Fathers and sons wearing yarmulkes are singing from prayer books. In a Shabbat, or Sabbath, ritual familiar to Jews everywhere, Rabbi Israel Hazout leads the congregation through a Hebrew reading of the Torah-Judaic teachings inscribed on a ceremonial scroll.
People practice their religion how they like.
Unexpected words, perhaps, from a Jewish citizen in a Muslim country. But Morocco has long promoted tolerance, encouraging Jews to practice their customs alongside the Muslim majority. In a Muslim society, they have become business tycoons, M.P.s, cabinet ministers and royal advisers. But since 1948, for complex political, social, economic and religious reasons, Moroccan Jews have been leaving for Israel, as well as for France and North America. The community fell from 300,000 to as few as 4,000, with the numbers poised to dwindle further.