Rejected for His Skin, Embraced by Torah: The Story of Eli Dan

Even if you’ve heard many life stories, this one is truly unique. It sounds more like a film than real life. It spans Africa, Tel Aviv, Bnei Brak, and Jerusalem, and centers around a young man raised between two very different worlds. One parent was a Catholic politician from Ghana, and the other, a Jewish woman who returned to a Torah lifestyle. Their son, Eli Dan, now a musician, tells a story of searching, struggle, and faith.

Eli Dan, now 27 and a father of five, lives in Jerusalem. He recently released his debut album, “Torn Between Worlds,” a title that reflects the identity struggle that shaped his life.

His parents met when his father, Robert Ansa from Ghana, came to study at Hebrew University. He was part of a group sent to learn how to help Ghana develop using the example of Israel. While in Israel, he met a secular Jewish woman, and they got married and moved to Sheinkin Street in Tel Aviv. Their son was born there and named Elidan.

After the couple divorced, the father returned to Ghana. Elidan stayed with his mother. “I remember playing with kids from the nearby Belz Hasidic community,” he recalls. “One day, a Black man walked by. It was rare in those days, and the kids ran after him, singing ‘Kushi Sambo.’ I joined them not realizing at all that I looked like him.”

Not long after, his mother began returning to Judaism through Orthodox friends. She left secular Tel Aviv and moved to religious Bnei Brak, near the home of Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky. She developed a close friendship with the rabbi’s wife, Rebbetzin Bat Sheva Kanievsky. They were often guests in the Kanievsky home. “At one Shabbat meal, the Rav asked my name. When he heard ‘Elidan,’ he said it wasn’t a good name because it isn’t from the Tanach. He suggested changing it to Eliyahu Dan, and so we did.”

As his mother struggled to raise him alone, Eli eventually entered foster care. He was taken in by the Greinman family, who lived upstairs. “I spent so much time with them that eventually they became my official foster family. Rabbi Avraham Greinman, a respected member of the family, became like a father to me. I even took on their last name for a time.”

He attended a respected Torah school in Bnei Brak and thrived. But as he grew older, he began to face rejection. When applying to yeshivas (Torah academies), he was turned away again and again because of his appearance. At one yeshiva interview, the Rosh Yeshiva (head of school) looked at him and asked, “Are you a Greinman?” Although Eli said yes, it was clear the rabbi was uncomfortable. The rejection was deeply painful. All his classmates were accepted and he was not.

After a year of trying, Eli made a bold decision. He walked into the Ponovezh Yeshiva, the most prominent Haredi yeshiva, and simply sat down to study. He slowly built friendships and gained a chavruta (study partner), the grandson of a well-known rabbi. When that boy began succeeding in Torah study thanks to their partnership, the yeshiva staff took notice. One day, an administrator approached Eli and told him he had been officially accepted.

Later, Eli moved to northern Tel Aviv to live with his aunt and was exposed to a very different world. “It felt like I was living in two cultures. I explored Tel Aviv like an anthropologist, trying to understand its lifestyle while holding on to my Torah values.” During this time, he was drawn to Hasidic teachings, especially those of Rabbi Tzadok of Lublin, whose spiritual ideas still inspire him today.

At age 18 and a half, Eli reconnected with his father after years of no contact. A mutual acquaintance arranged a meeting, and Eli flew to the United States, where his father was living as a businessman with a new family. They met for three weeks. When Eli got married six months later, his father came to the wedding.

Eli’s wife, whose maiden name is Bitton, is of Moroccan descent. Their connection felt like a return to his African roots. His father later returned to Ghana, where he became a well-known politician. Two years ago, Eli and his wife visited Ghana. “It was surreal,” he says. “I grew up in Bnei Brak, and suddenly I was in a country where everyone looked like me but everything felt foreign. There’s no Jewish community there, not even Chabad. But my father now respects Judaism and even knows a bit of Hebrew.”

Eli recently released his debut album, “Torn Between Worlds.” He doesn’t consider himself a professional musician. “I’m a musical person, not a musician,” he says. “I play guitar a little and keyboard even less.” But music has always been part of his life. “My mother used to play classical music for me while I was still in the womb,” he laughs. He received his first keyboard as a child and started composing songs around age 16.

He began creating the album when he was just 17. It matured over a decade. Three years ago, he met his music producer, Gadi Pogatch, and the project finally came to life. Despite the challenges of selling music in today’s digital world, he felt the album had to be made. “This wasn’t about comfort or profit, it was something I had to do.”

Today, Eli combines Torah learning with music. He studies at Yeshivat HaTefutzot in Jerusalem’s Jewish Quarter, where he also opened a Jewish music and learning center called “Mayim.” He also works in Jewish outreach, especially with secular youth. “People who return to Torah today do it more slowly. It’s a deep process, not just about suddenly keeping mitzvot. We try to help them grow gently and meaningfully.”

After years of searching, Eli finally feels whole. “Baruch Hashem (thank God), my identity is strong. I have a family, a path that combines Hasidic teachings with Torah, and a life rooted in Jerusalem. I draw strength from all the worlds I’ve been through. My past helps me understand others and bring them closer with love and respect. I hope the learning never ends.”