Meet Emet VeShalom Member Gabriel Pablo Sasson

Shalom! My name is Gabriel Pablo Sasson. I am 45 years old, married and have two sons. My family and I made aliyah (immigrated) to Israel from Buenos Aires, Argentina in February 2003. At that time, my sons were eight and three years old; today they are two teenagers, 17 and 13.

We are a musical family. My oldest son, Ezequiel, plays the guitar with me in Emet VeShalom’s Musical Ensemble, Dorot (Generations). Four years ago, we celebrated his Bar Mitzvah under the guidance of Rabbi Israel Horowitz and have been coming to Emet VeShalom (the “Kehilla”) since that time. Daniel, my younger son, plays the saxophone in Nahariya’s Municipal Conservatory Orchestra.  A short time ago, we celebrated his Bar Mitzvah, with Rabbi Horowitz at the Kehilla. Last but not least, my wife Cynthia is the official family photographer and the unofficial photographer of the congregation. We attend services almost every Kabalat Shabbat (Friday evening) at the Kehilla and I play guitar in the Dorot Ensemble. Also, a short time ago I started to take part in the Tanach (Bible) studies class.

I am a mechanical engineer, and have been working as a Process Engineer at Aerospace Industry, a prestigious company that has several plants in the north of Israel, for the last four and a half years. My wife is a kindergarten teacher, but she is not working here in Israel. Ezequiel is now in the 12^th grade and wants to be an electronic engineer. Daniel is in the 9^th grade and says that he wants to become a veterinarian.

My only family in Israel is my immediate family. My parents and my sister also made aliyah, about the same time as we did, but unfortunately they decided to return to Argentina in 2007. Cynthia has extended family that lives nearby in the Krayot (about half an hour from Nahariya) including her sister, brother in law, nephews, an aunt and her father.

I like attending services at Emet VeShalom because I enjoy the atmosphere of pluralism and respect. At the Kehilla, people from different backgrounds coexist together whether they are from Latin American Spanish-speaking backgrounds, English-speaking backgrounds, Russians, native Israelis, younger or older, women, men and, what almost seems like a miracle in Israel, Ashkenazim (Jews of Eastern Europe descent) with Sephardim (Jews of Spanish descent)! At the Kehilla, no one is censored because of  how he/she dresses, eats or walks, and what is even more important, his/her way of thinking and believing. And what could be better way to welcome the Shabbat than with spirited prayer and song together?

The Kehilla offers us an ideal framework for the practice of our ancient traditions according to a modern understanding of them. Also at Emet VeShalom, we have the privilege to fulfill an important mitzvah which is expressed in several Tehilim: To sing with joy and gratitude to our G-d.

Psalm 100:1:  “Sing joyfully to G-d, people of the whole earth”. Psalm 92:1: “Song for Shabbat. It is good to praise G-d and sing psalms to your name, oh Lord”. (Gabriel Pablo Sasson – translated from Spanish by Josette Stern)

This article was originally published in the latest edition of Emet VeShalom’s newsletter. Learn more about the congregation by connecting with them on Facebook.