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Issue 20, Pesah 5777/ 2017 Etz Hayyim Synagogue P.O. Box 251 73100 Hania, Crete, Greece Tel. +30 28210 86286 E-mail: [email protected] Jottings Web site: www.etz-hayyim-hania.org Editorial mother’s English kidney pie; teaching about the world’s religions, while in More than three months since the end working hard on becoming a Nikos P. Stavroulakis’ passing, Etz reasonable Jew. Hayyim is sll receiving Many people righteously loved Nikos condolence le ers and emails for his all in human behaviour. They from people and friends whom admired his artwork and embraced Nikos had, in one way or the his teachings, wrings, building other, touched dearly throughout ability and enlightened knowledge on his long life. many historical ma ers. We have Some are wring arcles, sending dedicated this issue of Jongs to photos, making films, sharing Nikos, sharing with you a selecon of interviews and stories that all of the memories which we have together, build a complex portrait received and we hope that you will of a man with many diverse enjoy them as we have. More interests: a man asking more eulogies will be later featured on our quesons than finding answers; website where it's never too late to inving people in, but keeping a share a thought or to make a distance; opening up on donaon. As Nikos would have said convenonal ma ers, but with a twinkle in his deep blue eyes: L'Shanah Tovah (זצ״ל) always hiding a personal Νικόλαος Ντανιέλ Χαννάν-Σταυρουλάκης secret; spicing up life with Nicholas Daniel Hannan-Stavroulakis (ZT”L) and Happy Rosh Hashanah. Anatolian aromas, but 20 June 1932 - 19 May 2017 Marianna Vinther and the Etz never forge*ng his 16 Sivan 5692 - 23 Iyyar 5777 Hayyim staff Eulogies for Nikos Stavroulakis Also in this issue: Eulogies for Nikos ..............…………………..…3-11 Dear friends of Nikos, Nikos’ Legacy at Etz Hayyim……………..............12 In the early morning hours of Friday, May 19th, Nikos Pe- ter Stavroulakis passed away quietly in his own house. News from the International Havurah… ...............12 Surrounded by his close family, friends and a nurse, he Cultural Life at Etz Hayyim………………….......13 had lately suffered from a string of minor strokes which, Poetry Reading with Catherine T. Davidson:..........14 one by one, had closed down his general nerve system. In Poetry at Etz Hayyim...............……………………16 the end, there was not much that could be done for him and he finally found peace. He was honourably put to rest Festivals and Liturgical Life at Etz Hayyim............17 in the Jewish Cemetery of Nikia in Athens on May 22nd A Cretan Romaniote Haggadah………………...…17 following a funeral worthy of a high Jewish spiritual lead- Gedenkdienst at Etz Hayyim………..……..............18 er. Seminar with Federation of German Trade Unions.19 Thanks to the though;ul preparaons of Rabbi Gabriel … connued on page 2 Jottings Page 2 Negrin and our helpful friends from Athens and KIS, es- our most recent Interfaith Calendar. pecially to Iossif Ventura and Victor Eliezer, both of Today Nikos will be praised and honoured by colleagues, whom I would never have been able to do my part with- former students, new and old friends, by people who out their deep consideraon and empathy. knew him a life-me, by people who simply crossed his I closed his eyes. I stayed with him over the last years in path. June 20th was his birthday. Yet, the deepest and order for his dear and concerned family to be able to most lasng honour that we can give this talented, intel- keep him at his own house surrounded by his beloved ligent, free-thinking and, it might be said, somemes animals, books, music, garden and beauful balconies difficult man who gave us so much to think about, is to facing the old Venean harbour of Hania. In this way, he keep this place [the synagogue], his last and most deli- could sll welcome his friends in a decent manner and cate work, alive as much as possible in ways that compli- retain some of the quality of life he so much appreciat- ment his unique and individual spirit. On behalf of a unit- ed parcularly delicious food, wine and though;ul talks ed staff and Board of Trustees of Etz Hayyim, I just want with friends and colleagues from a long, creave and to add that this is what we will go on doing. Together respec;ul working life. with Nikos' close family, Dori and Karen Kanellos, both of On the synagogue’s part, we tried - Anja and I - to keep whom have been life-long supporters of Nikos and his him involved as long as his concentraon and health