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green uniforms of dozens of young Ethiopian men and women serving in the Israel Defence Forces. Younger teens are decked out in a variety of trendy clothing on this festive day with almost summer-like temperatures. Ancient Amharic chants make themselves heard over the gaggle of street Hebrew as the day progresses.

Rabbi David Yosef, a kes of the Ethiopian community who is a diminutive man with a silver beard who wears a knitted kippa,tells visitors his extraordinary life story and explains where Sigd fits into the life of Ethiopian Jews.

Rav Yosef graphically describes how men and women would separately observe the ritual of ascending the mountain for the great Sigd gathering. He points out that the tradition of Sigd was handed down by oral tradition. "Many Jews believe that we didn't know from the oral tradition," he says. Rav Yosef carefully explains the Ethiopian Jewish engagement and wedding ceremonies and asserts that their practice conforms to the Mishnaic description in Tractate Kiddushin (part of the Oral Law) of what constitutes proper Jewish betrothal.

He closes his remarks by noting that Sigd was essentially a way of remembering Jerusalem and strengthening Jews in a difficult galut (Diaspora) situation. But the holiday is just as relevant today. "We missed Jerusalem for thousands of years," Rav Yosef notes. "Today, in Jerusalem, we celebrate...but just as we say Next year in Jerusalem' at the Passover seder, so too at Sigd we pray for a rebuilt Jerusalem."

For Ziva, a shy twenty year old from Ashkelon with dark braided hair, the Sigd celebration is a significant milestone. " I feel like it's a day of unity for us."

For the young woman who arrived in Israel with her parents twelve years ago, the observance of the ancient holiday reminds her that "there's so much to remember...."

Learn more about this author, Judy Lash Balint.
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