Twenty Years Together: A Story of Building and Unity
Today’s interviewee is Rabbi David Davidov, the respected rabbi of Toronto’s Caucasian Jewish community. For nearly two decades, he has dedicated his life to spiritual leadership, preserving Jewish traditions, and strengthening unity within the community.
Rabbi, how did your journey to Toronto begin, and what inspired you to come in 2006?
At that time, I was studying in a kollel in the holy city of Tzfat, while my wife, Rebbetzin Chana Rivka, was dedicating tremendous energy, love, and warmth to teaching at the Ohr Menachem Talmud Torah school.
One day, we received a phone call from Gamliel, known as Gimi, one of the respected elders of Toronto’s Mountain Jewish community. Gimi was well acquainted with my uncle, the renowned Rabbi Mordechai Gilyadov, who served as the rabbi of Nalchik during the Soviet years and worked to preserve and support Jewish life during a difficult period for religious observance.
Through him, Gimi learned about our family’s history and the legacy of my great-great-grandfather, Rabbi Nisan, a respected rabbi and outstanding scholar in Nalchik. His authority extended beyond the Jewish community, and people of many backgrounds came to him for advice and blessings. His memory continues to be honoured in the Nalchik synagogue.
My great-grandfather, Rabbi Rafram, continued this family tradition of devotion to Torah, service to others, and the preservation of Jewish heritage. My uncle later absorbed the spiritual traditions and religious customs of Mountain Jews directly from prominent rabbis of Nalchik, Derbent, and Kuba. These teachings became the foundation of his many years of communal service.
After many Mountain Jews left Nalchik and established communities around the world, my uncle moved to Israel. He continues to serve as a rabbi in Nof HaGalil, formerly Nazareth Illit, where he preserves and passes the community’s rich spiritual heritage to future generations.
Gimi told us that Toronto’s Caucasian Jewish community needed a rabbi who could bring people together, strengthen communal life through Torah values, and preserve the ancient traditions passed down through our family. In response to this call, my wife and I arrived in Toronto on Shushan Purim in 2006 with our two young children. We accepted responsibility for the community’s spiritual life and dedicated ourselves fully to serving it.
What did you find when you arrived, and how has the community developed since then?
At that time, the community was only beginning to take shape. Very few families were living according to Torah and observing the mitzvot. We immediately understood that our mission was not simply to administer a synagogue. We had a deeper responsibility: to awaken Jewish awareness, welcome every person with warmth, and create one united and caring communal family.
The Almighty blessed our shared efforts. Over the years, the Caucasian Jewish community has grown into a strong, close-knit, and genuinely united community. Today, our synagogue is not only a place of prayer but also a spiritual centre that connects people across generations.
We continue to follow our traditional Eastern customs, Nusach Mizrach, while carefully preserving the sacred traditions inherited from our parents and grandparents. We strive to pass this priceless spiritual treasure to our children and grandchildren so they will remember their roots and remain connected to their heritage.
What role does the community centre play today?
From the first days of our arrival, we worked to ensure that everyone who entered the synagogue felt at home. Today, the community centre is a place where generations meet, friendships grow, and hundreds of families find spiritual and practical support.
Together, we celebrate joyful milestones such as Brit Milah, Bar Mitzvahs, and weddings. It is equally important for us to support people during illness, loss, and mourning. Many families hold Shiva at our community centre, and during these difficult moments, we do everything possible to surround them with care, attention, and emotional support so that no one faces their pain alone.
During the Jewish holidays, the centre fills with light, joy, and the voices of children. It is especially meaningful to see younger generations taking pride in their community and choosing the centre for weddings and other important family celebrations.
My wife, Rebbetzin Chana Rivka, has played a tremendous role in building and developing the community. As a mother of a large family, she dedicates herself not only to her own household but also to caring for others.
The Rebbetzin gives special attention to preparing brides for family life, helping young couples build strong Jewish homes, and providing spiritual guidance to women throughout the community. Through her wisdom, sensitivity, and sincere dedication, dozens of Jewish homes have been established and strengthened in Toronto—homes founded on Torah values and family traditions.
Thank you, Rabbi Davidov, for sharing the first part of your story and for your dedicated service to the community.
Part Two
The Journey of a Community: An Interview with Rabbi David Davidov of the Caucasian Jewish Community
This is part two of an interview with Rabbi David Davidov, the respected rabbi of Toronto’s Caucasian Jewish community (Jews from the Caucasus region), a person who has dedicated his life to spiritual service and strengthening the bonds of the community.
