| © 2006 Rabbi Barbara Aiello, All rights reserved. |
Rabbi Barbara Aiello
Or Chadash • Purim Palooza - Italian Style
Purim Palooza - Italian Style
Rabbi Barbara Aiello
Chavurah Or Chadash
Turin, Italy
Chavurah Or Chadash
Turin, Italy
Sunday morning, March 4, 2007 was the day, Ivrea, a small
"paese" outside of Torino, Italy was the place and Purim was
the reason. Not just any old Purim and not just any old
place. For all of us at Chavurah Or Chadash, the first
Progressive (Reform) congregation in Torino and one of
only five in all of Italy, it was the first ever Purim service held
in an Italian synagogue!
The little shul in Ivrea had hopes of becoming a thriving
center of Jewish life for Jews outside of Turin. It was built
and dedicated in 1875, but almost immediately the
synagogue was too large and as such WAS NEVER USED!
Instead the Jewish community made an agreement with the
"Comune," (City Hall) to restore a smaller building to use for
worship services in exchange for allowing the local citizenry
to use the larger synagogue for community events.
So it was that on September 24, 2006, exactly 131 years to
the date of its dedication, our group, Or Chadash, held
Rosh HaShanah services and a Torah dedication there. It
was the first ever Rosh HaShanah service to be held in the
Ivrea synagogue and the first ever Progressive/Reform
service held anywhere in Italy inside a "real" synagogue
building!
So you can imagine how proud, happy... no scratch that...
ecstatic .... we all were to repeat the "firsts" and hold Purim
in the Ivrea synagogue as well.
Festivities began at 11 am with a short service. We opened
the ark and all of our little ones, princesses and queens,
knights, prophets and Bat Man, stood in front of the open
ark and sang the Sh'ma. Miriam, one of our teens who
plans to be the first ever Bat Mitzvah in Torino, had already
read the morning blessings in a lilting Italian chant.
And then, after a rousing chorus of "Sim Shalom," and
meditative "O Seh Shalom," Ba'al Kore Simeone Bordon
(who has learned to chant an Italian trope that dates back to
the 900's) lifted "La Megillah di Ester" high above his head
while Rabbi Barbara led the group of 14 children and 40
adults in Shehechianyu... thanking God for bringing us all
together to celebrate in this place in this season.
The Megillah reading was "creative!" Rabbi Barbara
introduced the story of Esther by using one of her large (3
feet tall) puppets, "Consuelo Coin," who represents a child
from an interfaith family (much like our own Torinese
families). "Consuelo" set the stage with the story of Vashti's
"No is a complete sentence," and then Simeone chanted
Chapter 3 in Hebrew. Silvia, a cancer survivor, read chapter
7 in Italian and then "Consuelo"
returned to center stage to lead the children in the final
chorus of "Booooooooo.... Booooooooo... Booooo!"
Drama director, Laura Bordon had prepared "greggers"
Italian-style. She used small plastic mineral water bottles
and filled them with "cecci.." (garbanzo beans). Everyone
wore cotumes, even the adults, who donned feather masks
donated to us by a US congregation. Those masks, along
with individual megillah pamphlets, allowed all of us to follow
Esther's story in the original Hebrew.
When the last Boo was booed and the final Hiss hissed,
Rabbi Barbara and Simeone led the adults in a character
study of Vashti, the unsung hero of Purim. We spoke about
how it was Vashti's courage that may have "nudgied" King
Ahashverous to be a bit more attentive when the next queen
had "an issue."
We combined the ancient lesson of the Esther story with a
modern day call to action. Thursday, March 8 is the Day of
the Women here in Italy. It is a festival that commemorates
the lives of the courageous Italian and Jewish women who
lost their lives in the Manhattan Triangle Waist Factory fire
in March, 1911. Each year on March 8, women are given a
sprig of mimosa to remember the women who, as they
jumped to their deaths, saw a field of mimosa near the
burning factory... the last flowers they would ever see. Our
lesson for Purim was for the men and women of Or Chadash
to give mimosa to a woman whose life is a tribute to quiet
courage.
While the adults were studying, the children were packing.
