First synagogue opens in Cyprus
Original article: www.ejpress.org/article/2788
Updated: 13/Sep/2005 13:45
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In a new step marking the renewal of communal Jewish life in Cyprus, the first and only synagogue on this Eastern Mediterranean island was inaugurated in the city of Larnaca on Monday.
The country was apart from Malta the only European Union member state which had not had a synagogue or a rabbi in many years.
In the presence of numerous invitees from Cyprus and Israel, as well as representatives from several other countries, a ceremony was held at Larnaca's Jewish community centre.
A new Torah scroll was introduced and the first rabbi of the Jewish community inducted. The festive ceremony also included the laying of a cornerstone for a mikvah or ritual bath.
New inductee
"It is my ardent hope that this will be the first of many events which will enable us to share our rich cultural heritage with the wider community," Rabbi Zeev Raskin said in a speech.
Among the 100 persons who attended the ceremony were Israel's chief rabbi Yona Metzger, Cypriot Education and Culture minister Pefkois Georgiades, and Larnaca's deputy mayor Alexis Michaelides.
25 ambassadors were present, as well as rabbis from Athens, Bucharest, Zagreb and Istanbul.
"We are proud to have you here. My door is always open for you," Michaelides told rabbi Raskin.
In a prepared welcome address, the mayor of Nicosia, Michael Zampelas, who couldn't attend the ceremony, said : "Our accession to the European Union is an expression of our commitment to the preservation of different religions, cultures and traditions, in line with the wider spirit of European unity in diversity."
"We believe that this spirit can contribute significantly to peace and stability within the extended European family," he added.
"This is an historic event for Cyprus. We are very happy Cyprus is open to all religions," the chief rabbi of Israel said.
Community strengthened
Rabbi Arie Ze'ev Raskin, 29, originally arrived from Israel in Cyprus in 2003 as an emissary of Chabad-Lubavitch. He was sent on the island to help stimulate a Jewish revival. He is with his wife Shaindel and their four children the only observant Jews in Cyprus.
"Since his arrival on the island, Rabbi Raskin has succeeded in strengthening the identity of the fainting Jewish community, establishing Shabbat services that draw about 150 people," said Eli Levy, an entrepreneur living in Cyprus.
"There was no place of worship for us, but it is an identity that I sincerely and deeply feel," Lilly Seraphim, a 77-year-old woman whose parents arrived in Cyprus from Ukraine and Russia in 1910, said at the ceremony.
Among other Jewish activities provided by the new rabbi are Sunday school classes, a nursery school and Shabbat services.
"We are now creating a brand-new life for Jews here," Raskin declared.
1,500 Jews
Around 1,500 Jews live today in Cyprus, many of whom arrived in recent years for business. Half of them are Israelis, the rest are mostly British or Russians.
The first Jews arrived on the island of Cyprus in 1571. Following WWII, some 52,000 Jews banned from entering Israel by the British were diverted to camps in Cyprus for various durations.
Cyprus is also today an important holiday destination for Jews, most of them from Israel.
Monday's inauguration was organized by the Brussels-based Rabbinical Center of Europe's support division. Headed by Rabbi Menachem Dikstein, this division is working to enhance the quality of Jewish life by providing assistance to rabbis and communities across Europe.
Copyright © 2001-2005 EJP | powered by D3 Digital Media
Original article: www.ejpress.org/article/2788
Updated: 13/Sep/2005 13:45
------------------------------
In a new step marking the renewal of communal Jewish life in Cyprus, the first and only synagogue on this Eastern Mediterranean island was inaugurated in the city of Larnaca on Monday.
The country was apart from Malta the only European Union member state which had not had a synagogue or a rabbi in many years.
In the presence of numerous invitees from Cyprus and Israel, as well as representatives from several other countries, a ceremony was held at Larnaca's Jewish community centre.
A new Torah scroll was introduced and the first rabbi of the Jewish community inducted. The festive ceremony also included the laying of a cornerstone for a mikvah or ritual bath.
New inductee
"It is my ardent hope that this will be the first of many events which will enable us to share our rich cultural heritage with the wider community," Rabbi Zeev Raskin said in a speech.
Among the 100 persons who attended the ceremony were Israel's chief rabbi Yona Metzger, Cypriot Education and Culture minister Pefkois Georgiades, and Larnaca's deputy mayor Alexis Michaelides.
25 ambassadors were present, as well as rabbis from Athens, Bucharest, Zagreb and Istanbul.
"We are proud to have you here. My door is always open for you," Michaelides told rabbi Raskin.
In a prepared welcome address, the mayor of Nicosia, Michael Zampelas, who couldn't attend the ceremony, said : "Our accession to the European Union is an expression of our commitment to the preservation of different religions, cultures and traditions, in line with the wider spirit of European unity in diversity."
"We believe that this spirit can contribute significantly to peace and stability within the extended European family," he added.
"This is an historic event for Cyprus. We are very happy Cyprus is open to all religions," the chief rabbi of Israel said.
Community strengthened
Rabbi Arie Ze'ev Raskin, 29, originally arrived from Israel in Cyprus in 2003 as an emissary of Chabad-Lubavitch. He was sent on the island to help stimulate a Jewish revival. He is with his wife Shaindel and their four children the only observant Jews in Cyprus.
"Since his arrival on the island, Rabbi Raskin has succeeded in strengthening the identity of the fainting Jewish community, establishing Shabbat services that draw about 150 people," said Eli Levy, an entrepreneur living in Cyprus.
"There was no place of worship for us, but it is an identity that I sincerely and deeply feel," Lilly Seraphim, a 77-year-old woman whose parents arrived in Cyprus from Ukraine and Russia in 1910, said at the ceremony.
Among other Jewish activities provided by the new rabbi are Sunday school classes, a nursery school and Shabbat services.
"We are now creating a brand-new life for Jews here," Raskin declared.
1,500 Jews
Around 1,500 Jews live today in Cyprus, many of whom arrived in recent years for business. Half of them are Israelis, the rest are mostly British or Russians.
The first Jews arrived on the island of Cyprus in 1571. Following WWII, some 52,000 Jews banned from entering Israel by the British were diverted to camps in Cyprus for various durations.
Cyprus is also today an important holiday destination for Jews, most of them from Israel.
Monday's inauguration was organized by the Brussels-based Rabbinical Center of Europe's support division. Headed by Rabbi Menachem Dikstein, this division is working to enhance the quality of Jewish life by providing assistance to rabbis and communities across Europe.
Copyright © 2001-2005 EJP | powered by D3 Digital Media
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