USA: Hanukah Celebration at New York's Kehila Kedosha Janina, December 18th

New York, NY. Kehila Kedosha Janina, interior. Photo: Vincent Giordano

New York, NY. Kehila Kedosha Janina. Bar Mitzvah. Photo: Vincent Giordano

USA: Hanukah Celebration at New York's Kehila Kedosha Janina, December 18th

One of my favorite Jewish spaces in New york is the tiny Kehila Kedosha Janina (KKJ) on Broome Street on the Lower East Side. This is the home to the region's Greek (Romaniote) Jewish community - an enormously hospitable extended family. The synagogue and its small museum continues services and is open to the public on Sundays. Next week is a great time to visit - to celebrate Hannukah with traditional Greek-Jewish Hannukah treats (boumwelos) and to honor John and Christine Woodward of Woodward Gallery at 133 Eldridge Street.

The congregation wants to fill the sanctuary (not too hard given its small size) with joy!

Where: Kehila Kedosha Janina, 280 Broome Street (between Allen and Eldridge)When December 18

New York, NY. Kehila Kedosha Janina. Torah scroll. Photo: Vincent Giordano

Here's some history from museum curator and community historian Marcia Haddad Ikonomopoulos:

In the early 20th century, as Jews from the Balkans began to arrive on the Lower East Side, Shearith Israel (the Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue uptown on West 70th and Central Park West) established institutions to help the new immigrants. Foremost among these were the settlement house and synagogue originally created at 86 Orchard Street. Soon the small dwelling was insufficient to house the growing population of Balkan Jewry and it was necessary to find larger quarters.

In 1914, the synagogue, now named Berith Shalom, was moved to 133 Eldridge, where the facilities were now larger and could include a Talmud Torah. As the neighborhood changed and the Balkan Jews moved to the outer boroughs and the suburbs, Berith Shalom was closed and the building at 133 Eldridge went through many incarnations. In May of 2007, John and Kristine Woodward moved their gallery to 133 Eldridge Street and, in the process of restoration, uncovered a piece of decorated plaster wall from the old synagogue. John lovingly restored and mounted the section and presented it to Kehila Kedosha Janina as a gift. It now hangs in our synagogue/museum.

Greece: Last Month's Arson Attack on Corfu Synagogue

Greece: Arsonists Attack Corfu Synagogue
by Samuel D. Gruber

(ISJM) I have been remiss in reporting last month's arson attach on the Scuola Greca synagogue on the island of Corfu, Greece. Because of the many tourists who vacation on Corfu, the synagogue is one of the better known Jewish sites in Greece. The synagogue, built in a modest Italian baroque style is one of the oldest and most impressive still open in Greece. It dates to a time when part of the Greek Jewish population was closely linked to the economic and cultural world of the Adriatic, dominated by Venice.

You can tour the synagogue sanctuary here, thanks to synagogues360.org.

This is the second major arson incident against a Greek synagogue in the past two years. In early 2010 the Etz Hayyim Synagogue in Hania, Crete was attacked and set fire twice causing extensive damage to artifacts, books, manuscripts and the building (ISJM has raised approximately $35,000 toward the $100,000 in restoration and replacement costs).

The April 19th attack in Corfu is similar in nature. The back door was forced and here the vandals were more methodical, piling valuable and holy scroll and books in a pile that was then set alight.

According to local police "They made a pile of books and documents in front of the rabbi's platform, or bimah, on the synagogue's first floor and set them on fire. The synagogue was closed at the time and nobody was injured. The fire was spotted by a passing police patrol." Two days after the attack to individuals were arrested.

These attacks are a reminder of continuing anti-Semitism in Greece, some of which is traditional - dating back centuries, but which is also regularly spurred by Mideast politics and even Greece's current economic woes. Jewish cemeteries in Ioannina, Salonika and elsewhere have been frequently vandalized, too, including that of Corfu in 2009. Two suspects were arrested in Corfu two days after the attack and their specific motive is still unknown.

Corfu, Greece. Scuola Greca Synagogue. Photos: Stavroulakis, Jewish Sites and Synagogues of Greece

From: Terrible Arson in Corfu Synagogue by Gavriel Queenann for Arutz Sheva

"Former President of the Jewish community of Corfu, Vino Shohi, described the crime, “They came at 3 a.m., put all the books together and burned them. At first I was very upset. I was ashamed that something like this happened here in Corfu, but we have received the support of all the political parties and the archbishop. They all came out in support of us and told us they were our brothers.”

Giorgos Petalotis, a spokesman for the Greek government, condemned the attack Wednesday, saying,, “The burglary that took place in the Jewish Synagogue in Corfu and the destruction of sacred liturgical books is an immoral and appalling act, which the Greek government condemns in the strongest possible manner,”

“I've said before and I say once again," Petalotis said. "Under this unfortunate circumstance, that bigotry and anti-Semitism are concepts incompatible with Greek culture and alien to the mentality of the Greek people. This act cannot overshadow the longstanding tradition of friendship and mutual respect between the two peoples. The Greek authorities have already received instructions to carry out intensive efforts to identify the perpetrators and bring them to justice”.

Police on Corfu are investigating the crime. Jewish officials said they had faith the authorities will find the assailants.

“There’s no fear here,” Shoshi said. “There never has been any fear and there never will. We are well-established in Corfu and nobody will make us afraid.”

The Jewish community in Corfu is ancient with roots dating back to antiquity, but most Jews on the island were murdered by the Nazis during the holocaust. The holy books and torah scrolls survived the holocaust, however, in the hands of gentiles who safeguarded them.

“After the war they gave us all our books back,” Shoshi said. “We had books from the 15th, 16th and 17th century from Trieste, Padova and Verona. Now they are gone.”

The community of Corfu's loss is a loss for the entire Jewish people. The Corfiote Rite is distinct and its liturgy has many peculiarities that set it apart from the mainstream Ashkenazi and Sephardic liturgies most Jews are familiar with today.

