[Faith-talk] A New York Beacon for Greek Jews by Ralph Gardner, Jr.

[Paul Smith]

Hello on this Tuesday to all my fellow readers out there.  Hope you are 
all doing well as you read this message, by God's matchless grace and 
His providential care.

The following interesting article appeared in the Wall Street Journal 
for June 28, 2016.  Personally I like reading about "the last" of its 
kind or "the only" one of its kind, and I personally hope that my 
pastor, Jason Meyerson, will enjoy it.  Read below to find out what I mean.

Not only was I unfamiliar with Kehila Kedosha Janina on Broome Street, 
the last remaining Romaniote synagogue in the Western Hemisphere and a 
New York City landmark, but I'd never heard the term Romaniote Judaism.

It's a community of Greek Jews more than 2,000 years old.  They came to 
the U.S. starting in the early 1900's; the synagogue on the Lower East 
Side opened in 1927.

All of this was explained to me by Marcia Hadad Ikonomopoulos, who is 
director of the synagogue's museum.

Ms. Ikonomopoulos hosts a combination Greek kosher lunch and synagogue 
tour as well as annual trips to Greece.

"Eighty-seven percent of Greek Jews perished during the Holocaust," she 
explained.

Kehila Kedosha Janina has a mailing list of 3,000 households in the 
U.S. and 500 abroad, Ms. Ikonomopoulos said as she unlocked the 
synagogue, which is open to the public on Sundays from 11 a.m. to 4 
p.m. and by appointment.  "Most have at least one connection to this 
community."

The building's beige brick facade is decorated with the Ten 
Commandments and stained-glass windows surmounted by the Star of David. 
The museum was carved out of the second-floor women's gallery--men and 
women sit apart from each other in Orthodox congregations.

Services, in Hebrew, are held every Shabbat and on all major Jewish 
holidays, Ms. Ikonomopoulos explained.

The congregation is named after the town of Ioannina (Janina) in 
Greece.  According to legend, Jews swam ashore there in the year 70, 
escaping from a Roman slave ship.

Geographically isolated, the community developed traditions and 
remained Greek-speaking even after the post-1492 influx of Jews 
expelled from Spain during the Inquisition.

Ms. Ikonomopoulos said it's impossible to say how many belong to the 
congregation because there isn't paid membership.  However, there are 
enough members to hold services and everyone is welcome.  "We have 
become the center for Romaniote Judaism in the world," she added.

The synagogue, which was renovated with the support of the New York 
Landmarks Conservancy, a nonprofit dedicated to preserving the city's 
architecturally significant buildings, was dedicated in 1927 by Rabbi 
David de Sola Pool.  Rabbi Pool was the esteemed leader of Congregation 
Shearith Israel, the Spanish and Portuguese synagogue on Central Park 
West and the oldest Jewish congregation in the U.S.

The synagogue is long and narrow; the bema, the podium used for Torah 
reading during services, is in the center of the sanctuary.  However, 
the Torah Ark, the cabinet where the Torah scrolls are kept, is at the 
north end of the building.  It includes a Torah written in Romaniote script.

"There are only three in the world," Ms. Ikonomopoulos said as she 
carefully unrolled the parchment scroll.  "It's in the traditional 
Romaniote style of writing," with elongation marks.  "Elongations tell 
when to pause."

The profits from the tours to Greece are used to help Greek Jews, 
especially those communities devastated by the Holocaust.  "We also 
give a generous contribution to the Jewish community of Ioannina," 
which has few members remaining, she said.

While there's something slightly melancholy about the synagogue and its 
artifacts--including one member's 1890 wedding gown and the names of 
its 1927 board of directors etched in marble over the door--it's moving 
that the community survives at all.

And Ms. Ikonomopoulos said Kehila Kedosha Janina's attractive blue 
T-shirts sell very well.

Well folks, other than what you just read, how many of you have ever 
heard of this synagogue before, let alone Romaniote Judaism and its 
script? I seriously doubt you have.  One slight possible error:  
Congregation Shearith Israel probably isn't the oldest Jewish synagogue 
in this country; that honor most probably belongs to Touro Synagogue in 
Newport, Rhode Island, built and established by Sephardic Jews in 1763 
and, as far as I know, is still used for worship on Jewish Shabbat.  
Anyway maybe Pastor Meyerson can research this.  Also, does anyone know 
if Romaniote is a spoken language or is it just written?

Anyway I hope that you have enjoyed reading this article.  Don't know 
what will be posted tomorrow, but stay tuned to reading it.  Until then 
may the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob just keep us safe, individually 
and collectively, in these last days in which we live.  Your Christian 
friend and brother, Paul