Not suitcases, but large shopping bags. Each family had
been asked to bring baby items for a special Tikkun Olam
project, so our little ones had their hands full, with pampers,
baby bottles, pacifiers and wipes which they stuffed into
bags and stuck with stickers, "Or Chadash Tikkun Olam
Project," on each bag.
On Monday morning the 41 bags were delivered to the
Italian organization, "Caminare insieme," ("to walk together),
a Torino based project that assists homeless young mothers
and their babies. Padre don Gianni, the head of the group,
was thrilled with the gifts and spoke to Anna Levo, Roberto
Sofia (co-chairs of the Or Chadash Steering Committee and
organizers of the Tikkun Olam effort) and Rabbi Barbara
about how "walking together" is possible if religions make
"working together" a priority.
Thank you Forest Foundation, Uncle Moishe, Brady and
everyone on staff for helping us have the best Purim ever.
You gave us much more than a financial grant. For a small,
struggling and isolated congregation, you gave us the best
gift of all... a good dose of hope!
"paese" outside of Torino, Italy was the place and Purim was
the reason. Not just any old Purim and not just any old
place. For all of us at Chavurah Or Chadash, the first
Progressive (Reform) congregation in Torino and one of
only five in all of Italy, it was the first ever Purim service held
in an Italian synagogue!
The little shul in Ivrea had hopes of becoming a thriving
center of Jewish life for Jews outside of Turin. It was built
and dedicated in 1875, but almost immediately the
synagogue was too large and as such WAS NEVER USED!
Instead the Jewish community made an agreement with the
"Comune," (City Hall) to restore a smaller building to use for
worship services in exchange for allowing the local citizenry
to use the larger synagogue for community events.
So it was that on September 24, 2006, exactly 131 years to
the date of its dedication, our group, Or Chadash, held
Rosh HaShanah services and a Torah dedication there. It
was the first ever Rosh HaShanah service to be held in the
Ivrea synagogue and the first ever Progressive/Reform
service held anywhere in Italy inside a "real" synagogue
building!
So you can imagine how proud, happy... no scratch that...
ecstatic .... we all were to repeat the "firsts" and hold Purim
in the Ivrea synagogue as well.
Festivities began at 11 am with a short service. We opened
the ark and all of our little ones, princesses and queens,
knights, prophets and Bat Man, stood in front of the open
ark and sang the Sh'ma. Miriam, one of our teens who
plans to be the first ever Bat Mitzvah in Torino, had already
read the morning blessings in a lilting Italian chant.
And then, after a rousing chorus of "Sim Shalom," and
meditative "O Seh Shalom," Ba'al Kore Simeone Bordon
(who has learned to chant an Italian trope that dates back to
the 900's) lifted "La Megillah di Ester" high above his head
while Rabbi Barbara led the group of 14 children and 40
adults in Shehechianyu... thanking God for bringing us all
together to celebrate in this place in this season.
The Megillah reading was "creative!" Rabbi Barbara
introduced the story of Esther by using one of her large (3
feet tall) puppets, "Consuelo Coin," who represents a child
from an interfaith family (much like our own Torinese
families). "Consuelo" set the stage with the story of Vashti's
"No is a complete sentence," and then Simeone chanted
Chapter 3 in Hebrew. Silvia, a cancer survivor, read chapter
7 in Italian and then "Consuelo"
returned to center stage to lead the children in the final
chorus of "Booooooooo.... Booooooooo... Booooo!"
Drama director, Laura Bordon had prepared "greggers"
Italian-style. She used small plastic mineral water bottles
and filled them with "cecci.." (garbanzo beans). Everyone
wore cotumes, even the adults, who donned feather masks
donated to us by a US congregation. Those masks, along
with individual megillah pamphlets, allowed all of us to follow
Esther's story in the original Hebrew.
When the last Boo was booed and the final Hiss hissed,
Rabbi Barbara and Simeone led the adults in a character
study of Vashti, the unsung hero of Purim. We spoke about
how it was Vashti's courage that may have "nudgied" King
Ahashverous to be a bit more attentive when the next queen
had "an issue."