Corfiote prayer books, which contain emendations from Mazal-Tob, Isaac ben Abraham, Abraham ben Gabriel ben Mordecai, and Moses ha-Kohen, are rare and unique cultural treasures. This, in addition to the destruction of the sacred Torah scrolls.

Joseph ben Abraham, the popular commentator of the Maḥzor, lived in Corfu in 1554."

See: "Greece: Synagogue targeted by arsonists"

Photographer Vincent Giordano, Who Documented Romaniote Life, Dies at Age 58

Vincent Giordano in 2005. Photo: Samuel D. Gruber

Vincent Giordano (1952-2010)

by Samuel D. Gruber

Photographer and filmmaker Vincent Giordano died on December 11, 2010. Vincent was an accomplished photographer with an artist’s eye, and a mastery of craft (especially visible in his beautifully handmade palladium prints) and the sensibility of a trained ethnographer. He was a man of warmth, humor, and modesty, but also of talent, ambition and tenacity. These were all qualities he maintained, even when in great pain, until his very last hour.

In recent years Vincent brought these talents together in an intensive investigation of the small community of Romaniote Jews in New York, centered on the synagogue of Kehila Kedosha Janina synagogue on New York’s Lower East Side. Since 2002, soon after he began work in his documentary project Before the Flame Goes Out, he has been a friend and unexpected colleague. What began by my writing a simple cover letter for a grant became a continuing collaboration, with the International Survey of Jewish Monuments serving as a sponsor for Vincent’s work.

Over a period of about six years Vincent created a remarkable series of photos of the building, and many of the people who still call it their religious and cultural home and related community events. What began as a documentation of the synagogue building and its liturgical and historical artifacts evolved into a deeper and more meaningful investigation including photos, film and audio. Vincent found that it was not enough to look at a building without knowing the things inside or to know the objects without understanding their history and use. He believed that knowledge can only come through knowing the people who made these things, and who continue to use and cherish them today. Similarly, he felt he could not see full picture of this Romaniote community without its other half: the community of Ioannina, or what survives of it in post-Holocaust Greece. So the project which at first was quite modest kept growing. And in this process I was always impressed with Vincent’s adaptability, organization skills, diplomacy, patience, tenacity and overriding belief in the integrity and meaning of the task.

Vincent forged excellent ties with the Romaniote community. His photos, which often involved long set up times and exposures, drew many of the synagogue community into his work so that many aspects of Before the Flame Goes Out were collaborative efforts with the community itself. His patience was often rewarded by the stories told by those watching, many of who subsequently became portrait subjects, and he often donated prints of his work to these new friends and the community. Photography developed into oral history that became an important part of the work. Vincent also reached out to historians and other specialists (such as myself) to expand and refine his knowledge of his subject, so that photography and oral history now link with more traditional lines of historical inquiry.

For his work on Before the Flames Goes Out Vincent received grants from the Memorial Foundation of Jewish Culture and he was a Fullbright Scholar in Greece in 2007. His talent was recognized by many generous donors who supported Before the Flame Goes Out. These included The Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation, The Carl and Lily Pforzheimer Foundation, The Lucius and Eva Eastman Fund, The Cahnman Foundation, The Rothschild Foundation, and The David and Goldie Blanksteen Fund.

Vincent received his B.A. from SUNY, Oswego where he majored in history and anthropology, tw0 disciplines he remained dedicated to in his subsequent career. He went on to study photography at C.W. Post College (Glendale, NY), the International Center of Photography, and with Arthur Leipzig. In the 1980s he worked for R/ Greenberg Associates as Head of the Animation Camera and Stills Department, during which time he won seven Clio awards for television advertising campaigns. And the GT Group in New York as head of the still photography department.

For the past 25 years Vincent worked as photographer, filmmaker and technical consultant for scores of book, film and other photo-related projects. In more recent years he took on projects for himself, and developed impressive portfolios of memorable and artistic work, most of which seemed to dwell with modes of memory. A skilled portraitist, he brought that careful steady observant eye to his photos of architecture and landscape. As a New York photographer two of the most meaningful to Vincent were Hidden New York (Rutgers University Press, 2006), for which he was a contributing photographer and remembrance, a book of portraits from September 11, 2001.

Vincent was so often behind the camera there are few photos of him. I include this one snapshot, when I caught him by surprise at Kehila Kedosha Janina back in 2005. The picture captures for me his mix of toughness and playfulness. He combined a no-nonsense attitude of getting the shot, with humor and constant enthusiasm for his subject.

Vincent will be missed by his many friends and colleagues, and especially by his loving wife Hilda and his step-children Elizabeth and Thomas, and grandchildren, Matthew, Analisa and Rachel. A memorial gathering takes place today in New york at the Museum of Biblical Art where Vincent’s work was exhibited in 2008. A celebration of his life and art will also be scheduled in 2011. I will shortly post a gallery of some of Vincent's photos. You can also see images on the website http://www.romaniotelegacy.org/

Here are four photos which show a mix of his work with 8 x 10 negatives, and two shots from Greece done "on the fly" with a 35mm camera. These are low-res digital copies. The originals are especially gorgeous.

Greece: Jewish Museum in Athens Vandalized

Greece: Jewish Museum in Athens Attacked by Vandals

The Jewish Museum in Athens was vandalized this week. On July 22nd, red swastikas were painted on the building's exterior walls. Despite frequent acts of vandalism against Jewish targets throughout Greece, including those in Ioannina, Hania, and elsewhere previously reported on this blog, this is the first time the museum has been the target of and anti-Semitic attack. According to community representative security cameras recorded the eight perpetrators during the museum attack.

