Join us in prayer—once a month, every month—in the beautiful traditional Sephardic melodies!
No matter your spice preference, we welcome Jews of all backgrounds to join us in traditional prayer worship. All eligible men will be honored with an Aliyah during the Torah service.
Our Minyan is led by Hazzan Yossi Ben Harush, a native Israeli who traces his family — which includes many rabbis and hazzanim — to Morocco. We are proud that many of our members assist in Torah reading and leading prayers throughout the year, as well as during High Holiday services.
For more than 30 years, there has been an organized group of Sephardi Jews in the Twin Cities. These Jews, who trace their familial roots to Spain, Portugal and countries of the Middle East, have retained many of their ancient traditions here in Minnesota, thanks to the volunteers of the Sephardi Minyan. Many of our members are not necessarily Sephardic, but somehow have a connection to Sephardic traditions and regularly take part in our minyanim. Members and visitors have hailed from many places, including Algeria, Brazil, Cuba, Egypt, France, Israel, Ireland, Iran, Lebanon, Morocco, Tunisia, Russia, South Africa and Syria.
Founded by Lebanese immigrant David Khabie (from Lebanon) and former Minnesotan Abe Sclar (originally from South Africa), the minyan typically meets on the last Shabbat of each month in the Lower Sanctuary/Beit Midrash at Kenesseth Israel in St. Louis Park. The Sephardi Minyan is a way for Jews of all backgrounds to connect to unique Sephardi customs. The Minyan is now organized by Joseph Israel (originally from Cairo, Egypt), and includes board members David Lynn (from Ireland) and Jonathan Grad.
Join us every month in the Lower Sanctuary of Kenesseth Israel.
The Sephardi Minyan of Minnesota meets on the last Shabbat of every month starting at 8:45 am for traditional prayer services.