The war between Hamas and Israel dossierIn the north of the Indonesian island of Sulawesia, a bastion of Christianity, Rabbi Yaakov Baruch heads the only synagogue in the archipelago with around 273 million predominantly Muslim residents. And advocates for interreligious peace.
Wearing black glasses, a yarmulke on his head and a tzitsit – white stripes hanging down the length of his black trousers – Rabbi Yaakov Baruch prepares for Shabbat prayers at the Shaar Hashamayim synagogue. “It’s probably the only synagogue in the world that doesn’t have security measures,” the 41-year-old rabbi says with a smile. This synagogue, the only one in the entire Indonesian archipelago, is housed in a small complex of three white stone buildings that stands out among the tropical vegetation and wooden houses of the small village of Tondano, less than 50 km to the south. south of Manado, the capital of North Sulawesia, formerly called Celebes. On this predominantly Christian island, unlike the rest of Indonesia, the third largest Muslim country in the world, a small Jewish community of five families, or about forty people, lives in peace. In total, there are about a hundred Jews in Indonesia, mostly descendants of Dutch families and traders from Iraq who came to Asia in the 19th century and live in Jakarta and Surabaya. On the predominantly Muslim island of Java, they have no choice but to hide their religious affiliation.
“Unlike in Jakarta, I always felt safe in Manado, I always wore my yarmulke, but since October 7th we Jews have become public enemy number 1,” says Yaakov Baruch. He takes out his cell phone and scrolls through the messages he has received every day since the war between Israel and Hamas. He happened to be reading a receipt on Instagram. Among other things, the author urges him to leave Indonesia. “Leave Indonesia? But I am Indonesian, I am not Israeli, and for the twenty years I have been running this synagogue, I have only wanted one thing: to build bridges between different religions.” This is not the first time that Jews in Indonesia have responded to the conflict between Israel and Palestine were victims of hostile behavior. In 2009, Indonesian Islamists closed the century-old synagogue in Surabaya, the country's second largest city, in retaliation for the 2008–2009 Gaza war.
“Political instrument for religious leaders”
To prevent hatred from gaining ground, on November 3, Yaakov Baruch invited various religious leaders to say an interfaith prayer for peace in his synagogue. “I invited all communities to pray together,” says the man, who is also a lecturer in international law at the University of Manado. Last week, the tireless rabbi traveled to Jakarta to attend an interfaith conference organized by Indonesia's largest Christian organization. “More than ever, we need to maintain dialogue,” he explains.
But as soon as he returned to Manado, he learned that there were violent clashes in the town of Bitung between Muslim communities that supported Palestine and pro-Israel Christian communities. “Even though we had nothing to do with this chaos, the authorities wanted to close the synagogue,” he complains. I do not want Shaar Hashamayim to serve as a political tool for religious leaders who need strong signals to their electorate in the run-up to the presidential and parliamentary elections in February.”
“Legal protection”
On this Shabbat evening, Yaakov Baruch, accompanied by his daughter Rachel and son Levi, remains optimistic. “Nothing can shake my faith,” he declares. I am proud to be a Jew and I will always live as one in this country.” Like a promise to her grandmother, a Dutch Jew who was married to an Indonesian woman from Manado who always had to hide her religious affiliation. As a child, Yaakov grew up between a Protestant mother and a Muslim father. During his youth, his grandmother confided in him that he was of Jewish origins. The boy then began genealogical research that led him to trace the history of these Jewish Dutch immigrants to North Sulawesi. He then has only one goal in mind: to revive this community and enable the descendants to live their faith. The young man, who had studied law in Indonesia, traveled to Singapore, Israel and the United States to pursue rabbinical studies.
In 2004, he built his first synagogue on land bequeathed to him by his great-uncle in Tondano and with the support of a Jewish family in Holland. Renovated in 2019, the church also houses a mikveh (ritual bath) and a small museum dedicated to the history of the Holocaust. “Judaism is not one of the six religions officially recognized by the government, but since 2017 we have enjoyed legal protection like 250 other local faiths,” explains Yaakov. This synagogue was inaugurated by the local authorities. We are not outlaws here.” Yaakov Baruch recites the prayers in the light of the candles lit by Rachel. “Shalom Aleichem” echoes through the tropical night.