Having trouble viewing this email? Click here          May 2, 2022 – 1 Iyar 5782

The MEIS exhibition “Mazal Tov! The Jewish marriage” is now online. The project, curated by Sharon Reichel and Rabbi Amedeo Spagnoletto, illuminates a fundamental passage of Jewish life, which is nurtured by precepts and rites of the past, represents an emblem of continuity, is rotted in the Bible, and yet, in marking the birth of a new family, dialogues with a vibrant present and the culture in which it is immersed. “Mazal Tov!” exposes this very balance between ancient and modern, combining precious documents with works of contemporary art. 
In addition to a virtual tour, it is possible to deepen different aspects of the rite, from the wedding contract (ketubbah) to the meanings of the symbolic breaking of the glass at the end of the ceremony. In addition to this, just a click away there are unpublished videos and a photo gallery dedicated to Italian Jewish weddings from the end of the nineteenth century to recent times.
The online exhibition was presented last week in Rome in a meeting held in the auditorium of the Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Marriage and Family Sciences. “We are convinced that dialogue, like peace, must be built every day. Not with proclamations and grand statements, but by sharing real moments like this”, pointed out Milena Santerini, national coordinator for the fight against antisemitism at the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, who introduced and coordinated the event. In this sense, she highlighted, marriage and family are themes "that can help mutual understanding because they evoke images of life, happiness, the future". 
On the same wavelength Monsignor Vincenzo Paglia, president of the Pontifical Academy for Life, spoke of "indispensable relationality between the different religious traditions" and hoped to continue along this path "with other meetings". 
As the Chief Rabbi of Rome Riccardo Di Segni remarked, considering the recent debate in Italy about the double surname, the exhibition is strictly related to our time. It is an excellent opportunity, for example, to analyze the concepts of "patrilineality and matrilineality", the latter being a cornerstone of Judaism.

Read more

Konstantin Akinsha liste les trésors de sa propre Ukraine : les 56000 objets du Musée des trésors historiques de Kiev, les chefs-d’œuvre de l’artiste contemporain Oleksandr Rojtburd, les synagogues dispersées dans tout le pays, les églises, les théâtres, les archives, les monuments. Sous les bombes russes il y a aussi cet immense patrimoine qu’on ne sait pas comment va sortir du conflit.
“Cette guerre est une attaque contre les vies des Ukrainiens, mais aussi contre notre identité et notre culture” affirme Akinsha, historien de l’art né à Kiev. Depuis des semaines, il est engagé, avec des éditoriaux, des interviews, des conférences, à attirer l’attention des institutions et de l’opinion publique sur le grand danger qui menace le patrimoine culturel ukrainien. “Il ne nous reste que ça : crier et attirer l’attention. C’est la culture globale qui est en jeu, pas seulement celle de l’Ukraine”.
Cependant, sa première pensée est pour la tragédie humaine. “Il est très douloureux de voir ce que le peuple ukrainien est en train de vivre. – raconte de Budapest, où il travaille depuis des années – Sa résistance à l’agression russe est héroïque”. Puis, son attention se tourne vers la mémoire des lieux dans lesquels il a grandi, entre souvenirs de famille et professionnels.
“Se réveiller chaque matin avec les dernières nouvelles sur l’invasion russe de l’Ukraine est une expérience étrange et traumatique. Les noms des villes et des villages que j’entends sont tissés dans la géographie de mon enfance. – il a raconté dans un article publié dans le Wall Street Journal quelques jours après le début de l’attaque – À l’époque, je voyageais souvent avec mon père dans certaines de ces localités pour voir des églises, des palais délabrés et des musées locales. C’étaient des lieux provinciales, verts et poussiéreux, avec d’incontournables parterres de fleurs ronds dans leurs places centrales, immergées dans un silence qui était interrompu seulement par le roucoulement des pigeons”.

Read more

By Anna Foa
 
I get a photo on Facebook. It is set in an unspecified American city in 1941. It is an Easter march for peace. I remember that the United States only entered the war in December 1941, after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. In the front row, a middle-aged woman with a funny hat holds up a large sign reading: Hitler has not attacked us, why attack Hitler? Behind her another sign: Why not peace with Hitler? And still behind: Europe for Europeans, America for Americans. 
No comments, just a shiver.

Read more

Par Giorgio Berruto*

Through a narrow, fraying sottoportico, or Venetian alleyway, and across a wooden footbridge, there is a wide square enclosed by rows of multicolored buildings.
Stepping into Venice’s Jewish Ghetto feels a bit like traveling back in time. On March 29, 1516, the Venetian Senate gated the city’s Jews here near a cannon factory, in one of the earliest examples of forced religious segregation.
In contrast to their Muslim, Greek Orthodox, and Christian neighbors, Venetian Jews were allowed to freely practice their religion as long as they remained inside the Ghetto, paid their taxes and rents (higher than other citizens), and stuck to a few occupations: moneylenders, doctors, traders and rag sellers.
They endured, and over time the Ghetto, crammed into the space of an acre, became the vibrant Jewish cultural capital of Europe. Early printing presses produced religious and secular works in Hebrew, Ladino, and Yiddish within the Ghetto; the 1609 Venice Haggadah is one of the most famous examples of the book that guides the Passover seder.

*This article was originally published on Jta on April 20, 2022.

Read more

In addition to our social media in Italian, Pagine Ebraiche International recently launched its new profile on Facebook. On our page, we share news, photos, and updates. Please take a moment and visit it, and once there, click “Like” or “Follow”. We look forward to bring you great information and connect with you.
We encourage you to comment, ask us questions, or share the content with your friends, family, and co-workers. Join us on Facebook