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December 29th, 2014 - Tevet 7th, 5775
Viral myopia by Guido Vitale* Faced with a rising tide of ad hominem attacks, excessively aggressive language, vulgarity and at times simple stupidity, some of the main Italian newspapers are seriously considering whether to restrict or prevent the public from commenting freely on their websites. Reviewing, moderating, and occasionally responding to comments - particularly when these include countless stupidities by a small group of aggressive graphomaniacs which drown out constructive contributions - requires an investment of time and money. The quality of online comments also risks debasing the journalistic quality of a newspaper's website. Italian Jews have always shown that they apply discernment, a strong moral compass and common sense when adopting technological innovations. It would be a shame if we did not live up to our reputation when faced with this increasingly serious challenge, and missed an excellent opportunity to set a good example. *Guido Vitale is the editor-in-chief of Pagine Ebraiche.   Italian Word of the Week TRADUZIONE by Daniela Gross “Tradurre è tradire”. It sounds like a tongue twister, and it is one of the best known Italian proverbs. It reminds us that “To translate is to betray”, and that any translation, even the most accurate one, is a kind of compromise that will inevitably fail to catch some nuances or subtleties. However, without the act of “traduzione” (translation) we’d be lost in the literary world, sentenced to miss out on an infinity of masterpieces, or convicted to expand indefinitely our linguistic skills: studying Russian to read Isaac Babel, Yiddish to read Bashevis Singer and Hebrew to approach Aaron Appelfeld (and that’s just the Jewish literary world). Nevertheless, whereas translations from a foreign language are, in Italy, really common, they make up less than three percent of all American book sales. Among these translations, Italian authors are scarcely represented, but soon the scenario will be definitely enhanced. In the spring of 2015, the writer Primo Levi, unique among the modern Italian writers, is going to be integrally published in English. This new edition, curated by Anne Goldstein, a translator and an editor of The New Yorker and Domenico Scarpa, will present all of Primo Levi’s books in the original version, updating their translation and even the titles, which in the past were altered to reassure the foreign public. Primo Levi (1919-1987), Italian Jewish chemist, writer, and Shoah survivor, is a great testimony to the Italian Jewish experience and one of the best Italian authors. So, this “traduzione” comes as fantastic news.		NEWS K.it, the Italian Kosher Certification By Rossella Tercatin The Union of Italian Jewish Communities (UCEI) has launched the first national kosher certification, aiming at offering both producers and consumers the opportunity of merging the quality of Made in Italy with the guarantees offered by kosher standards. The hechsher K.it received the patronage of the Italian Ministry of Economic Development and was developed in cooperation and under the supervision of the Italian Rabbinical Assembly (ARI). Read more EXHIBITIONS The Colors of the Torah By Francesca Matalon Shiny silver, classy gold and bright pink. The exhibition “Torah fonte di vita” (Torah, Source of Life), currently on display at the National Museum of Italian Judaism and the Shoah (MEIS) in Ferrara, appears colorful and modern. The exhibit opened last week and is presented in collaboration with the Jewish Community of Ferrara, the Municipality and the Regional Directorate for Cultural Heritage and Landscape.   “Torah fonte di vita” houses a selection of objects of Jewish ceremonial art and books from the collection of the Museum of the Jewish Community of Ferrara, which has been closed to the public since 2012 when the building was seriously damaged by an earthquake that shook the area. The organizers’ desire is to return to the city an important part of its identity thus helping preserve and enhance the treasures of local Jewish cultural heritage, “Through the development of a new narrative addressing the public of the MEIS," as Sharon Reichel, art historian and curator of the exhibit explained. Read more LEADERS Hanukkah in Rome By Rachel Silvera The Hanukkah party organized last Tuesday by the Israeli Embassy in Italy has become an annual tradition. This year however something changed to make it even more special. On their arrival, the guests were welcomed into the warm rooms of the Jewish Museum of Rome, where they found dozens of dreidels on a large table and thus were immediately drawn into the typical atmosphere of Hanukkah. Read more Português Heróis por Eliezer Di Martino* A sequência de Bereshit que estamos a ler tem como herói o Yossef. A história começa e termina com ele. Podemos vê-lo como uma criança, amada - mesmo mimada - por seu pai; como um sonhador adolescente, ressentido por seus irmãos; como escravo, em seguida, um prisioneiro no Egito; como a segunda figura mais poderosa do maior império do mundo antigo. Em cada etapa, a narrativa gira em torno dele e o seu impacto sobre os outros. Ele domina o último terço de Bereshit, lançando a sua sombra sobre tudo o resto. Desde o começo, ele parece destinado à grandeza. *O rabino Eliezer di Martino é o rabino-chefe de Trieste Leia mais Double Life - Numbers By Daniela Fubini* When I received my Tehudat Zehut (I.D.) number, almost exactly seven years ago, I would have never thought that it would quickly become the most spoken number in my Israeli life, a lot beyond the phone number which is now almost redundant, in the new Facebook and WhatsApp era. The Russian lady, who took then a picture of me at Ben Gurion Airport, catching all my stress and tired face of deep night immigrant, gave me a thin blue book and told me in some language I somehow understood, that the number on page 2 was the Tehudat Zehut. And that the following day I should go to the public office to make the actual card, a laminated rectangle with blue holder that ever since comes with me everywhere I go. Actually, it could really not come with me most of the times, because one of the first things you learn as an Ole Chadash is that number by heart. *Daniela Fubini (Twitter @d_fubini) lives and writes in Tel Aviv, where she arrived in 2008 from Turin via New York.   Read more
Follow us on    This newsletter is published under difficult conditions. The editors of this newsletter are Italian journalists whose native language is Italian. They are willing to offer their energy and their skills to give international readers the opportunity of learning more about the Italian Jewish world, its values, its culture and its traditions. In spite of all our efforts to avoid this, readers may find an occasional language mistake. We count on your understanding and on your help and advice to correct these mistakes and improve our publication. Pagine Ebraiche International Edition is published by the Union of Italian Jewish Communities (UCEI). UCEI publications encourage an understanding of the Jewish world and the debate within it. The articles and opinions published by Pagine Ebraiche International Edition, unless expressly stated otherwise, cannot be interpreted as the official position of UCEI, but only as the self-expression of the people who sign them, offering their comments to UCEI publications. Readers who are interested in making their own contribution should email us at desk@ucei.it  You received this newsletter because you authorized UCEI to contact you. If you would like to remove your email address from our list, or if you would like to subscribe using a new email address, please send a blank email to  desk@ucei.it stating "unsubscribe" or "subscribe" in the subject field. © UCEI - All rights reserved - The articles may only be reproduced after obtaining the written permission of the editor-in-chief. Pagine Ebraiche - Reg Rome Court 199/2009 – Editor in Chief: Guido Vitale - Managing Editor: Daniela Gross. Special thanks to: Francesco Moises Bassano, Susanna Barki, Monica Bizzio, Angelica Edna Calò Livne, Eliezer Di Martino, Alain Elkann, Daniela Fubini, Benedetta Guetta, Sarah Kaminski, Daniel Leisawitz, Annette Leckart, Gadi Luzzatto Voghera, Yaakov Mascetti, Francesca Matalon, Jonathan Misrachi, Anna Momigliano, Giovanni Montenero, Elèna Mortara, Sabina Muccigrosso, Lisa Palmieri Billig, Jazmine Pignatello, Shirley Piperno, Giandomenico Pozzi, Daniel Reichel, Rachel Silvera, Adam Smulevich, Simone Somekh, Rossella Tercatin, Ada Treves. Questo notiziario è realizzato in condizioni di particolare difficoltà. I redattori di questo notiziario sono giornalisti italiani di madrelingua italiana. Mettono a disposizione le loro energie e le loro competenze per raccontare in lingua inglese l'ebraismo italiano, i suoi valori, la sua cultura e i suoi valori. Nonostante il nostro impegno il lettore potrebbe trovare errori e imperfezioni nell'utilizzo del linguaggio che faremo del nostro meglio per evitare. Contiamo sulla vostra comprensione e soprattutto sul vostro aiuto e sul vostro consiglio per correggere gli errori e migliorare. Pagine Ebraiche International Edition è una pubblicazione edita dall'Unione delle Comunità Ebraiche Italiane. L'UCEI sviluppa mezzi di comunicazione che incoraggiano la conoscenza e il confronto delle realtà ebraiche. Gli articoli e i commenti pubblicati, a meno che non sia espressamente indicato il contrario, non possono essere intesi come una presa di posizione ufficiale, ma solo come la autonoma espressione delle persone che li firmano e che si sono rese gratuitamente disponibili. Gli utenti che fossero interessati a offrire un proprio contributo possono rivolgersi all'indirizzo  desk@ucei.it Avete ricevuto questo messaggio perché avete trasmesso a Ucei l'autorizzazione a comunicare con voi. Se non desiderate ricevere ulteriori comunicazioni o se volete comunicare un nuovo indirizzo email, scrivete a: desk@ucei.it indicando nell'oggetto del messaggio "cancella" o "modifica". © UCEI - Tutti i diritti riservati - I testi possono essere riprodotti solo dopo aver ottenuto l'autorizzazione scritta della Direzione. Pagine Ebraiche International Edition - notiziario dell'ebraismo italiano - Reg. Tribunale di Roma 199/2009 - direttore responsabile: Guido Vitale - Coordinamento: Daniela Gross. Realizzato con il contributo di: Francesco Moises Bassano, Susanna Barki, Monica Bizzio, Angelica Edna Calò Livne, Eliezer Di Martino, Alain Elkann, Daniela Fubini, Benedetta Guetta, Sarah Kaminski, Daniel Leisawitz, Annette Leckart, Gadi Luzzatto Voghera, Yaakov Mascetti, Francesca Matalon, Jonathan Misrachi, Anna Momigliano, Giovanni Montenero, Elèna Mortara, Sabina Muccigrosso, Lisa Palmieri Billig, Jazmine Pignatello, Shirley Piperno, Giandomenico Pozzi, Daniel Reichel, Rachel Silvera, Adam Smulevich, Simone Somekh, Rossella Tercatin, Ada Treves.