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Indonesian Jewish community unfazed by Israel travel ban
Rabbi Yohannes Elias of the Eits Chaim Indonesia foundation regretted the travel ban for its impact on Christian and Muslim pilgrims from Indonesia, but said that it would have little impact on the Indonesian Jewish community.
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Church of Nativity, Bethlehem. (Shutterstock/eFesenko )
W
hile many Christians and Muslims in the country have expressed their dismay at Tel Aviv’s decision to ban Indonesian tourists from entering Israel, members of the small community of around 250 Indonesian Jews remain mostly unfazed.
Rabbi Yohannes Elias of the Eits Chaim Indonesia foundation, which promotes understanding of Judaism, regretted the travel ban for its impact on Christian and Muslim pilgrims from Indonesia, but said that it would have little impact on the Indonesian Jewish community.
Though Jewish people consider Israel to be their ancestral land, Yohannes maintained that Jews do not have any religious obligations to visit Israel at this time.
"In Judaism, there are three holy days that require Jews to make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem – Pesach, Sukkot and Shavuot – but that is only required once the Holy Temple is rebuilt," he said, referring to the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem that was destroyed by the Romans in the early first century.
The United Indonesian Jewish Community estimates that there are around 2,000 Indonesians of Jewish ancestry. However, only around 250 follow Jewish practices, most of who are descendants of 16th-century European colonists.
Read also: Pilgrims in limbo as Israel shuts borders to Indonesia
Yohannes was equivocal about Indonesian-Israeli relations, saying only that to achieve the "eternal peace" in the Constitution, Indonesia had to maintain its ties with all countries.
