Rome's Jewish community, Italy's largest, on Thursday celebrated the 120th anniversary of the Temple Maggiore, its main synagogue in the city and the center of Jewish religious life.
The birthday of the temple, which was completed in 1904 on the banks of the Tiber River, was celebrated at an event attended by some of the highest Italian authorities, including the Head of State, Sergio Mattarella, and the Vice President and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Antonio Tajani.
“Proudly Italian and proudly Jewish,” declared the president of the Jewish community, Victor Fadlun, who thanked Mattarella and the other senior officials present for their visit, including the president of the Senate, Ignazio La Russa.
“You are welcome in this Templo Mayor, monument of our freedom,” which was built “after more than 300 years of forced isolation” in the old Jewish ghetto in Rome.
Fadlun also stressed that Jews have a long history in the city, going back a long way: “We have been citizens of Rome for more than 2.000 years,” he said.
“This temple is the symbol of the emancipation of the Jews from Rome and of the reconquest of our rights and duties as citizens. It is the place where we gather to reaffirm our will to exist and resist,” Fadlun added.
This recalled the Racial Laws of the fascist regime of Benito Mussolini, which institutionalized discrimination against Jews in Italy and led to their deportation and extermination by the Nazis during the years of World War II and the German occupation of Rome.
In Italy there are about 21 communities that form its historic Jewish minority, mostly located in cities in the center-north of the country.
The largest is the one in Rome, with between 12.000 and 15.000 members. Next is the community in Milan - between 6.000 and 10.000 people - and the total number of Jewish citizens in the country is around 30.0000, with other major communities in cities such as Venice, Florence, Bologna, Turin and Trieste. EFE
The Jewish community of Rome celebrates the 120th anniversary of its great synagogue, the Templo Mayor
Great Temple of Rome Photo: Mister No Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 3.0
Very good articles with real information on the updated situation.
Kol Hakavod for the Jewish Community of Rome!!!!!!!!!!