(Reuters Life!) NEW DELHI – A Rabbi who has never been ordained bends old norms in the capital of one of the world’s most religiously diverse countries, guaranteeing that New Delhi’s 10 Jewish families have a space to pray.
There is no distinction of men and women in this synagogue, unlike most, as Jewish-born worshippers, converts, and adherents of other faiths chant Psalms in perfect Hebrew, with doors thrown wide to all. The service leader never inquires about the guests’ religious affiliations and dreams of his daughter becoming India’s first female rabbi.
“Being a little community, we cannot be so rigid, so traditional,” explains Ezekiel Isaac Malekar, the synagogue’s honorary secretary, who has worked for free for the past thirty years to keep this tiny congregation together.
Source: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-india-jews-idCATRE74M0P820110523