, an indigenous Jewish community in eastern Uganda, first embraced Judaism in 1919 under the leadership of Semei Kakangulu. Over the next century they built a distinctly African Jewish tradition, learned from visiting rabbis, endured the near erasure of their community under Idi Amin and rebuilt themselves with remarkable resilience. Today, the Abayudaya number roughly 2,000 across Uganda and Kenya. Their music has been celebrated internationally. Their identity is joyful, grounded and hard won.
That history alone is reason to pay attention. But St. Louis is about to become a rare stop on their ongoing story.
Rabbi Gershom Sizomu
For this year’s scholar in residence weekend, B’nai Amoona is welcoming Rabbi Gershom Sizomu, the spiritual leader of the Abayudaya community and the first native-born Ugandan to receive rabbinic training in the United States.
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“Our theme this year at B’nai Amoona is ‘Mei Arbah Kanfot Haaretz: Bring Us Together in Peace,’” said Rabbi Jeffery Abraham. “We invited Rabbi Gershom because he happened to be in the U.S. and it felt like the perfect way to connect our theme to a Jewish community most people have never encountered.”
For Abraham, the connection is also personal. Nearly twenty years ago, when the Abayudaya community sent Rabbi Gershom to Los Angeles for rabbinical school, the two families ended up as neighbors.
“By chance, Rabbi Gershom and his family were in the apartment right next to my wife Lauren and me. We had the opportunity to get to know them really well during the year we lived next to each other, and I always knew I wanted to bring him back one day to speak to my shul,” said Abraham.
All are welcome all weekend long
Over Shabbat, Dec. 5–6, Rabbi Gershom will lead musical Kabbalat Shabbat services with melodies from the Abayudaya tradition, share stories from his community and present learning sessions on biography, history and Jewish peoplehood. Saturday night includes a multimedia presentation on the Abayudaya’s resilience and renewal.
Full details and RSVP links are available on B’nai Amoona’s website.
A national gathering follows
Rabbi Gershom’s visit also aligns with the national conference of American Friends of the Abayudaya, which will meet in St. Louis Dec. 7–9. The organization wanted a central location, and since he would already be here, B’nai Amoona agreed to host the conference.
The scholar-in-residence weekend is supported by the Morris and Fannie Jick Israel Scholarship Fund and the Balk Family TNT Fund, whose generosity made it possible for the St. Louis community to learn directly from Rabbi Gershom and the Abayudaya story.
