79:, before whom he was to discuss his thesis, abandoned the proceedings in disgust at the presence of a Jew. In 1939 he completed his theological degree. His brother Renzo, a surgeon, was literally ordered out of the hospital where he was employed while conducting an operation, but refused to do so until he had completed it. Despite his father's reservations, given the dangers of the time and the idea one rabbi sufficed for the family, he was ordained rabbi the following year. Shortly afterwards he was appointed
20:
139:, thanks to the hospitality of the parish priest, don Francalanci. Toaff did not have the option of fleeing Italy, mindful of his father's words that: 'A rabbi does not have the same freedom of choice others have; he can never abandon his community.' He recalled later every Jew in Ancona survived the war thanks to the assistance given by their Catholic neighbours. Toaff was captured by the
143:
during a raid, and was saved from being executed as others had been who were caught in the roundup, when the
Austrian, with whom he had conversed a little in French, and who was in charge of the execution, gave an order to release him as he was digging his own grave. Catholic families helped them
231:
I would like to express my heartfelt participation in mourning, together with his family, and the entire Jewish community here in the capital of Rome, for the demise of the former longtime Chief Rabbi of Rome, Professor Dr. Elio Toaff, long the distinguished spiritual leader of the Jews of Rome.
239:
I remember with gratitude his generous commitment and sincere willingness to promote dialogue and fraternal relations between Jews and
Catholics; during his tenure our communities saw a significant moment in this regard, in his memorable encounter with my esteemed predecessor
54:
in 1915, the son of the city's rabbi
Alfredo Sabato Toaff and his wife Alice Yarch. one of four children, the others being Cesare, Renzo and Pia, He then undertook, under his father's guidance, his early religious formation at Livorno's Rabbinical College, while attending the
159:
From his experiences, Toaff stated that
Italians were not anti-Semitic, that the survival of the Jews during the war was due to the assistance other Italians provided them during that period, and that Jews were perfectly integrated into their respective communities.
87:, a position he maintained until 1943. In one of his first acts, on his arrival, he managed to persuade a local Jewish family not to convert to Christianity: he argued that such a move was 'cowardly, useless and undignified' in the circumstances.
300:
who on one occasion stopped his car outside of the synagogue to bless the Jewish worshippers as they left, a gesture, the first papal blessing in 2,000 years, which moved them profoundly. No formal contacts, however, arose during the papacy of
235:
The protagonist of
Italian civil and Jewish history in recent decades, he knew how to overcome divisions, and both of our communities had a common esteem and appreciation for his moral authority, together with a deep humanity.
156:, in which 560 villagers were murdered. He recalled coming across a woman who appeared to be asleep but, on closer inspection, had been disemboweled, with her fetus nearby, ripped from the womb, and shot through the head.
99:
who immediately provided him with an escort of four gendarmes that enabled him to return to the patient's bedside. The marshall in question assured Toaff that he could call on him for help if any other problems arose.
67:, which blocked Jews from registering to study for, though not from completing, a tertiary degree. Only one professor, Lorenzo Mossa, finally offered to step in, and assigned him to work on the legal conflict between
480:
343:, in which he stated: "How can I fail to remember the rabbi of Rome, and the numerous representatives of non-Christian religions?" The only other living person to be named was John Paul's longtime personal
119:
that year, and, with the help of the
Anconians, hid the members of the community in local houses and in parish churches. The adolescents and children were put on a boat sailing south to the
292:. When the war was raging, Pius spoke out very often to condemn the false race theory," a sentiment echoed widely in the Jewish communities at that time, though later challenged by
131:. Toaff had been tipped off by the local parish priest that an attempt would be made to assassinate him, and he, together with his father, his wife Lia Luperini and their son
115:
on 8 September 1943, Toaff and his family were forced to go into hiding, as
Germany invaded Italy. He shut the synagogue when German troops arrived, an event coinciding with
199:'A rabbi doesn't work only for his community or for the Jews. A rabbi has to talk to every human being who needs him. He belongs to everybody. He is for everybody.'
439:
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in the mountains of central Italy, working also to secure the safety of fellow Jews. His company was the first to enter the village after the SS executed the
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On one occasion, when he was driven out of the Ancona hospital while tendering religious consolation to a Jewish patient, he sought out the local head of the
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LETTER OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS TO THE CHIEF RABBI OF THE JEWISH COMMUNITY OF ROME FOR THE DEATH OF PROFESSOR ELIO TOAFF, CHIEF RABBI EMERITUS OF ROME
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house of worship. Rather than extending his hand for a formal handshake, Toaff embraced the Pope. On April 7, 1994, Toaff co-officiated at the
172:, a position he held until 1951 when he assumed the same role for the Jewish community of Rome. While in Venice he also lectured on
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481:'Elio Toaff: Chief Rabbi of Rome who stood with Pope John Paul II in the Vatican's drive to reach out to other religions,'
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I raise prayers to the most high God the Father, full of love and fidelity, to welcome him into his
Kingdom of peace.
