Great Neck, NY – (by Lily Chang and Mimi Hu)
On the night of April 16th, the Great Neck Chinese Association (GNCA) and Temple Beth-El of Great Neck (TBEGN) hosted a lecture titled “The Jews in China” by Professor Xin Xu from Nanjing University. The event was very special because it was the first time that the Chinese and Jewish communities in Great Neck joined together at a Jewish temple to observe Holocaust Memorial Day and to pledge solidarity of the two communities.
The evening began with a greeting from the four organizers: Rabbi Tara of TBEGN, Lori Beth Schwartz of UPTC, Else Yung and Lily Wang of GNCA. Afterwards, a group of Chinese and Jewish students were invited to the stage and lit seven candles, six for 6,000,000 Jews died in Holocaust and one for Asian victims perished during the WWII. This touching moment of silence and remembrance was followed by a Chinese Piano solo performed by Pianist Chenxin Xu.
The highlight of the evening was Professor Xu’s studies of the Jews’ life in China starting as early as 10th Century in Kaifeng, China. Professor Xu compared the similarities between the Chinese and Jewish people, especially their sufferings during WWII. Over 30,000 Jews flew to Shanghai to escape prosecution in Europe during the War. There they witnessed the atrocity suffered by the Chinese people during the Japanese invasion. Professor Xu also commented on the strong ties between China and Israel. He noted that the Chinese government wanted to learn from the Jewish people’s ways of remembering Holocaust to do justice in the world.
The night ended with a beautiful piece played by Tania Eshaghoff, a Jewish pianist. Two consuls from the Chinese Embassy in New York donated three copies of the book “Jews in China” to the Great Neck school district, TBEGN and the Great Neck Library.
Professor Xu Xin has received his Ph.D, Honoris Causa from Bar-Ilan University in recognition of his research of the Jewish people in China. His lecture was recorded and can be obtained by sending a request to