Greece: Passover at Hania's Etz Hayyim and Fund-raising Update

Passover in Hania. Photos courtesy Friends of Etz Hayyim

Greece: Passover at Etz Hayyim and Fund Raising Update

(ISJM) It has now been several months since arsonists attacked the historic Etz Hayyim Synagogue in Hania, Crete. The congregation, with some help from neighbors, has cleaned up the mess and made the synagogue look whole again. some new security measures have been installed, and an international effort in in progress to collect books to rebuild the library that was destroyed by fire, smoke and water. Visitors are again coming to the synagogue, and Nikos Stavorulakis and his associates are preparing for the usual summer surge in visitation. But the bills for the clean-up and repairs still have to be paid, and money still needs to be raised. So far ISJM has collected about $27,000 from approximately 150 individual donors. Others have sent money directly to Greece. If you would like to contribute more funds checks should be made out to ISJM and sent to:

International Survey of Jewish Monuments

118 Julian Place, Box 210

Syracuse, NY 13210

(be sure to write "Etz Hayyim" on the memo line)

Nikos reports on progress at the Etz Hayyim Synagogue on the Etz Hayyim blog. As it does every year, the heterogeneous community gathered in April at the synagogue for a Passover Seder. Nikos describes this year's gathering and ritual meal:

Passover at Etz Hayyim is somewhat like a family gathering as over the past ten years the community During the times when it was felt necessary to expand on the Haggadah special mention and note was made of the fact that Passover is about fleeing from idolatry in all its forms – even perhaps the idols that one makes of concepts and practices that perhaps impede our spiritual growth and freedom.

Seder attracts a good number of people who return annually to celebrate with us here.

This year we were prepared to see perhaps fewer participants due both to the ‘crunch’ as well as the arson attacks. Invitations were sent out as usual and response here in Hania seemed to indicate that we would have a fair attendance though it seemed unlikely that we would have the usual quota of visiting Israelis and Jews from Europe on vacation. We lay in provisions from Athens – matzoth and wine and chose a traditional Sephardi menu of non meat dishes – and even had the ‘korban’ pre-roasted in Athens and sent by courier.

Nicholas de Lange arrived in good time and after getting copies of our last year’s haggadah printed up we set about making arrangements with a nearby restaurant that we have used on former occasions.

Everyone assembled at the Synagogue for Arvith prayers and then made their way to the restaurant and we, Nicholas de Lange and myself, took on the part of readers. During the times when it was felt necessary to expand on the Haggadah special mention and note was made of the fact that Passover is about fleeing from idolatry in all its forms – even perhaps the idols that one makes of concepts and practices that perhaps impede our spiritual growth and freedom.

Almost 60 people attended the reading of the Haggadah and after the hiding of the Afikomin set about serving themselves from a buffet of traditional Sephardi food.

At the end of the meal the cup of Eliahu was filled with wine that was taken from everyone’s glasses and the door was opened to the street as we said the thanksgiving prayers.

We are especially happy that some friends arrived from Turkey as well as the young Palestinian who helped me the night of the first fire and the friars from the nearby Catholic monastery…thus the sense of members of one widely extended family – Jews, Christians and Muslims was very evident.

Greece: ISJM Continues to Collect Funds to Repair Hania's Etz Hayyim Synagogue

Greece: ISJM Continues to Collect Funds to Repair Hania's Etz Hayyim Synagogue
by Samuel D. Gruber

(ISJM) Work continues in Hania, Crete with clean-up and repair efforts at the historic Etz Hayyim Synagogue, which was attacked twice by arsonists in January. Current estimates put the cost of structural and material repair and replacement at about $100,000. This does not include the costs of time and donated labor, and the replacement cost for approximately 1,000 books that were damaged or destroyed in the synagogue library.

Since the second attack - which was more destructive than the first - ISJM has been collecting funds from individuals - mostly in the United States - to assist with repairs. So far about 75 donors have contributed over $13,000 which puts us more than halfway to our first goal of a $25,000 contribution. Our hope and plan is that this show of support will leverage additional donations form foundation, Jewish organizations and government agencies. If that doesn't happen ISJM will keep raising money until all the needs for the building are met.

Please send contributions - of all sizes - to:

ISJM
118 Julian Place, Box 210
Syracuse, NY 13210

Be sure to add "Hania" to the memo line of the check, and to make check out to "ISJM" or "International Survey of Jewish Monuments." ISJM is a register 501 (c) 3 charitable organization and all contributions are tax-deductible according to law.

Meanwhile, ISJM now has a list of destroyed books from Etz Hayyim and with the assistance of Prof. Steve Bowman of the University of Cincinnati; we will soon be coordinating donations. If you would like a copy of the booklist by email please contact me directly at samuelgruber@gmail.com. Books are especially needed in the subject areas of Judaica, Hellenic and Mediterranean Studies, art, architecture and other fields. Cash contributions for shipping books or for related purchases are also welcome.

Greece: Arrests Made in Hania Synagogue Arson

Greece: Arrests Made in Hania Synagogue Arson

The BBC reports that a Greek and two Britons have been arrested in connection with the two arson attacks on the Etz Hayyim Synagogue in Hania, Crete. The arrested men are waiters in local restaurants. Two Americans are also sought.

Read full story HERE

Greece: International Outrage Expressed About Hania Synagogue Arson

Greece: International Outrage Expressed About Hania Synagogue Arson

(ISJM) As word has spread following the second attack on the Etz Hayyim Synagogue in Hania, Crete (Greece) a number of organizations and governments are expressing concern and outrage over the attack and solidarity with the small Hania Community and the family of supporters of the Etz Hayyim Synagogue and its cultural center.

Here are few such statements. In the USA, ISJM continues to collect contributions for the repairs and resotration of the syangogue, its office and library. One hundred percent of all fund recevied will be transferred to Hania. Checks can be sent to:

ISJM

118 Julian Place, Box 210

Syracuse, NY 13210

(write Hania in the memo line)

Statement from the United States Department of State

Mark C. Toner
Acting Deputy Department Spokesman
Washington, DC

January 20, 2010

We strongly condemn the January 5 and January 16 arson attacks on the Etz-Hayyim Synagogue in the city of Chania on the island of Crete. The Synagogue dates back to the Middle Ages and is one of the last Jewish monuments on the island. An attack on the Etz-Hayyim Synagogue is an attack on Greece's history and heritage. The second attack caused severe damage to the Synagogue, destroying nearly 2,000 books and severely damaging the building's wooden roof.

This attack was clearly intended to intimidate and terrorize Greece's Jewish community and is only the latest of several incidents of anti-Semitic vandalism throughout Greece over the past few years. We applaud the Greek government for condemning these attacks and taking a strong stand against anti-Semitism and racism.

Our Embassy in Athens is in contact with the Synagogue. Embassy officials will be meeting with their Greek counterparts to underscore U.S. concern over this incident.

Statement of the American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association (AHEPA)

WASHINGTON – Nicholas A. Karacostas, supreme president of the American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association (AHEPA), a leading association for the nation’s three million American citizens of Greek heritage, and countless Philhellenes, issued the following statement regarding the continued anti-Semitic attacks upon the historic Etz-Hayyim Synagogue located in Hania, Crete:

“We strongly condemn the anti-Semitic attacks that have been carried out on the Etz-Hayyim Synagogue in Hania. This is the second arson attack in two weeks that has left the synagogue’s infrastructure devastated and approximately 2,500 rare books and other archival items destroyed by fire.

“These anti-Semitic attacks upon the Jewish community in Greece are simply unacceptable. We appeal to the people of Hania, and all Greek citizens, to come together to defy these acts of hatred, intolerance, and bigotry; and to help the healing process begin.

“We call for the swift apprehension of the perpetrators of these heinous attacks so that they may be brought to justice.”

AHEPA is the largest Greek-American association in the world with chapters in the United States, Canada, Greece, Cyprus, and sister chapters in Australia and New Zealand. It was established in 1922 by visionary Greek Americans to protect Hellenes from prejudice originating from the KKK, and in its history, AHEPA joined with the NAACP and B’nai B’rith International to fight discrimination.

The mission of the AHEPA family is to promote the ancient Greek ideals of education, philanthropy, civic responsibility and family and individual excellence through community service and volunteerism.

Statement from the American Jewish Committee

January 17, 2009 -- New York -- AJC is outraged by this morning’s arson attack that severely damaged Etz Hayim, the only synagogue on the Greek island of Crete. It was the second arson attack on the historic building in ten days.

“Our hearts go out to the Greek Jewish community,” said AJC Executive Director David Harris. “To target such a house of worship not once, but twice, within days of each other requires a swift public response from all in Greece who believe in the principles of religious freedom and mutual respect.”

Today’s blaze severely damaged or destroyed Jewish ritual objects and religious books, as well as the synagogue’s roof. The earlier arson attack, on January 5, destroyed the synagogue’s library.

Nearly 90 percent of Greek Jewry was murdered by the Nazis in World War II. Greece’s Jewish population today is only 5,000. After the Nazis destroyed the Crete Jewish community in 1944, Etz Hayyim stood empty and neglected for decades. A restoration project commenced in 1996, and the synagogue was rededicated in 1999.

“We count on Greek Prime Minister Papandreou and his government to do everything possible to apprehend the arsonists and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law,” said Harris. “The protection of all Jewish institutions in Greece must become a still higher priority in light of recent events. That attackers could strike the same target twice in ten days reveals the shortcomings of the security in place.”

AJC and the Greek Jewish community have had an association agreement for many years.

Greece: Arson Again in Hania Causes Further Destruction at Historic Synagogue!

Greece: Arson Again in Hania Causes Further Destruction at Historic Synagogue!
by Samuel D. Gruber

(ISJM) They have struck again! On Friday night, just a few hours after the conclusion of Shabbat services, and ten days after arsonists burned part of the historic Etz Hayyim synagogue in Hania, Crete, they again succeeded in setting fire to the (mostly stone) building, and causing more - and serious - damage to the sanctuary, to the archives and the Director's office. Dr. Nikos Stavroulakis has written about the new fire on the synagogue blog, and photos of the damage have been posted here.

The new destruction comes as a blow to the Hania congregation and its many friends in Greece and throughout the world. In Hania, there had been progress in cleaning up the mess of the January 5th fire, and assessing damages and costs for repairs and replacement. In the last few day ISJM had received over $5,000 in contributions from thirty contributors. now the work is even greater - but so is the resolve to succeed.

A few cowardly neo-Nazi bullies and thugs cannot have their way. They cannot destroy a beautiful project, building and community that it has taken twenty years to rebuild.

I encourage all my readers to keep contributing. Donations for repairs can be sent to:

International Survey of Jewish Monuments (ISJM)
118 Julian Place, Box 210
Syracuse, NY 13210

(write Hania in the memo line)

ISJM is 501 (c) 3 charitable organization and contributions are tax-deductible according to law.

I also urge you to write to your country's embassies in Greece urging them to pressure authorities to fully investigate and prosecute this crime, and to write to the Greek embassies in your own countries about the same. I will shortly post contacts and addresses to make this easier.

Here is Nikos' report of Friday night's fire:

On the night of Friday, January 15, after more than a week of work on the sanctuary – newly scraped, primed and re-painted; the wood-work oiled with lavender and the marble floor polished – we met for Erev Shabbat prayers and Kiddush. Later we locked the synagogue and returned to our homes feeling that we had set our steps forward. Saturday morning at 3:30 AM however the Synagogue’s director was wakened by the alarm that had been set off in the Synagogue and rushed there accompanied by two helpers to find the entire main office ablaze. They began putting out the fire with the garden hose as the firemen had not yet succeeded in getting their hoses connected. When the mains were finally connected the firemen set to work – by 4:45 the fire was only smoldering and all that remained of the upper and lower office was completely gutted. Also about a third of the wooden ceiling of the Synagogue itself was burnt, the benches covered in soot and broken wood, the floor a mess – but the EHAL was not touched!

Everything in the main office – e.g. two computers, complete Talmud, Midraschim, 2 sets of Rashi lexicons (Aramaic, Greek and Hebrew) plus many reference books and the entire archive of the Synagogue have all been destroyed. By noon the Siphrei Torah along with all of the silver ornaments (rimonim, tassim, yads etc.) and a precious early 17th century illuminated Qur’an were removed to a secure location. It was a sad moment to see them being taken away from the Kal as it was a joyous moment when they had been installed in 1999. But we are determined that they will come back!

Greece: Arson at Etz Hayyim Synagogue in Hania Destroys Library and More

Greece: Arson at Etz Hayyim Synagogue in Hania Destroys Library and More: ISJM will Receive Contributions in USA

With shock and sadness I forward this report received from my friend Nikos Stavroulakis of a destructive fire two nights ago at the restored and much-loved Etz Hayyim synagogue in Hania, Crete. The fire severely damaged the recently restored ezrat nashim (former women's section) of the historic synagogue, and entirely destroyed the library and computer stations. Additional damage from soot and water to the rest of the structure and furnishing can be repaired, but at a considerable cost.

Here is Dr. Stavroulakis's report in full (also posted on the Etz Hayyim blog with more photos):

At approximately 12:20-1:00 AM on the night of the 5th January, a serious attack was made on the fabric of the Synagogue. One or two or even more individuals made their way into the south garden of the synagogue by climbing over the iron gate. Subsequent to this they set about making an improvised incendiary device by tearing open a large Ottoman cushion in the mikveh and then with the contents stuffed a canister that was filled with some flammable liquid which was then set afire under the wooden stair of the ezrat nashim. (The upper floor of the women’s section (ezrat nashim) serves as the office of the director as well as a library and reading room and contains valuable books in various languages on Ottoman, Byzantine and Jewish art and architecture as well as resource books on European and Near Eastern History from pre-historic times as well as a large section on Cretan history. A computer and CD player with over 150 CDs of Sephardic liturgical and secular music were also kept in the office.)

Within probably minutes the assailants had taken off and the fire produced smoke that poured into the synagogue proper and then out into the street through the oculus in the facade of the synagogue.

Yannis Pietra, an Albanian emigrant living not far from the Synagogue, smelled the smoke and looking into the street saw it belching out of the facade and called the police, fire-station and then set off to find the director who arrived not long after along with Besnik Seitas the handyman of the Synagogue. At roughly the same time a young Moroccan, Nasr Alassoud, also traced the smoke that was coming down the street to the harbor. He proved to be a much needed hand by the director. By 1:45 AM the fire brigade had extinguished the fire and the police had begun their work. But the residual damage was only going to be apparent the next day.

Anja Zuckmantel-Papadakis, our librarian and her husband arrived not long after the fire was extinguished. What was quite notable was the lack of ‘locals’ despite the quite incredible noise of the synagogue alarm system and sirens from the two fire engines screeching through the neighborhood. What was even more disturbing and an obvious sign of a lack of civic responsibility was the apparent lack of sensitivity to the fact that had the synagogue been engulfed in flames at least half of the old city of Hania would have gone up in flames as the narrow streets and inaccessible quarters would have prevented access by the fire brigades. By 7:00 AM a deposition was made by the director with the police and the somewhatience of assessing the damage done was carried out. Members or the Synagogue fraternity: Paola Nikotera, Konstantine Fischer, Sam Cohen and David Webber were on hand to examine what had taken place – to books, structure as well as to assist the police in establishing evidence part of which was a bar of soap that had been thrown against the outer wall. (A common anti-semitic quip in Greek runs…’I'll make you into a bar of soap!’) As the mains of the Synagogue had been disconnected in the course of extinguishing the fire, we were informed that it would perhaps take up to a week to have them reconnected. The prospect was met when Mr Giorgos Archontakis, an engineer, offered to help us with this. As we were dealing with this, Angeliki Psaraki our photographer arrived to take pictures of the damage and later with Mr Archontakis. These two were successful in submitting the necessary papers to the Electric Company and by 5:00 PM we had electricity again which considerably raised morale though the damage by now was even more apparent.

The Siphrei Torah were fortunately well protected in their Ehal but the walls of the interior of the sanctuary as the wooden ceiling have been streaked and covered by water laden soot as well. Much of the naked stone on the interior has been badly stained and by early evening we set in motion plans for the cleaning of the walls and even ordered the scaffolding. By late evening our carpenter, Mr Manthos Kakavelakis had taken measurement for the new stair as the old one was completely gutted in the fire and we had discussed the creation of a solid stone wall to protect the new library entrance. This structure will be articulated so as to include the entrance to the mikveh. All of the carpets of the synagogue (some 30 odd and most of them antique Turkish) had been covered with soot and messed about by the fire-fighters and police. These have been packed up in readiness for cleaning.

On the 6th January, a day after the fire we assembled together to recite Shaharith prayers at 9:00 as is our custom.

The atmosphere was understandably sombre but the director – Mr Stavroulakis – tried to divert some of the understandable anger by looking over what had happened over the past 24 hours or so. We must be angry over what has happened to our synagogue. If we were not it would be an indication that we were either indifferent or morally numb. But exactly against what is our anger directed? The urban context in which Etz Hayyim figures at this moment must be considered carefully and any indifference on the part of the citizens to the material fabric of this city and its collective ‘psyche’ is tantamount to abetting to a degree the desecration of monuments, of homes and sites of common meeting. What we must be angry about is the ignorance that determines racism, discrimination or badly examined lives.

We have tried at Etz Hayyim to be a small presence in the midst of what is at times almost aggressive ignorance. We have done this to such a degree that our doors are open from early in the morning until late in the day so that the Synagogue assumes its role as a place of prayer, recollection and reconciliation. In many ways we have been successful through this quiet presence – perhaps our ‘silent presence’ wears not too well on some and is even a source of annoyance to others. Often I have pointed out that we are perhaps the only synagogue of significance in Greece, possibly Europe, where there is little if any overt sign of protective security. Hand-bags are not checked, ID cards and passports are not examined, and one is not obliged to sign in. This character of the Synagogue must not change and the doors must remain open – or we have given in to the ignorance that has perpetrated this desecration. Our awareness of what ignorance can do to us will certainly determine how certain repairs are to be made – but at the same time we must be cautious about allowing ignorance to affect or determine the nature of our presence. We will have a heavy burden of funding the necessary renovations and we hope that you as either old friends or new ones will assist us.

Any donations will be deeply appreciated and, of course, welcome.

ALPHA BANK (Hania)

Account name: Friends of Etz Hayyim

Account # 776-002101-087154

IBAN: GR74 0140 6600 7760 0210 1087 154

Nicholas Hannan-Stavroulakis / Director Etz Hayyim Synagogue/ Hania

In the USA, tax-deductible charitable contribution will also be received by the International Survey of Jewish Monuments (ISJM). Checks can be sent to ISJM, P.O. Box 210, 118 Julian Place, Syracuse, NY 13210. Write "Hania" on the memo line. 100% of all funds will be transferred for use by Etz Hayyim.

Greece: Ioannina Christians Rally to Protect Jewish Cemetery

Greece: Ioannina Christians Rally to Protect Jewish Cemetery
by Samuel D. Gruber

(ISJM) On December 18, 2009, Greek Christians in the northern city of Ioannina united in an unprecedented demonstration against anti-Semitism and in recognition of the Jewish heritage of their city. As I wrote in July, the cemetery has been the repeated target of vandalism with three attacks this year.

In recent years the municipality has also made attempts to assume control over parts of the cemetery property.

Ioannina, Greece. Grave desecrated on June 2, 2009. Photo: KIS

According to Marcia Haddad Ikonomopoulis, the demonstration "was organized by the Christian citizens of the city and was heralded as a “a human chain against racism.” The cemetery was surrounded by the citizens of Ioannina to show their support for the Jewish community of the city and to publicly show their outrage at recent desecrations of Jewish tombstones."

A public exhibition was also held to highlighted the ancient Jewish presence in Ioannina "and the importance of the Jewish cemetery as a monument to the long Jewish presence in Ioannina."

"The committee that organized the public display of support made the following statement: “The Jewish cemetery is not only the religious space of the Jewish Community but, also, a cultural monument of our city, the protection of which, like other historical monuments of our city, is the duty of every citizen.”

The Jewish community of Ioannina was been the subject of a multi-media documentation project by Vincent Giordano, sponsored by ISJM.

Marcia Haddad Ikonomopoulos, Museum Director at Kehila Kedosha Janina (New York) has previously provided this blog with an account of the cemetery's history.

For more information about the Ioannina cemetery and all aspects of Jewish history of Ioannina and of its daughter community in the United States, contact:

Marcia Haddad Ikonomopoulos
Museum Director
Kehila Kedosha Janina
280 Broome Street
NYC, NY 10002
kehila_kedosha_janina@netzero.net

Conference: Association of European Jewish Museums Annual Conference in Athens, 21-24 November 2009

Conference: Association of European Jewish Museums Annual Conference in Athens, 21-24 November 2009

(ISJM) This year, the conference of the Association of European Jewish Museums (AEJM) will be held in Athens, hosted by the Jewish Museum of Greece.

According to the AEJM website, the program (preliminary version see below) will give "participants insights into the local Jewish history and culture with a keynote lecture by Prof. Euridice Antzoulatou-Retsila, as well as visits to sights and exhibitions in and around Athens. The conference will bring together museum professionals from all over Europe and will include workshop, keynote lectures and panel discussions, on themes such as Building Bridges with other minorities and the wider community. Participants are also invited to extend the program by an additional day (Nov. 25), in order to visit the Jewish Museum of Thessaloniki and sites of interest in that historic center of Jewish life."

Conference participation is for AEJM members. For those not members, consult the AEJM website to learn about individual and institutional memberships. For further
information, please contact Ulrike Roth (AEJM Administrator): aejm@aejm.org


PRELIMINARY PROGRAMME FOR AEJM CONFERENCE,
Athens, 21-24 November 2009

Saturday 21 November 2009

18:00 Arrival at the Jewish Museum of Greece (JMG)
Registration – Receipt of conference material
Guided tour of the exhibitions
Reception
Program


Sunday 22 November

9:00 Meeting at Electra Pallas Hotel (conference venue)

Sightseeing tour by bus: Athens Synagogue
Athens Cemeteries

11:30 Leave for Chalkis
12:30 Lunch offered by the Chalkis Community
14:00 Visit to Chalkis Synagogue and Cemetery: brief presentation

16:00 Return to Athens

17:30 Meeting at the Electra Pallas Hotel (conference venue)
17:45 Welcoming Address by Samuel Matsas, JMG President
18:00 Keynote Lecture by Prof. Euridice Antzoulatou-Retsila on
“Museums, Bodies of Memory”
18:40 Questions - Discussion
19:30 Reception by Athens Jewish Community at the Cultural Centre (Kosher)


Monday 23 November 2009

9:00 Meeting at the Electra Pallas Hotel (conference venue)

Keynote session and panel discussion: „Building Bridges“
This will exploring the ways in which Jewish museums build connections to different audiences: to the Jewish community, to the wider community and to other minorities.

10:45 – 11:15 Coffee/tea break

„Building Bridges“ session continues

12:00 – 13:00 Session on Looted Judaica

13:00 – 14:00 Lunch break


14:00 – 15:30 First round of workshops:

• Greek Jewish Religious Art: unique features and common characteristics. This will be presented by Christina Meri, JMG curator, illustrated with actual artifacts.

• Museum storage and preventive conservation policies: issues and solutions for small spaces. This will be presented by Mary Kapotsi, staff conservator.

• Corpus of Jewish Inscriptions of Greece: a JMG project of European and International interest. This will be presented by Anastasia Loudarou, archaeologist, who is in charge of the project.

• Educational programs and products: choices and challenges. This will be presented by Orietta Treveza, JMG education officer.

• Designing exhibitions on a small budget: in-house solutions. This will be presented by Hayia Cohen, JMG graphic designer.

15:30 – 16:00 Coffee/tea break

16:00 – 18:00 Annual General Meeting

19:00 Tour of the new Acropolis Museum

20:30 Reception by Athens Municipality at the local Mayoral Hall

Tuesday 24 November 2009

9:00 – 10:30 New Projects: Panel Discussion on innovative exhibitions and other inspiring projects – contributions are invited for this session.

10:30 – 11:00 Coffee/tea break

11:00 – 12:30 Second round of workshops

12:30 – 13:00 Workshop feedback and discussion of future priorities for AEJM

13:00 – 13:15 Conference Conclusions

Those attending the conference are invited to transfer to Thessaloniki for a visit and further program at the Jewish Museum of Thessaloniki. This will include a bus tour of Jewish sites in the city, a meal and a guided tour of the Jewish Museum of Thessaloniki.

Turkey: ASF's Publication and On-line Photos Archive of Nearly 3,000 Photo of Turkish Synagogues

Turkey: ASF's Publication and On-line Photos Archive of Nearly 3,000 Photo of Turkish Synagogues
by Samuel D. Gruber

(ISJM) The American Sephardi Federation has published a book about Turkish Synagogues and posted nearly 3,000 photos on-line.

Over a two month period in 1996, New York-based architect (and ISJM member) Joel Zack and photographer Devon Jarvis; along with Turkish architectural student Ceren Kahraman and Muharrem Zeybek, driver and guide, traveled 6,000 miles documenting fifty Turkish synagogues and former synagogues, producing a rich descriptive, graphic and photographic archive. The project was funded by the Maurice Amado Foundation and the Mitrani Family Foundation. The selection of photographs from the expedition was first exhibited at the 92nd Street Y in New York, and then in a traveling exhibition.

On the occasion of the exhibition of work at the Topkapı Palace Museum in Istanbul last fall the American Sephardi Federation (ASF) published an exhibition catalog by Joel A. Zack, The Historic Synagogues of Turkey / Türkiye’nin Tarihi Sinagoglari (ISBN 978-0-615-23948-4). More importantly, ASF created as part of the digital archives of the Center for Jewish History, an on-line archive of 2,827 of Devon Jarvis’s Turkish synagogue photographs.

The work of Zack, Jarvis and Kahraman adds significantly to a growing body of documentation about Turkish Jewish monuments. Since 1992 a number of research and documentation projects have been carried out in the country, including the recording of cemetery epitaphs by a team lead by Mina Rozen of Hebrew University; photography and film making with an ethnographic slant by Ayse Gursan-Salzmann and Laurence Salzmann; documentation of Turkish synagogues and Judaica by the Center for Jewish Art; and the photography of Turkish synagogues by Erson Alik. There is also a new 2-volume book on Turkish synagogues by Izzet Keribar and Naim Guleryuz published last year, that I have not yet had a opportunity to see.

All these projects, together with other documentation efforts in Morocco, Egypt and Syria, are greatly altering the Eurocentric view of architectural achievements in synagogue building, and also putting to the test long-established theories of architectural influence. Clearly, now that so many more synagogue are known - or can be known - to scholars, it seems clearer that there has been at the very least, for many centuries, a formal, functional and stylistic give-and-take between Judaism's east and west, and south and north.

Other scholars have been working on other aspects of synagogues of the former Ottoman Empire, and we can expect soon publication on the synagogue Greece by Elias Messinas and of Syria by David Cassuto. ASF has also put on-line digital versions of much photographs taken by Isaiah Wyner as part of a survey of Moroccan synagogues directed by Zack for the World Monuments Fund in 1989 (I will write more about these at another time).

Zack’s book is a useful guide to Turkish synagogues, but is only introductory in nature. He briefly describes the various types of synagogues he found throughout the country, and some of their distinguishing features. Much of the text is in the form of picture captions; some are detailed, but others offer little information...presumably because there is little yet known. Because of the geographic expanse of Turkey, and because of cultural connections of the Ottoman Age, there are many different types of synagogues that served diverse Jewish communities. Turkey was fertile ground for synagogue design. Besides local ancient, Byzantine and Ottoman sources, there was a near-constant Ottoman cultural exchange with Russia, Central Europe, Italy, Egypt, Syria and Iraq. Future research will need to further examine these associations in the context of Jewish art and architecture. Perhaps the most clearly indigenous Ottoman synagogue type is that of the rectangular plan with a central four column feature, usually surrounding a tevah and sometimes surmounted by a dome. This type was common around Izmir and is also known in Northern Greece, and Bulgaria. But it is also known in Morocco, and even earlier in a simpler form from Tomar, Portugal; so the actual origins of the type remain unknown.

Zack’s book, as an exhibition catalog, lacks a strong historical framework, but he leaves the door open for any researcher to provide more information about the history, architecture and context of any individual building.

By making the entire photo archive accessible to all, Zack and Jarvis provide an opportunity heretofore lacking for an in-depth study of Turkish synagogues. They would be the first to admit that their project poses as many questions as it answers. Indeed, one of the most telling parts of the short text is the section "Issues and Lessons." Zack poses the difficult questions about what is to be done – if anything – to preserve this architectural legacy, since most of the synagogue are either not in use, or serve very small congregations. He asks what legacy this is – a Jewish one, a Turkish one, or something else, the reminder of a still-recent past where Jews, Muslims and others all (reasonably) peacefully co-existed in the Middle East.

Zacks writes: “The answers are complex. Through the lens of today’s world and the immediacy of today’s headlines, Jewish communities like those of the Ottoman Empire and Turkey seem perhaps like an anomaly or an anachronism. I would argue that we look through that same lens, but with a more expansive view – a view that encompasses the breadth of the history of these buildings and the significance that they might hold for us and for the future.”

Greece: Third Attack on Ioannina Jewish Cemetery This Year

Ioannina, Greece. Grave desecrated on June 2, 2009. Photo: KIS

Greece: Third Attack of Ioannina Jewish Cemetery This Year by Samuel D. Gruber (Marcia Haddad Ikonomopoulis contributed to this post) (ISJM) The International Survey of Jewish Monuments has been engaged for several years in the project Before the Flame Goes Out to document the Jewish sites, community and ceremonies of the Ioannina, Greece, and of the Romaniote Jewish community in New York that originated in Ioannina. ISJM is especially concerned about continuing attacks on the historic Jewish cemetery of Ioannina. The cemetery, which has endured much over the past century, was attacked again by vandals on July 9th, the third time the cemetery has been desecrated this year, and the fourth time in two years. Despite widespread knowledge of the likely perpetrators of the act, local officials continue to take no action to apprehend them, according to members of the local Jewish community. Two tombstones were vandalized in the most recent attack. While the most recent attack was not as severe as that on June 2nd, nor the one that took place in January of 2009, the fact that there have been four such anti-Semitic desecrations in the last two years has caused alarm in the Jewish Community of Ioannina and in other Jewish communities in Greece, and also among Yanniotes in the United States who have family members buried in the cemetery. On June 2nd three recent tombstones directly to the right of the Holocaust memorial inside the cemetery were brutally smashed. Other tombstones further in the cemetery have also been specifically targeted. The Holocaust Memorial was also damaged in the attack, and turtle was slaughtered, and its blood deliberately splattered on the memorial. Local sources have no doubt that the desecrations are acts of anti-Semitism, as there is a local network of neo-Fascists who had publicly demonstrated in the the city. To date there has been little outrage at or condemnation of the most attack in Greece or from abroad. Representatives of local political parties denounced the June 2nd attack but to the knowledge of ISJM, Jewish and human rights organizations that routinely denounce such vandalism in Poland, Ukraine and elsewhere have been silent. ISJM encourages individuals and organizations to contact Greek embassies to alert them of international concern about the continuing vandalism of Jewish sites in Greece. Though the local police have now increased security at the cemetery since the attack, local Jewish community representative are doubtful this will have more than a temporary effect, especially since protests after the June 2nd attack did nothing to stop the attack just one week later. They have proposed that either the police commit themselves to 24-hour security, as is now provided for synagogues in Athens and Salonika, or they assist in increasing the the height of the cemetery protective wall. History of the Jewish Cemetery of Ioannina Marcia Haddad Ikonomopoulos, Museum Director at Kehila Kedosha Janina (New York) has provided the following account of the cemetery's history.

The Jewish Cemetery of Ioannina is situated in what was once an eight-acre field bought by the community from the Ottoman Turkish Despot, Ali Pasha, in the early 19th century. The history of a burial site for the Jews of the city has been one fraught with ceaseless obstacles. The original cemetery was outside the walls of the fortified city (the Kastro), near the market place. Nothing remains of that cemetery but it is believed that tombstones, many going back to the 13th century, were transferred to subsequent cemeteries. In 1892 a later Jewish cemetery was desecrated by the Ottoman authorities and the main site of Jewish burial was transferred to the outskirts of the city, in an area called Kalkan. This later cemetery was leveled in 1922 to build homes for Greek refugees from Asia Minor. It was then that the tombstones were transferred to the field known as Gem, the site of the present Jewish cemetery. At the entrance to he new cemetery is the inscription (translated from the Hebrew): "The Almighty Who dwells among us has allowed us to erect a wall around this field so they (the deceased) may repose in the land of the living; for the consecration of the Society of the Righteous (Hevra Hesed) and with the notables of the day."

 

Ioannina, Greece. Older tombstones in Jewish cemetery. Photo: Marcia Haddad Ikonomopulis

The present cemetery originally encompassed over 25,000 square meters and, as was the custom, the older burials were towards the rear of the cemetery. Much of the area remained unused and, after the loss of over 90% of the Jewish Community of Ioannina in the Holocaust, the cemetery fell into disrepair. According to Greek law, burials cannot take place within the city limits and the City of Ioannina tried to expropriate the Jewish cemetery land which, although originally outside the city limits, with the growth of the city, now found itself within the city. In the 1990s, as a gesture of good will, the community ceded a plot of unused cemetery land, located on the far right of the cemetery, to the municipality to be used as a park. The cemetery has been subjected to acts of vandalism and, after years of legal battles, the Jewish community was finally issued a permit to raise the height of the protective wall around the cemetery. Funds were raised by Yanniote Jews in the United States ($15,000) for the erection of the wall and the work was completed in the spring of 2002. The Central Board of Jewish Communities (KIS) also contributed. The municipality had the responsibility of erecting the wall separating the cemetery from the land donated for the park but did not make it high enough to keep out vandals, the results being that the cemetery was vandalized in April of 2002; five tombstones severely damaged. The municipality has taken responsibility for this and was to repair the damage along with increasing the height of the protective wall. The wall is still insufficient to prevent vandals from entering. According to the oral history of the community, and archival material attesting to the transporting of tombstones from former cemeteries, it is believed that tombstones dating back to the 13th century are buried under overgrowth in the far rear of the left side of the cemetery. If this is the case, the Jewish cemetery of Ioannina might hold some of the oldest Romaniote Jewish tombstones in Greece. Only with complete cleanup and expert assessment will we be able to determine what can be restored. To date, documentation has not been completed.

For more information about the Jewish Community of Ioannina and the Jewish cemetery contact kehila_kedosha_janina@netzero.net