Hebrew Signage in Costa Rica!!??!!
Our family celebrated Christmas 2022 in Costa Rica. Because my son was the lead planner for this trip, I didn’t do any research on the area.
To my surprise, as we drove from the San Jose airport to our Air BNB in La Fortuna, I noticed Hebrew signage on the country roads. Because we were all surprised to see this, I decided to do some research.
The history of the Jews in Costa Rica dates back to the Spanish conquest. Spanish and Portuguese Jews, known as Marranos, converted or were forced to convert to Christianity during the Middle Ages. These Jews, upon arriving in Costa Rica, continued to practice their Jewish faith in secrecy.
Costa Rica has had three major waves of Jewish immigration. The first was during the time of colonization. The second wave occurred in the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century, due to the rise of Nazism in Europe. This wave consisted mainly of Polish Jews. The third wave occurred in the 1990s and consisted mainly of American and Israeli Jews who have chosen Costa Rica for their retirement years.
A lot has changed since colonization in Costa Rica. No longer is Catholicism the compulsory religion for the region. Also, the relationship between Costa Rica and Israel is unique in that Costa Rica was the first country to establish their embassy in Jerusalem rather than Tel Aviv.
As I researched more about the Jews in Costa Rica, I stumbled upon an article about a statue of Anne Frank given to the citizens of Costa Rica by the Dutch Embassy in 2008.
For years, the statue stood next to San Jose’s Catholic Cathedral. However, the statue was stolen in August 2022. Fortunately, the statue was recovered by the police. Since we didn’t know about this statue during our visit to Costa Rica, we didn’t know to look for it.
San Jose Museo de la Comunidad Judia de Costa Rica is a museum that tells the story of the Jewish immigration to this country. This museum is part of a multiacre campus known as Cenro Israelita Sionista de Costa Rica located in the outskirts of San Jose.
Costa Rica is currently home to approximately 4,000 Jews and has had four vice presidents, several deputies and ministers, as well as a first lady of Jewish descent.
Although we missed the opportunity to explore the Jewish communities in Costa Rica, we did not miss the beautiful church in La Fortuna, Costa Rica.
We arrived in La Fortuna on December 20. After settling into our Air BNB, we enjoyed the Christmas lights in the downtown area.
It was so good to see the church that first night.
On December 25 – Christmas Day, my son and I went to Mass at St. John Bosco Catholic Church in the center of La Fortuna. This was a Spanish Mass. The priest started the Mass by wishing everyone a Merry Christmas – Feliz Navidad – this was the extent of my understanding! Although my son has learned Spanish for his job in the military, he was unable to understand the priest since he spoke quite fast. The family in front of us was from Utah and had the same issues. The Dad and the eldest daughter spoke Spanish but had difficulty following along because of the speed. I am sure many Spaniards feel the same about our English.
Despite the language issues, the Mass was beautiful, and the church was beautifully decorated.
When I first stepped into this church, I was taken back by the crucifix. It really wasn’t a crucifix above the altar. It was a statue of the risen Lord. I have never seen anything like this in a Catholic Church.
We had a great Christmas celebration that evening at our Air BNB. We did some food shopping in the local stores and my son made a beautiful bar-b-que dinner for all of us.
It is always interesting to see how different cultures celebrate Christmas. Businesses in our country are closed on Christmas day. However, most – if not all – of the businesses in La Fortuna, Costa Rica were open for business – including the variety of excursions for local tourists.
Speaking of excursions – you will not want to miss the next blog. Because I was with my family, I did things on this vacation that I would not have done as a solo traveler. This old dog has, once again, learned new tricks – and had so much fun doing it. Stay tuned, God bless all, AND Happy New Year!
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