We combined the ancient lesson of the Esther story with a
modern day call to action. Thursday, March 8 is the Day of
the Women here in Italy. It is a festival that commemorates
the lives of the courageous Italian and Jewish women who
lost their lives in the Manhattan Triangle Waist Factory fire
in March, 1911. Each year on March 8, women are given a
sprig of mimosa to remember the women who, as they
jumped to their deaths, saw a field of mimosa near the
burning factory... the last flowers they would ever see. Our
lesson for Purim was for the men and women of Or Chadash
to give mimosa to a woman whose life is a tribute to quiet
courage.
While the adults were studying, the children were packing.
Not suitcases, but large shopping bags. Each family had
been asked to bring baby items for a special Tikkun Olam
project, so our little ones had their hands full, with pampers,
baby bottles, pacifiers and wipes which they stuffed into
bags and stuck with stickers, "Or Chadash Tikkun Olam
Project," on each bag.
On Monday morning the 41 bags were delivered to the
Italian organization, "Caminare insieme," ("to walk together),
a Torino based project that assists homeless young mothers
and their babies. Padre don Gianni, the head of the group,
was thrilled with the gifts and spoke to Anna Levo, Roberto
Sofia (co-chairs of the Or Chadash Steering Committee and
organizers of the Tikkun Olam effort) and Rabbi Barbara
about how "walking together" is possible if religions make
"working together" a priority.
Thank you Forest Foundation, Uncle Moishe, Brady and
everyone on staff for helping us have the best Purim ever.
You gave us much more than a financial grant. For a small,
struggling and isolated congregation, you gave us the best
gift of all... a good dose of hope!
Rabbi Barbara Aiello with puppet character
Conseulo Cohen, tells the Purim story.
Ba'al Kore Simeone Bordon shares
Megillah duties, by chanting Esther's story
in Italian 9th century trope!. The setting is
the synagogue in Ivrea. "Now Esther was
the quiet kind, natural and smart. She said,
I want the king to like me for my brains and
my personality, not for my clothes or my
hair!" (puppet Consuelo)
Conseulo Cohen, tells the Purim story.
Ba'al Kore Simeone Bordon shares
Megillah duties, by chanting Esther's story
in Italian 9th century trope!. The setting is
the synagogue in Ivrea. "Now Esther was
the quiet kind, natural and smart. She said,
I want the king to like me for my brains and
my personality, not for my clothes or my
hair!" (puppet Consuelo)
| Click on photos to view larger image. |
Reading the list of Haman's sons all in one
big long breath. "Wow, Haman passed on
his badness to lots of kids..." (Samuele, 8
years old) "Allora, Haman ha passato tutto
della sua cattiveria ai molti figli.."
big long breath. "Wow, Haman passed on
his badness to lots of kids..." (Samuele, 8
years old) "Allora, Haman ha passato tutto
della sua cattiveria ai molti figli.."
"E possibile per noi di trovare i nomi di
Ester, Mordechai, Vashti e Haman?" (Can
we find the names of the Purim
characters?" Rebecca, aka "the witch in
the black hat.." Strega NonnaI
Ester, Mordechai, Vashti e Haman?" (Can
we find the names of the Purim
characters?" Rebecca, aka "the witch in
the black hat.." Strega NonnaI
"Tikkun Olam means repair of the world.
We'll help a little piece of our world here in
Torino. Homeless mothers and babies."
Rabbi Barbara demonstrating the kids
making "goodie 'sachetti' filled with
diapers, "blinkies," wipes and formula.
"Superman" "watches attentively!
We'll help a little piece of our world here in
Torino. Homeless mothers and babies."
Rabbi Barbara demonstrating the kids
making "goodie 'sachetti' filled with
diapers, "blinkies," wipes and formula.
"Superman" "watches attentively!
Forty sacks for "Caminare Insieme," a
program for homeless young women and
their babies, 0-2 years. "Caminare
Insieme" means "to walk together." As
Rabbi Barbara and Anna Levo of Or
Chadash deliver the sacks to Padre Gianni,
he said, "we can only 'caminare insieme...
walk together.." if we are willing to
"lavorare insieme... work together!"
program for homeless young women and
their babies, 0-2 years. "Caminare
Insieme" means "to walk together." As
Rabbi Barbara and Anna Levo of Or
Chadash deliver the sacks to Padre Gianni,
he said, "we can only 'caminare insieme...
walk together.." if we are willing to
"lavorare insieme... work together!"