Over your years of work in Toronto, you have surely witnessed many touching moments. Which stories stand out most to you?
Many incredible stories have passed through my heart, and although it is impossible to fit them all into the pages of a magazine, I would like to share a few.
One of these stories is very personal. We live next door to a wonderful elderly couple from our community. My young children, out of a pure childhood instinct, began calling the woman “grandmother” and her husband “grandfather.” When she heard this, she could not hold back her tears. Her own grandchildren live far away, and it reminded her of that separation. She then said: “Only now do I understand the journey that the rabbi and his wife have gone through, leaving their parents in Israel. How difficult it must be for them not to see their grandchildren, and how difficult it is for children to grow up far from their grandparents.”
We truly left our parents’ homes in order to serve the community, and moments like this especially remind us of the price of that choice.
There is another story that says a great deal about our children. Six-year-old Ronen loves the synagogue with all his heart and tries not to miss any gathering. If he does have to stay home, he is genuinely disappointed. When he returns, he always says: “I love my rabbi and my synagogue!”
One winter Shabbat, while walking from home, he did something remarkable. On the snow-covered road, he noticed a Tehillim (Book of Psalms). Although the child still cannot read, his pure Jewish soul immediately told him that this was something holy. He exclaimed, “This is our holy thing!” and carefully picked up the book and brought it to the synagogue. The purity of that child’s soul serves as a beautiful example for all of us.
The warmth of our community also attracts those who were not originally connected with it. Once, guests from New York, despite belonging to another community, asked to celebrate Passover specifically with us. On another occasion, two brothers from a Canadian community joined us to help make a minyan (prayer quorum), and that meeting changed their lives. Afterwards, we helped them continue their Jewish education. Today, both have built wonderful Jewish families.
I also remember a phone call on Purim. A man from another community called and told me that his mother was in the hospital and, because of that, he would not be able to come to hear the reading of the Megillah. We immediately sent a taxi with yeshivah students to him so that they could read Megillat Esther right there in the hospital. This is the type of attention we try to show every individual Jew.
But one story holds a particularly special place for me: the visit of Rabbi Leibel Groner, of blessed memory, the longtime personal secretary of the Lubavitcher Rebbe. When my son was born, I invited Rabbi Groner to serve as sandak (the person who holds the baby during the brit milah ceremony). Jewish tradition teaches that one seeks to honor a righteous person with this role, as his spiritual influence can impact the child’s future.
But I wanted Rabbi Groner’s presence to be more than an honor for my family. Because of his age and health, Rabbi Leibel had declined many requests to travel from New York to Toronto. However, when I called him a second time, he asked whether there was a special reason beyond the mitzvah of serving as sandak. I answered: “Of course — because this is for the Caucasian Jewish Community!”
I dreamed that members of our community would hear firsthand memories from a person who had spent many years alongside the Rebbe. This visit became a great blessing not only for my son. The very fact that such a person came to our community demonstrated how precious and important the Caucasian Jewish Community is to people of such spiritual stature.
What are the greatest accomplishments of your work over these years?
The greatest miracle is the spiritual transformation of people. From a small group of enthusiasts, we have grown into a strong and united community where Torah and mitzvot have become a natural part of the lives of many families. Our children are growing up with a sense of pride in their people, respect for tradition, and a strong spiritual foundation.
What are the community’s goals today?
With the help of Heaven, today we can confidently say that the foundation of our community has been laid. It has stood the test of time and challenges, proving its strength. Now we are entering a new stage. Everything that has been accomplished until now was only the beginning of a much greater journey.
We have outgrown our previous space, and our main challenge today is creating a permanent home for the community. At the moment, we operate from a temporary facility, which significantly limits our potential. A permanent synagogue and community center is not simply a construction project. It will be a place where our children and grandchildren will pray and learn, where educational programs, youth initiatives, and Torah classes can develop under one roof.
In 2006, the first step was taken, and since then, building and strengthening the community has become our life’s mission. We are seeking partners and fellow dreamers who are ready to share this responsibility with us — so that upon the strong foundation already built, a home worthy of our heritage and the future generations can rise.
This will be an invaluable contribution for the benefit of the entire Jewish people, and for the preservation and flourishing of this extraordinary community.
May the Almighty bless everyone who supports this sacred work.
