People: Sep. 1, 1986

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The young Jew had come from America to Israel for his Bar Mitzvah at Jerusalem's revered Western Wall. Wrapped in a prayer shawl and wearing phylacteries, he recited the Torah blessings flawlessly and with that he became a man in the tribe of Israel. But this Jew, Little Sun Bordeaux, also belongs to another tribe, the Teton Sioux, and claims to be a descendant of Chief Crazy Horse through his paternal grandfather, Chief Eagle. Tribal elders dispute the claim, saying Crazy Horse had no children, but Little Sun's mother Armalona Greenfield insists, "Chief Eagle told me, and he would not lie." Greenfield is Jewish, and Little Sun grew up in Spokane, where he attends a Conservative synagogue. The wild western tale apparently interested officials of El Al Airlines enough to fly Little Sun over for free, and Israeli President Chaim Herzog met with the youngster. Will he become a chief when he grows up? Well, said his mother, "he wants to be a rabbi." Funny, he looks Siouxish.