I’m looking for information about my father, who may have emigrated to South Africa in the early 1960s. His name was Victor Vinegrad, and he had British citizenship. He would have been in his forties when he emigrated from Britain. He would be 101 today, if alive. Any help you can give me about his life or death would be greatly appreciated.

My father disappeared in Australia in 1952, leaving my mother with two small children. She was forced to fend for herself and to return to the United Kingdom. Searches for Victor yielded nothing. Sometime in the late 1980s, she met a man who said he had seen Victor in London in 1960 or thereabouts. He confided to him that he was going to emigrate to South Africa. My mother, at 98 years old, is still an Agunah. It would be a blessing if she could be freed before she dies. It would also help me if I could find out what happened to my father. Email: jlfestival@gmail.com

Rather than being a stiff-necked people who complain a lot, it’s better to be a “light unto the nations” and glow with goodwill. Unfortunately, holding on to faribles (resentments) is more common in the South African Jewish community than it is elsewhere. This includes petty grudges.

Not only does it make us unhappy and result in people avoiding us, it’s contrary to our religion. The Torah says, “Do not bear a grudge.”

Unfortunately, there are extra costs involved in producing kosher food, especially meat. Some might be tempted to be suspicious about them.

Many kosher butcheries have closed down over the years, with Nussbaums being the latest casualty. If they were so lucrative, that wouldn’t be the case.

It’s true that many have left the country, reducing the demand, but many have also become kosher, increasing the demand.

South African Jewry has the highest proportion of ba’alei teshuva (newly religious people) in the world. By far. What was once a secular community has become a strong centre of Torah. Our community is respected internationally for this, whether Chabad, haredi, or modern Orthodox.

In the early 1970s there were only five shomrei Shabbos families in Glenhazel, and that included rabbis. My father reports that 60 years ago, there was no such thing as someone wearing a yarmulka.

Along with this revival, there has been a huge increase in the availability of kosher foods such as cereals, biscuits, canned food, and so on, making it much easier to eat in accordance with the traditional ways. Since they are mass produced, the prices are low. Nevertheless, it’s admirable that so many are prepared to pay the extra costs of buying kosher meat, especially those who are struggling financially.

I apologise in advance for this vent, but having read the SA Jewish Report today, confirming my suspicions about the number of illegal minyanim taking place in and around the community, I feel I have to say something.

On 30 April last year, during our hard lockdown, my brother, Brett Hummel, tragically passed away leaving his family and friends heartbroken. As his next of kin, I wanted to say kaddish for him for the full eleven months and because shiva was held in lockdown, we had no prayers. It was difficult for me to accept that I couldn’t say kaddish.

A prominent rabbi in our community called me and summed it up perfectly. He said it was a kiddush Hashem (sanctification of G-d) to say kaddish, but in these circumstances, it was more of a kiddush Hashem not to say kaddish. I have been very grateful for the three months that we did manage to have daily services and I could say kaddish.

It angers me tremendously that so many people are blatantly breaking the rules. The chief rabbi’s office has requested that due to the easy transmission of the virus as well as the current law of the land, no minyanim should take place. Over the past week, I have seen people walking into a shul property early in the morning with their tefillin in hand. G-d forbid one person in that gathering has the virus, how many more will it be passed to?

My community and its rabbonim have done a remarkable job in ensuring that our community comes together on Zoom every day. We daven three times a day “together” but alone, and have found a special kaddish leyachid – the individual kaddish allowing all mourners to be able to say a different prayer in lieu of kaddish. Again, please, let’s daven together but alone for now until the experts have declared that we can safely return to our shuls.