The Colombian government’s new director for religious affairs stands accused of being a “fake rabbi” and obtaining an illegitimate rabbinical ordination certificate online for $150 from a US website.
Human rights group the Simon Wiesenthal Centre (SWC) last week posted a message on its website accusing Rabbi Dr Richard Gamboa Ben-Eleazar –the Colombia Interior Ministry’s new appointee to oversee the regulation of religious organisations – of being a “fraud” and writing inflammatory messages on social media about Zionists, allegedly branding them as “Nazis” and “false Jews”.
SWC highlights what it calls a “fake investiture” obtained by Gamboa, formerly known as Ricardo Rodríguez, that is still visible on his Facebook page.
A “certificate of ordination”, allegedly purchased from the Esoteric Theological Seminary – which offers titles for interfaith ministers and others, including rabbis, for a fee as low as $150 – appears to have been signed by two Christian ministers.
The SWC wrote: “Gamboa is a fraud who displays a degree purchased for $150 on the website www.northernway.org; he lacks rabbinical training, congregation and scruples.
“His background includes his close relationship with the Iranian ambassador in Colombia, his social media posts calling Israel a ‘neo-Nazi state’ and his claims that Zionists are not Jews but heretics.”
It alleged that Gamboa’s appointment reflects a broader political strategy by Colombian President Gustavo Petro to promote anti-Israel narratives.
SWC Latin America assistant director Dr Dario Pendzik wrote: “Petro wasn’t improvising when he appointed Gamboa. There is a clear strategy to show that the good Jew is the one who attacks and denies Israel. This very week, along with his Minister of Culture, he received anti-Zionist Jewish groups and alleged representatives of the Palestinian Diaspora.”
In his new role, Gamboa will have influence over religious organisations in Colombia, with the authority to regulate and potentially shut down Jewish communities.
The SWC claimed he has already announced plans to repeal the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) Definition of Antisemitism, which Colombia has incorporated into its anti-discrimination legislation, and has pledged to “hunt down Zionist propagandists”.
Rabbi Gamboa has defended his ordination, claiming it was sanctioned by the Unión Judía Liberal e Independiente de Colombia (UJLIC), a group he leads, which has little digital presence and is unknown to many in the Jewish community.
Gamboa also defended his qualifications during an interview on Colombia’s W Radio, stating that he was the son of secular Sephardi Jews of Marrano lineage.
His appointment has drawn widespread criticism from the local Jewish community. Marcos Peckel, executive director of the Confederation of Jewish Communities of Colombia, told the Jerusalem Post, “You don’t become a rabbi by ordering a certificate over the internet from a source not recognised by any of the [Jewish] denominations.” Peckel also expressed concern over Gamboa’s potential to "disqualify people as Jews while he is head of religious affairs."
Gamboa has responded on X to the claims against him, denying the allegations and saying they are a violation of his human rights, religious freedom, his honour and good name.
The JC has contacted Gamboa for a response to the allegations.
