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In a ceremony held last weekend in Kiev, participants of the Triguboff Institute ‘Maslul’ project marked the completion of the first phase of their studies of the project’s conversion preparation course.

The innovative project is designed to assist 24 Eligible Olim from Kiev, who aren’t recognised as Jewish according to Halacha, integrate into Israeli society more easily by substantially shortening the duration of the training they must go through in Israel, should they decide to convert to Judaism.

As part of the project’s curriculum, the 24 students of the Kiev group have completed their studies in three units of Jewish studies: “Bible Studies”, “The Jewish calendar”, “Mitzvahs” and the Jewish circle of life. The group will now begin their studies of the project’s fourth unit  – “History of the Jewish people”.

Rabbi Michael Rosenfeld from ‘The Zionist Midrash’  spoke about the dedication shown by Olim involved in the project.  He said: “I was pleasantly surprised by their seriousness and the interest they were showed. Some come from a Jewish background some don’t. It is very interesting to hear them converse talking about what it takes to make Aliyah. They understand the seriousness of the matter and that is a good thing. An outsider will not always understand what it means.”

Rabbi Rosenfeld’s Leah is also a teacher in the project and added:  “I am really enjoying working with this great group. They sincerely understand what it takes to be Jewish and think about what it takes to be Jewish. They ask themselves about  the essence of being Jewish in Israel  I truly feel that they internalize what it takes. They ask a lot of questions and show great interest. You can see that they really care. From here, we believe that it would be easier for  to successfully graduate the course.”

In addition to the group in Kiev, two other study groups are operating at the ‘Choral’ synagogue Jewish community center in Moscow, in which a total of 36 students eligible for Aliyah are studying. Students of the two Moscow groups have recently finished their studies of the “Bible” and “History of the Jewish people” units as well, soon joining the Kiev group in finishing the first phase of the project’s curriculum. The project has expanded recently to the city of Dnepropetrovsk, where earlier this month another study group was established as part of the project, consisting of 16 students eligible for Aliyah, with another group set to be established later. Next week, the new group is scheduled to complete their studies of the first unit in “Bible studies”.

The ‘Maslul’ project offers the Olim a solution by using the period between their decision to make Aliyah and its execution. The project was established in order to allow Olim who according to the ‘Law of Return are eligible to Aliyah to better utilise the time period in which they are still in their countries of origin and accumulate study hours towards their conversion in Israel.

The ‘Maslul’ project is another initiative of the ‘Triguboff institute’, founded by Jewish-Australian businessman, Harry Triguboff,  recently declared Australia’s wealthiest man. The Institute aims, amongst other things, to regulate the personal status of the FSU Olim in Israel. The project is done with the cooperation of the Jewish Agency. As part of this cooperation, Jewish Agency coordinators are locating suitable candidates to the program and coordinate them to the Project’s offices in the various cities in which it operates. Furthermore, the project is fully coordinated with the ‘State conversion program’ in Israel – the ‘National institute for Identity and Conversion’ conversion program. The project’s local partners are the ‘Zionist Midrash’ in Kiev, the ‘Menorah’ Jewish community center in Dnepropetrovsk and the Jewish community of the ‘Choral’ synagogue in Moscow.

Shalom Norman, Director of the Triguboff Institute said: “The successful completion of the first stage of the project is a joyous event for us since it will ease the Olims’ process of Aliyah and integration into Israeli society. We are hopeful that the next stages will also be completed successfully and that these Olim would be able to fully integrate in Israel and feel an inseparable part of it. The ‘Maslul’ project is considered one of the most significant tools today, regarding the assistance in the absorption of the FSU Olim. We will continue to put an effort into expanding the project and allow more Olim to see themselves as an integral part of the Jewish collective.”