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I am looking for some information about the jewish community in finland. Has any one of you been there, know the community , have any stories to say?
I am very interested as I may consider living there for parnassah
My grandfather’s brother’s son’s second wife is from Helsinki. They got married in a shul there. So now we know there’s a shul.
<blockuote>I heard that there is a large charedi community in Turku, but I would need to live in Helsinki, the capital</blockuote>
No, you need to live in E”Y, because there’s a mitzvat asay to do so. You would choose to ignore that and live in Helsinki, or Turku, or wherever else.
There is about 200 Jews in Turku and about 1,200 in Helsinki and while they are Orthodox, I am not sure how observant they are. I tend to doubt they have a yeshiva there. You know you can Google to find out this information.
Finnish Jewery? But I’ve just begun! (rimshot)
The Wolf
(Sorry… I know it’s not helpful, but I couldn’t resist!)
Finland was the only country allied (more of a co-belligerent rather than an ally) with Germany in which Jews served in the military in World War II. While several German allies refused to turn over Jews to the Germans, only Finland refused to persecute Jews (seriously annoying the Germans). This is especially interesting since Finnish Jewry had its origins in Jews exiled there during the Czarist period, so they weren’t even people with deep roots.
Akuperma is correct. The Finnish General Mannerheim (later President of Finland) defied Hitler and lived to tell the tale. Nazis had to put up with fighting alongside Finnish Jews who even had a tent synagogue on the front lines — you can find a famous photograph of that synagogue on the internet. Mannerheim also refused to allow the Finnish Army to commit war crimes by attacking Russian civilian targets during the war.
There is a Jewish school of some sort in Helsinki; I read in the Jerusalem Post a few years ago that it had over a hundred students and a lot were from families who had recently moved there from Russia or were Israeli expats.
Good luck! May you help the community in Finland to thrive.
Many of the Cantonists settled in Finland after they were discharged. There are also descendants of Jews form Nordic countries (Finland is not technically Nordic as the
Finns are a Turkic people)and Poland. Interestingly, Jewish soldiers in the Finnish army were given leave for Shabbatot and chagim. Today there are approximately 1,500 Jews in Finland.
I REFUSE TO LIVE UNDER THE ZIONIST KEFIRAH REGIME, I am a torah jew and this is my way of life , I don’t know what you are but i am not some friendly liberal pro gay pro arab tolerant rabbi of Anshe shalom reform,
Wow. So to you, Zionist = “liberal pro gay pro arab tolerant rabbi of Anshe shalom reform?”
The Wolf
My husband was in yeshiva with the current Chief Rabbi of Finland. True story. We invited him to our wedding, but he couldn’t make it.
“I REFUSE TO LIVE UNDER THE ZIONIST KEFIRAH REGIME”
At its WORST what you call the “ZIONIST KEFIRAH REGIME” is as good for Judaism as any secular government anywhere, even that of the US.
Yes, I think so.
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