Lost Tribe of Bnei Menashe Sample their First Gefilte Fish

 

Five hundred and twenty-five Bnei Menashe olim from India who claim they are the descendants of a lost tribe of Israel are gearing up for their first Rosh Hashanah in the Jewish state. The olim, some of whom reside in Shavei Israel’s absorption center in Achziv, moved to Israel from Manipur, India, thanks to the efforts of Pnina Tamano Shata, Minister of Aliyah and Integration, the Jerusalem-based nonprofit Shavei Israel, and the Jewish Agency.

Part of the Bnei Menashe’s preparations for the High Holidays included a Gefilte Fish tasting – a traditional dish associated with the Jewish New Year. Shavei Israel, which has lobbied for the Aliyah of the Bnei Menashe community for the past 20 years, presented the dish to the community members for the first time. Some loved the dish, while others politely declared it to be “an acquired taste.”