Volver: Contemporary Judaism in Colombia

Photographs by Laurence Salzmann

Beyond the conflicts and confrontations between countries, there are communities united by strong cultural ties and a deep sense of identity. An example of this is the Jewish communities, which have established settlements in different parts of the world. In them, solidarity and mutual support play a fundamental role in their development and preservation.

The American photographer Laurence Salzmann, recognized for documenting the life of small human groups in various countries, has closely followed the adaptation processes of Jewish communities in Colombia. Laurence documents the daily lives of these groups, highlighting the importance of their traditions and the way in which ritual strengthens the sense of belonging.

His photographs reveal intimate moments in which religious practice and customs inherited from generation to generation function as a bond that unites members of the community.

New Communities:

What makes Judaism so appealing to the Antioqueñs? Is it the return and conversion of the “anusim”? those who were forced to reject Judaism by the Inquisition, in Hebrew maranus, and later known as marranos, or the involvement of the of State of Israel looking for settlers? or even more the business for rabbis who take advantage of a genuine interest and offer more than they are capable of to those looking for a so called “redemption”?. I have been told that a group of men trying to reorganize their lives after the aftermath of the war and terror of the drug cartels that governed not only the city but the country at large, found in a program called “desintoxication of christianity” answers in the way of life that Judaism offered, with hope and a different reality of a world of chaos they lived in.

—Matthew Fishbane

Old Communities: