Approaching its 11th anniversary with a non-interrupt minyan, with two synagogues operating simultaneously, and leaving behind multitudes of envious and slanderous people, especially in the most prominent professions in the surrounding society. This is the spirit with which the Jewish Community of Porto will celebrate the next Shabbat. An institution practically hanged by the "Portuguese Dreyfus" case in 1937 has been resurrected.
While mediocre talk, spit, and conspire, others plan and produce. Culture and education are not forgotten by the community, which continues to attract schools from all over the country for an immersion in Jewish culture. It manages two museums, a painting gallery, a library with 10,000 works, a male choir, and cinema rooms. The Holocaust museum has already received 30% of the country's teenagers, and the Jewish museum was awarded a commendation from a Brazilian university. The community even produces high-quality historical films. The most awarded film in national history has a Jewish mark, in a country that has been struggling to develop its film industry for two centuries. The scale of this cultural and educational project is unparalleled in Europe. Even the community's YouTube channel has over 3 million views.
In 2026, Parashiot Tazria-Metzora will be read on April 18, 2026 (1 Iyyar 5786). Metzora is a Hebrew word translated as "leper" or "one afflicted with leprosy," referring to a person experiencing a specific ritual impurity known as tzara'at, skin diseases or lesions described in Leviticus 14. It is the 28th weekly Torah portion.
Tazria-Metzora connects to the modern world by addressing the power of speech, social isolation, and the need for purification after crises. The Torah warns against causing such harm through speech. The metzora is told to go outside the city limits because they have created distance among others. It teaches that malicious gossip (lashon hara) creates societal division, while the quarantine-like isolation of the metzora reflects on the need for empathy toward those who are excluded.
The parshiyot emphasize that speech can cause severe social harm, analogous to a contagious disease. It highlights the danger of gossip and slander. The metzora is isolated, a concept that mirrors modern quarantine experiences, prompting reflection on how we treat those separated from society.
The purification rituals demonstrate that illness is often connected to ethical and spiritual failings, acting as a metaphysical message rather than just a physical ailment. Human actions, both spoken and physical, have lasting impacts on environment and community health.
