Jürgen Schaflechner on religious minorities in Pakistan
Welcome to a zoom-meeting where Dr.Jürgen Schaflechner will discuss his forthcoming book on religious minorities in Pakistan.
THRUST INTO HEAVEN (Pakistan 2016, 66min), a film by Juergen Schaflechner
Main content
On Wednesday 30 October, from 15:00-16:30 Oslo time, will Dr. Jürgen Schaflechner discuss his forthcoming book on religious minorities in Pakistan (Columbia University Press, 2025). This chapter discusses the Bene Ephraim, a community that regards itself as Jewish.
Dr. Schaflechner is research leader at the Freie Universität in Berlin as well as filmmaker, having made among others the film on Pakistan Thrust in Heaven (2016). His research focus is on religious minority movements in South Asia in the digital age.
The presentation will take place on zoom. To receive the zoom link of the discussion, please contact Alexander van der Haven (alexander.haven@uib.no).
For those interested in reading one of the book chapters which we will use for of his book that we will discuss, please also contact Alexander van der Haven.
In the Next Year anon (MOVIE)
Abstract of the chapter:
Emerging Jewish Life in Pakistan
The events of the 7th of October sent a shockwave through the Bene Ephraim, a small "self-identifying" Jewish community living in an unnamed place in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. The aftermath of the attack left the group equally horrified and electrified, as they felt they were witnessing the beginning of the end times and the fulfillment of their decade-long dream: to finally be able to migrate to Israel and live in the land of their ancestors.
The Bene Ephraim are part of a global movement of so-called "emerging Jews," mostly consisting of Christian groups who, through various revelations, began to identify themselves as descendants of a lost Jewish tribe. They believe that in this era—amid global warming, economic hardship, and especially with an extended war in the Middle East—they have been called back to their ancestral homeland by HaShem, the God of Israel.
In this chapter, I introduce how this small, formerly Christian community began self-identifying as Jewish ten years ago and how they navigate life within the often Judeophobic environments of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.