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628:
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296:. There had been nonetheless contact with Pius XII and the local community, a situation that changed with
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Toaff and his wife had 4 children, 3 sons, Ariel, Daniel, and Godiel, and a daughter Miriam, who married
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where he studied law. He had difficulties finding a supervisor for his final thesis. By that time, the
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440:'Rabbi Elio Toaff who ushered in an era of closer ties between Jews and the Vatican dies at 99,'
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reacted to the armistice by organizing the first deportations for concentration camps and
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At the conclusion of the hostilities of World War II, Toaff was appointed chief rabbi of
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Rabbi Toaff remained friends with John Paul until the pontiff's death, and attended his
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Toaff resigned as chief rabbi at the age of 86 on 8 October 2001 and was succeeded by
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where, in 1999, he was accorded their honorary citizenship. Toaff himself joined the
75:. He managed to graduate by 1938, despite the fact that the head of the commission,
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On 17 May 2012 he was awarded the Prize
Culturae within the Italian National
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To Dr. Riccardo Di Segni, Chief Rabbi of the Jewish
Community of Rome:
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Antisemitism: A History and Psychoanalysis of Contemporary Hatred,
339:. He was one of the two people who the pope mentioned in his last
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in 1958, Toaff, as Chief Rabbi of Rome, paid tribute to the late
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Toaff died on 19 April 2015, 11 days before his 100th birthday.
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throughout their flight, which led them to a refuge also in
328:, along with Pope John Paul II, and the President of Italy
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Uncertain Refuge: Italy and the Jews During the Holocaust,
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On 13 April 1986, Toaff was greeted by, and prayed with,
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from 1947, and in 1951 became the Chief Rabbi of Rome.
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University of Illinois Press, 1995 pp.122-126 p.122,
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Florette Rechnitz Koffler, Richard Koffler, (eds.),
38:of Rome from 1951 to 2002. He served as a rabbi in
23:Elio Toaff (on left) with former Italian president
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288:did for them by order of the pope during the
546:Il Novecento tra genocidi, paure e speranze,
524:
522:
264:
224:, Toaff's successor as Chief Rabbi of Rome:
195:. On the eve of his retirement, Toaff said:
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188:(Perfidious Jews, Elder Brothers) in 1987.
498:Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 20 April 2015.
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109:declaration of a cessation of hostilities
619:Christian and Jewish interfaith dialogue
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34:(30 April 1915 – 19 April 2015) was the
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576:"Roman Rabbi Mentioned in Pope's Will"
322:Papal Concert to Commemorate the Shoah
574:Greenberg, Eric J. (April 15, 2005).
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316:, the first by a reigning pope to a
121:area under the control of the Allies
516:Greenwood Publishing 2008 pp.66-67.
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534:Palgrave/Macmillan 2011, pp.14-15.
250:From the Vatican, April 20, 2015,
244:, at the Chief Synagogue of Rome.
184:. He published his autobiography,
14:
665:
364:Perfidi giudei, fratelli maggiori
186:Perfidi giudei, fratelli maggiori
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125:remaining fascist allies in Italy
549:Editoriale Jaca Book, 2006 p.36.
182:Ca' Foscari University of Venice
639:Pope Pius XII and the Holocaust
357:
552:
537:
501:
489:
432:
284:will always remember what the
154:Sant'Anna di Stazzema massacre
1:
380:
45:
564:Paulist Press,2002 pp.16-17.
135:, managed to take refuge in
71:, Jewish and English law in
7:
644:Jewish Roman (city) history
624:20th-century Italian rabbis
63:had passed its antisemitic
10:
670:
90:
654:20th-century Italian Jews
265:Jewish-Catholic relations
581:The Jewish Daily Forward
629:Italian Orthodox rabbis
314:Great Synagogue of Rome
242:Saint Pope John Paul II
220:sent a telegram to Dr.
123:. The Nazis and their
312:during a visit to the
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201:
28:
324:at the Sala Nervi in
261:and lives in Israel.
226:
197:
22:
330:Oscar Luigi Scalfaro
259:Sergio Della Pergola
205:Festival of Cultures
83:of the community of
25:Oscar Luigi Scalfaro
73:Mandatory Palestine
65:Italian Racial Laws
531:A Cross Too Heavy,
444:The Jerusalem Post
341:will and testament
269:Upon the death of
150:Italian Resistance
61:Fascist government
57:University of Pisa
50:Toaff was born in
29:
352:Stanislaw Dziwisz
310:Pope John Paul II
222:Riccardo Di Segni
193:Riccardo Di Segni
146:CittĂ di Castello
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649:Rabbis from Rome
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429:6 February 2006.
422:Orazio La Rocca,
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290:Second World War
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438:Eric J. Lyman,
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298:Pope John XXIII
286:Catholic Church
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174:Hebrew language
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105:Pietro Badoglio
103:In the wake of
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77:Cesarini Sforza
48:
17:
12:
11:
5:
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634:Livornese Jews
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558:Frank J. Korn,
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543:Giovanni Sale,
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486:21 April 2015.
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447:20 April 2015.
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164:Postwar period
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528:Paul O'Shea,
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16:Italian rabbi
585:. Retrieved
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561:Hidden Rome,
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374:Alain Elkann
370:Essere ebreo
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358:Bibliography
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326:Vatican City
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303:Pope Paul VI
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218:Pope Francis
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129:Arbeitslager
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614:2015 deaths
609:1915 births
479:Eve Thomas,
280:, saying: "
253:Franciscus.
133:Ariel Toaff
97:carabinieri
81:chief rabbi
36:Chief Rabbi
603:Categories
508:Avner Falk
381:References
349:Archbishop
178:literature
117:Yom Kippur
46:Early life
32:Elio Toaff
587:April 20,
345:secretary
111:with the
274:Pius XII
137:Versilia
27:in 2007.
337:funeral
278:pontiff
180:at the
91:Wartime
69:Ottoman
52:Livorno
376:, 1994
366:, 1987
318:Jewish
170:Venice
113:Allied
85:Ancona
40:Venice
372:with
589:2015
282:Jews
271:Pope
209:Pisa
176:and
207:in
107:'s
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578:.
521:^
510:,
470:^
452:^
389:^
354:.
347:,
332:.
305:.
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141:SS
591:.
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