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October 26, 2015 - Cheshwan 13, 5776
“Even Those We Don't Like” By Guido Vitale* "We must always revere books and protect them, even those we don't like" (Claudio Magris, "Non luogo a procedere") *Guido Vitale is the editor-in-chief of Pagine Ebraiche.   The Jewish Brigade  By Daniela Gross The Jewish Brigade, which decidedly contributed to the liberation of Italy during the Second World War, comes back into the spotlight. Last Wednesday, on the Fatto Quotidiano, Furio Colombo expressed his support for a law proposal aimed at honoring with a gold medal the Jewish volunteers from the territory of the British Mandate of Palestine. “[…] it is intended to remind everyone that young Jews, already settled in the territory of the British Mandate of Palestine, joined as volunteers military corps which didn’t have a State but had and wanted to have a strong identity against those who, in Italy, in Germany, and in all of Europe, deprived them of citizenship and all rights”. The law proposal was first signed by the members of Parliament Lia Quartapelle and Emanuele Fiano. In 2000, the journalist and writer Furio Colombo pledged, as Parliament representative, to set up the “Giorno della Memoria” (Holocaust Remembrance Day).		NEWS A New Italian Rabbi  By Rachel Silvera The Italian Jewish Community welcomes the ordination of a new rabbi. After the written and oral exam, the Italian Rabbinical School awarded the title of rabbi to Jacov Shalom Di Segni. Twenty-nine years old, born and bred in Rome, Rabbi Di Segni was tested by a commission made up of the Chief Rabbi of Rome, Riccardo Di Segni, the Chief Rabbi of Milan Alfonso Arbib, the Chief Rabbi of Naples Umberto Piperno and rabbis Vittorio Della Rocca, Alberto Funaro and Gad Eldad. Read more NEWS In Milan, a Torch-Light Rally for Israel By Rossella Tercatin A torch-light rally to show solidarity to Israel after the latest wave of terrorism was held in Milan on Wednesday, after a similar event was organized in Rome the previous Sunday. Hundreds of people gathered before Milan’s main synagogue, while over a dozen speakers took the podium in turn, welcomed by the co-presidents of the Jewish Community Raffaele Besso and Milo Hasbani. Read more  BOOKS Katja, a Powerful Encounter By Ada Treves It is truly impossible to explain the complexity and the profound humanity of Katja Petrowskaja, recent winner of yet another price, that of the Adei-Wizo, the Italian Association of Jewish Women, part of the Women's International Zionist Organization, named after Adelina Della Pergola. The only chance is to read her book, Maybe Esther, an incredible stratification of stories, and styles, written in a language learned as an adult, in a sort of proud defy to History, and to destiny.” Read more CULTURE - 5776, a Year for Italian Jewish Heritage  By Francesca Matalon The board of the Foundation for Jewish Heritage in Italy (FBCEI) recently met and set the priorities for the coming year, also emphasizing the effort in carrying out the projects already started. Among the endeavors mentioned were the promotion of exhibits and conferences to meet the growing interest of the public, and the tireless work behind the scenes researching, restoring and cataloguing the vast Italian Jewish cultural heritage in order to improve it and make it more accessible. Read more español Katja Petrowskaja, muchas identidades, una historia Ada Treves* Fue muy dificil el primer contacto con Katja Petrowskaja, la galardonada autora de Vieilleicht Esther, su primera obra que después del prestigioso Ingeborg Bachmann Prize recibió reconocimientos en toda Europa. Al pedirle una entrevista, ella contesta en cuestión de minutos y no deja espacio para malentendidos: "Gracias por tu correo. Me encantaría hablar contigo, es un gran honor ser entrevistada por tu periódico, pero tengo que decirte que no me siento judía, no tengo ninguna idea de las tradiciones... Además, nunca formé parte de una comunidad y crecí como una hija del régimen soviético. Si piensas que de todas formas podrá ser interesante hablaremos, pero no puedo hacerme pasar por otra persona". Eso no es el tipo de respuesta que esperas de la autora de un libro que cuenta los recorridos de una familia judía, su familia, en los callejones oscuros del siglo XX. *Este artículo ha sido traducido en español por Giulia Castelnovo, estudiante de la Scuola superiore traduttori e interpreti di Trieste, que está haciendo su práctica para la revista Pagine Ebraiche. El diseño es de Giorgio Albertini. Leer más Silences By David Bidussa* It gives us pause that someone has sought to burn down Joseph’s Tomb, singling it out as a place that only the enemy identifies with.  If a Muslim damages the tomb, considering Joseph a patriarch of only the Jews, then he clearly has not read the Qur’an or, contrary to those who think of themselves as being “true to the book,” he discards that with which he does not agree, ignoring its existence.  It is also significant that none of the defenders of textual fundamentalism has made this point. *David Bidussa is a social historian of ideas. This article was translated by Daniel Leisawitz, professor at Muhlenberg College (Allentown, Pennsylvania, USA).. 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, Amanda Benjamin, Monica Bizzio, Angelica Edna Calò Livne, Eliezer Di Martino, Alain Elkann, Dori Fleekop, 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, Colby Robbins,  Danielle Rockman, Lindsay Shedlin, Rachel Silvera, Adam Smulevich, Simone Somekh, Rossella Tercatin, Ada Treves, Lauren Waldman, Sahar Zivan. 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, Amanda Benjamin, Monica Bizzio, Angelica Edna Calò Livne, Eliezer Di Martino, Alain Elkann, Dori Fleekop, 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, Colby Robbins,  Danielle Rockman, Lindsay Shedlin, Rachel Silvera, Adam Smulevich, Simone Somekh, Rossella Tercatin, Ada Treves, Lauren Waldman, Sahar Zivan.