 |
 |
The Jewish Communities of CanadaDemography History Community Live Israel Addresses Anecdotes Demography Canada largest communities are Toronto (175,000) and Montreal (100,000), followed by Vancouver (30,000). Winnipeg (15,000), Ottawa (12,000), Calgary (7,500), Hamilton (5,000) and Edmonton (5,000). The level of intermarriage has increased over the last ten years, but remains significantly lower than in the United States. Most of the community is Ashkenazi, but there is a large population of French-speaking Moroccan Jews in Montreal. In the last decade, primarily due to immigration, Canadian Jewry grew by 14%, making it one of the fastest-growing communities in the Diaspora. Twenty-five percent of all the Jews who immigrated to Canada in the past ten years were born in the Soviet Union or its successor states, and 20% in Israel (an estimated 30,000 Israelis live in Canada). History After their exclusion during the period of French rule, Jews arrived together with the British soldiers who made their homes in Montreal. The first synagogue, Shaarei Israel, was consecrated there in 1768. The census of 1831 recorded 107 Jews (but there were probably others who did not declare their religion). In 1832 Canadian Jews were granted full civil rights. However, until the 1850's aside from a few Jews scattered throughout the country, nearly all of Canadian Jewry lived in Montreal. In the 1850's Jewish immigrants arrived from Lithuania and began to settle in Toronto and Hamilton, raising the number of Jews to 2,500 by the early 1880's. This was a watershed year for Canadian Jewry. Russian oppression brought a new influx of Jewish refugees which increased the Jewish population to 16,000 in 1900 and to 126,000 in 1921. In the face of the Nazi onslaught against European Jews, Canada slammed its doors shut. In the years preceding the war, and during the Holocaust itself, only a few thousand Jews managed to find sanctuary there (2,000 in 1940). The energetic campaign of the Canadian Jewish Congress after the war helped to open the gates to Holocaust survivors and refugees from North Africa. This immigration significantly increased the size of Canadian Jewry from 170,000 (1941) to 260,000 (1961). Twenty years ago, the communities of Montreal and Toronto were similar in size (i.e. 100,000), but over the years many Jews moved from Montreal to Toronto out of concern for the consequence of a possible Quebec breakaway. In the past twenty years Toronto's Jewish community frown by 70% Community The community its well organized on both local and national levels, with programs in many different fields. The main national organization is the Canadian Jewish Congress with six regional sub-divisions and headquarters at Samuel Bronfman House in Montreal. The Zionist Federation, B'nai B'rith, WIZO and other organizations are also active, as are the entire mayor international Jewish both Jewish and non-Jewish community. The ongoing secessionist struggle of French-speaking Quebec, in which fully one-third of the community resides, is a cause of worry to Canadian Jewry. The Montreal community is about 20% Sephardic, and many of these are native French-speaker. The Canadian Jewish community has been especially active in several international Jewish Campaigns (Soviet and Ethiopian Jewry, Israel and Jews in Arab lands) and in some domestic legal and public struggles against anti-Semitism, Holocaust denial and the presence of Nazi war criminals. The Canadian communities are part of the American-based Council of Jewish Federations and attend its meetings regularly. Religious Life Canadian Jews tend to be more traditional than their American co-religionist and in 1990 some 40% of the affiliated Jews identified themselves as Orthodox, 40% Conservative and 20% Reform. There are synagogues in nearly all the communities. In Montreal and Toronto there are Chassidic Jews and they worship in a number of shtiebelach. Kosher food is widely available and kosher restaurant are to be found in Toronto, Montreal, Winnipeg and Ottawa. Kosher food produced in Canada is also exported to other countries. Culture and Education Toronto and Montreal have 12 Jewish schools and several yeshivas. There are also Jewish schools in Calgary, Vancouver, Winnipeg and Ottawa. In Montreal some 60% of the Jewish children attend Jewish primary schools, and 30% Jewish high schools. In Toronto the figures are 40% and 12% respectively. Some of the universities offer programs in Jewish studies, notably McGill in Montreal, which also offers courses in Yiddish. There are about 20 Jewish periodicals and newspapers, of which the most widely read is the weekly Canadian Jewish News, based in Toronto. Jewish publications also appear in French, Hungarian and Yiddish. The Montreal Jewish Public Library is the only institution of its kind in North America. Israel and Canada have full diplomatic relations. In addition to the embassy in Ottawa, there are consulates general in Toronto and Montreal. Sites Canada boasts several impressive synagogues, notably in Montreal and Toronto. Montreal's old Jewish neighborhood, the Main, looms large in Canadian Jewish consciousness and draws many visitors. The Beth Tzedec Synagogue in Toronto houses the Canadian branch of the New York Jewish Museum which features the Cecil Roth collection of Judaic. There are also small Holocaust museums in Toronto, Winnipeg and Ottawa. ` |
