On the road in nigeria
 
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how jewish are they? (part 2) I have a confession to make: as passionately as I feel about bringing our Nigerian brothers and sisters into the mainstream of world Jewry - as much as I care for them - I do not care all that much for their country. The picture above is good example of why. Life in Nigeria is chaotic and undisciplined, and garbage is strewn everywhere. It is part of one’s civic responsibility to clean up one’s neighborhood and collect the garbage that has been dumped there. What is done with this garbage is beyond me. I saw nothing that resembled municipal services there. I do, however, have a story to tell.
Trash collecting is always done on Saturdays, the Jewish Sabbath. It is unthinkable for most Nigerian Jews to violate the Sabbath by collecting trash; they would rather pay a fine than desecrate the holy day. They are joined in this regard by millions of Sabbatarians (Christians who observe the Day of Rest on Saturday) and Messianics (people who refer to themselves as Jews but also revere Jesus as their savior and messiah). [Here is a link to a news article about their religious beliefs and practices.] During my visit in 2004, I had an opportunity to see how such a matter might be resolved. The community I was visiting had a date to appear before the local magistrate to protest the fine that had been levied against them for refusing to violate the Sabbath. Having their “Chief Rabbi” with them worked to their advantage. When the magistrate saw me sitting there, dressed in my chief’s robes, wearing my chief’s hat and holding my chief’s staff, he ruled that the local leadership must find a way to accommodate all religious beliefs; he would speak to the powers that be about reaching that accommodation. Would he have ruled the same way had I not been there? Perhaps. However, the presence of a spiritual leader conveyed the message that the petitioners were not a bunch of malingerers but a bona fide community of believers, who wanted to participate in the civic life alongside their neighbors but without compromising their beliefs and practices. | Travel Vignettes | Nigeria Main Page | Contents Page |Community_of_Yahweh.htmlTravel_Vignettes_Nigeria.htmlNigeria.htmlGuide_to_Contents.htmlshapeimage_5_link_0shapeimage_5_link_1shapeimage_5_link_2shapeimage_5_link_3