For Shimon, the longing to live in Israel began with the Sigd. He proudly informed me that he began fasting at the age of eight. Severed for centuries from other Jewish communities, Ethiopian Jews believed they were the last Jews in the world. Their Christian neighbors feared them as black magicians—just as Christians in medieval Europe feared Jews as devil-worshippers and well-poisoners—and called them “Falasha,” strangers. They called themselves “Beta Yisrael,” the House of Israel. And year after year, century after century, they ascended the mountain, their faith mediating between patience
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