work, I want to thank all for coming today. It has been allowed. In spite of his serious decline, he sll managed extraordinarily overwhelming . Thank you! the editorial for our last newsle er and the layout for Marianna Vinther (President of the Board of Trustees) He always had a Jewish Museum big smile in the of Greece in Ath- beginning of our ens and it was meengs. He lit then that he his pipe and the said: “Suddenly discussion started one of those with “some clocks started French” for people cking. I brought who created ob- in some more stacles against his clocks, I wound work. We laughed, some others and we discussed and within half an then he moved hour all of the on, skipping over clocks were ck- the obstacles and ing to the same insisng on what At the funeral service for Nikos Stavroulakis, Athens, May 22nd, 2017, photo: Ken Ross rhythm. I felt as if he wanted to achieve which seemed impossible to the I had brought back to life all of those personal objects of rest of us in many cases. those people who were lost in 1943. I worked for many Nikos Stavroulakis was a cizen of the world, so today I hours in this small room in Melidoni Street, the clocks will paraphrase his own words from an interview in a started haunng me. Every night, before leaving, I newspaper conducted some years ago ( Eleherotypia , wound all of them and when I came back in the morning 21/02/2010): “One of the reasons for feeling proud of I would wind them again where necessary. If I found a being a Jew is that I belong everywhere. I can be French, malfunconing clock, I would send it for repair. This ex- English, Greek or Turkish, I can collect what I think is the perience became my hoop with the Museum, my very best from the people of every country and, at the same personal experience that led me to a close connecon me, I can keep my identy… The ability to adapt, this is with the Museum. It was this experience that helped me a vital characterisc for people”. understand that this should not be a museum for the In July 1977, Nikos began the process of establishing the Holocaust, but a museum for Jewish life, for ordinary Jottings Page 3 people, their life and how they were trapped by terrible gogue?”. I replied “of course you can”. They entered the events. It should also be a bond with the totally de- synagogue, lit the candles and made the sign of the stroyed past. That was the main idea in my mind for the Cross. On leaving, they explained to me that when they years to come”. Those thoughts were wri en in his re- were young, they were friends with some other young port dated November 19th, 2008, when the Central girls who were lost in 1944. They wanted to light a can- Board of Jewish Communies in Greece bestowed upon dle in their memory. This was the real bond with the him on the Medal of Honour for his services to Greek past. I think that this is the only synagogue in Europe Jewry. open to everybody; nobody is asking if you are a Chris- In 1993, Nikos resigned as Director of the Jewish Muse- an, a Muslim or a Jew”. um of Greece and returned to his father’s house in Ha- Nikos was a great teacher, giving his teaching flesh and nia, Crete, where he focused on painng, an endeavor blood every day through dialogue and common prayer. he loved very much. However, he could never remain He gave context to the terms: “brotherhood”, “mutual sll. understanding” and “mutual respect”‘. In the same inter- Following the devastang 1994 earthquake in Hania, he view, he stated that “tradionally, a synagogue is not a immediately went to the Central Board of Jewish Com- temple. It serves three purposes: first of all, it is a place munies in Greece based in Athens, informing us that where all people gather, Jews and non-Jews, to discuss the long-abandoned Etz Hayyim Synagogue in that city their common problems. Secondly, it is a place to study was facing imminent collapse due to earthquake dam- the holy books. Thirdly, it is a place where the believers age. Soon aQerwards, Nikos travelled to New York and pray towards Jerusalem. When we first sat down, all to- gave a lecture to the World Monuments Fund on endan- gether, and discussed what brings us all here together, in gered Jewish monuments in Greece with parcular em- this synagogue, fiQeen people here and almost five hun- phasis on Etz Hayyim that resulted in the synagogue be- dred who support us from abroad, we ended up defining ing added to the list of the world’s one hundred most the synagogue as a place of prayer, recollecon and rec- endangered monuments of cultural concern.