Rabbis Bridge Muslim-Jewish Communities Across 30 Nations

Last week in Brussels, something remarkable happened: the chief rabbi of Iran sat down with European commissioners, alongside rabbis from Morocco to Kazakhstan and ambassadors from three Muslim-majority nations.

They weren't there to debate history or politics. They came to share what works.

Rabbi Mendy Chitrik founded the Alliance of Rabbis in Islamic States in 2019 to connect Jewish leaders serving communities across the Muslim world. Some lead congregations of thousands, others serve just a few families. All carry expertise that no policy paper can replicate.

Iran's Chief Rabbi Yehuda Gerami told the room his community has called Iran home for 2,500 years and numbers close to 20,000 people today. Morocco has woven Jewish heritage into its national identity so deeply that a Casablanca rabbi recited a prayer for the king. Azerbaijan honors a fallen Jewish soldier as a national hero.

This isn't a fairy tale of perfect harmony. The 20th century saw devastating persecution, pogroms, and mass displacement that shattered ancient communities across the region. Hundreds of thousands fled, and their descendants now form vibrant Jewish communities in France and beyond.

But the story didn't end there. Since the 2020 Abraham Accords, new Jewish communities have taken root in the Gulf states. Tunisia's Djerba community just rebuilt a mikvah (ritual bath) in Tunis. In Istanbul, Rabbi Chitrik welcomed over 100 Muslim theology students into his synagogue for honest conversations.

The students didn't all leave agreeing with everything they heard. That was never the goal. They left having met real Jews instead of ideas about Jews.

The Ripple Effect

These rabbis do unglamorous work that builds lasting bridges: supervising kosher food, performing marriages and burials, running schools in places where few Jews remain. In 2021, it meant safely evacuating Zebulon Simentov, the last openly practicing Jew in Afghanistan.

Their practical experience matters now more than ever. Jewish and Muslim communities increasingly defend the same religious freedoms. When kosher slaughter faces legal challenges, halal restrictions often follow. When circumcision gets questioned, both communities face the same scrutiny.

The rabbis brought modest requests to Brussels: recognize synagogue registrations, grant visas so rabbis can reach far-flung families, protect historic cemeteries, allow religious items to cross borders. None requires new bureaucracy.

But they also offered something Europe desperately needs: living proof that coexistence isn't just a medieval memory. Rabbi Chitrik argues that Europe should introduce young people, including young Muslims, to rabbis from Istanbul, Casablanca, Baku, Tehran, and beyond.

No curriculum can replace a conversation with someone who has spent decades as a religious minority building trust with neighbors, clerics, and governments. These aren't theoretical experts in interfaith dialogue. They're people who answer the phone when governments stop speaking, who know that trust cannot be improvised during a crisis.

Their message is simple: we are loyal citizens, deeply rooted in countries we call home, and our experience can help bridge divides that seem impossible to cross.