On Tuesday, June 21, 2022, Rabbi Gustavo Kraselnik and his wife, Morá Ruthy Kraselnik –of the Kol Shearith Israel Congregation (KSI)– celebrated, together with their parishioners and special guests, two decades of work at the head of their congregation. , the oldest in the country, founded in 1876.
The protocol act, which was attended by members of the Government, the diplomatic corps accredited in the isthmus, the Interreligious Committee of Panama (COIPA) and sister Jewish organizations, began with the words of welcome from the president of the Board of Directors of KSI , Joshua Henríquez, who took the opportunity to thank the couple for their leadership, passion and unconditional dedication to the congregation.
“With his work in the interreligious committee, Gustavo has positioned us as an important interlocutor in the community in general,” shared Henríquez, who also highlighted the valuable efforts of Rabbi Gustavo and Moorish Ruthy for keeping the community united and accompanied during the pandemic, through the creation of the virtual community BIDUD BEYAJAD (Isolation together), which for almost 24 months offered daily activities such as cooking classes, conversations, games, prayers, musical performances, film forums and more.
Next, Milton Cohen-Henríquez, chairman of the KSI board of directors during the selection process of Rabbi Gustavo and his wife 20 years ago, gave a snapshot of what has happened since their hiring. Among other things, Cohen-Henríquez stressed that, shortly after starting their work, Rabbi Gustavo and Morá Ruthy had already impregnated the congregation with an invigoration that allowed the community “to dream of growing and building again.”
“That ability to inspire, create and build human families and institutional families that Gustavo and Ruthy have dedicated to us over these twenty years, leads us to bless the Creator who brought them into our midst and to celebrate these two decades with them,” he concluded. Cohen-Henríquez, before saying a prayer in honor of the couple.
For his part, Alan Perelis, president of the Panamanian Jewish Congress (CJP), addressed the honorees with emotional words, thanking them for KSI not only having a great past, but also a promising future: “Your main contribution is not the sum of each individual effort, but your holistic vision, from day one, of the project as a whole.
We are a community, in the broad sense of the word, growing, properly organized, with healthy and constructive relations with Panamanian society, the national government, the Jewish world in general, with the State of Israel and with the rest of the community. Jew from Panama, among others. And we are where we are, in large part, thanks to you.”
After the pleasant presentation of the congregation’s choir, Kol HaNeshamá, Rabbi Gustavo expressed his emotion and satisfaction for leading KSI throughout these two decades and for the work carried out: “Today we review the great events that we shared during these 20 years and they have been impressive, however, the essence of our task as educators and as religious leaders is what is done on a daily basis, in each class, in each celebration, in each conversation.
That is what we are passionate about, accompanying each person on the journey of life.” After the formal act ended, the guests shared a pleasant cocktail in the Richie Toledano room of the community center of the Congregation Kol Shearith Israel located in Costa del Este. About Rabbi Gustavo and Morá Ruthy Rabbi Gustavo, in addition to leading KSI spiritually, is the president of the Interreligious Committee of Panama, and is the representative of the Latin American Jewish Congress (CJL) for interreligious dialogue in Central America. Morá Ruthy, for her part, is in charge of various educational projects in the congregation, for children and adults.
