Shmuel Szteinhendler, a rabbi in Santiago, Chile, is considered the current Chief Rabbi of Cuba and one of the most notable Rabbis in Latin America.Rabbis of Chilean Masorti Forum meet with Mr. Zeev Bielsky Masorti World The Virtual Jewish History Tour Cuba Jewish Virtual LibraryThe Jewish Traveler: Havana Hadassah Magazine
Szteinhendler was born in Argentina and trained as a Conservative rabbi in Buenos Aires.Ozzie Nogg, A Visit to Jewish Cuba: It’s Impossible to Come Back Unchanged , Jewish Press, The Jewish Federation of Omaha. Accessed August 15, 2011 He started visiting Cuba regularly since 1992, operating from his base in Guadalajara, Mexico, and oversaw a revival of the Jewish culture there, serving as an informal spiritual head of the Jewish community in Cuba.Jerry Berke, Havana Synagogue Dark for Decades is Once Again Aglow in the Light of Shabbat Candles , The Jewish Federations of North America. Accessed August 15, 2011Kenneth Bandler, Argentine rabbi ignites fervor in dormant Cuban communities, The Jews of Cuba, 1996. Accessed August 15, 2011 Szteinhendler's visits to Cuba were sponsored by the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee.Ruth Behar, An island called home: returning to Jewish Cuba, New Brunswick, N.J., Rutgers University Press, 2007, ; p. 179
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