“TO solve the problems of the world we need to take all the Jews to the Moon,” laughs Wellington’s favourite Rabbi.
Rabbi Chaim Dovrat is returning to his home in Israel next week after four years leading the orthodox Wellington Hebrew Congregation.
His jest came when Capital Times asked him about persecution in his family.
Dovrat says his parents lived a “good life” in Libya until they were thrown out in 1947.
“One million Jews from across the Middle East left their homes with nothing and came to Israel like refugees. My parents lived in an Arab state, and I want to emphasise that we don’t hate Arabs.”
Following the deadly raid on a flotilla of aid ships aiming to break the Israeli blockade of Gaza, protests against Israel took place at home and around the world last weekend.
“If you get your point of view from the news then you will blame Israel, and that’s very sad,” says Dovrat.
He says Hamas controlled Gaza does not recognize Israel’s right to exist, and the aid ships should have gone through the correct channels.
Reports show that thousands of peace activists in Israel have protested against the raid and the blockade in demonstrations throughout the country.
“Where are the people in Gaza, and the Arab nations, who demonstrate about making peace with Israel? In Israel there are many people asking for peace. Hamas don’t want peace; they don’t want any Jewish state.”
Dovrat says historically both sides are guilty of reacting with violence, but that peace and reconciliation are possible.
The current situation is disturbing, says Dovrat, because Arabs and Jews have a history of peaceful cooperation.
 “We don’t want to live in this situation and forever have war. I hope and pray it will not go on like this.”
He notes that, “Japan and the US have peace”, and they perpetrated even worse atrocities against each other.
Dovrat, a Rabbi in Wellington from 1987 to 1991, returned four years ago at the request of the local Jewish community.
“They said just stay for six months, then maybe one more year, and then three. It’s the story of my life.”
His role as spiritual leader involves presiding over weddings, funerals and circumcisions, and helping the sick.
But his most time consuming role is travelling the country to inspect the kosher slaughter of animals for Jewish consumption. Any company that wants to export food with a ‘kosher label’ comes under Dovrat’s scrutiny.
Dovrat admires the peaceful and multi-cultural nature of New Zealanders and, “the Mayor of Wellington, she is a good leader for the community, and takes care of different cultures”.
The Rabbi, who feels it important to have a wife, “God created man to have children”, is going back to Israel to be with his five children, and will celebrate the birthday of his grandson next week.
“I am looking forward to it, except for the heat. Some days I will miss the rain in Wellington,” he laughs.
Jamie Melbourne-Hayward