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The Growth in Milan

The following year, Rav Moshe Lazar arrived in Milan with the task of managing the Jewish school and the Gan Israel camp, drawing on his student experience from the first Gan Israel camp in New York, of which he was one of the founders in 1956, with the Rebbe's approval. <br /> He still vividly remembers the day he met with the Rebbe to explain the importance of creating a Jewish camp, when the Rebbe asked him the following question: "Why do we need a camp?" <br /> Here are Rav Lazar's words in response: "The summer camp is the best way to instill Judaism in children. Even if a child attends a religious school, what they learn can be undone by the home environment. Instead, at the camp, they will spend all their time, day and night, for one or two months. What they learn during that period will become permanently ingrained."

In 1961, the Rebbe sent a new shliach, the late Rav Yeshua Hadad, to assist the Sephardic community in Milan and to improve the city's kosher standards. With the Rebbe's approval, Rav Hadad brought the late Rav Hezkia to work with the Sephardic community in Milan. Then came Rabbi Menachem Mendel Elharrar, to work as a sofer (scribe of Hebrew sacred texts) and to certify the kosher status of certain food products. Afterward, Rav Belinov arrived to teach and guide the Persian community on Via Piatti. In 1970, Rav Rodal, of blessed memory, came to Milan as a teacher at the Jewish school, dedicating his life to spreading Judaism among the youth and others, with the publication of various informational pamphlets.

Chabad in Rome

At the request of Rabbi Toaff, in 1963, the Lubavitch Rebbe sent Rabbi Eliahu Ouazanna, a ritual slaughterer and teacher, to Rome, where he served the Jewish community for over 50 years.

In 1976, the Rebbe sent Rabbi Itzchak Hazan to establish an official Chabad presence in Rome. His initial task was to assist refugees from Russia who were staying in Italy while awaiting visas for America and Canada. There was also the Agudà Ashkenazita community on Via Balbo, attended by many Holocaust survivors who needed a rabbi and a cantor who knew their traditions, spoke Yiddish, and could give them a taste of the life they had lost. He immediately took care, along with other arriving rabbis, of the Tripolitanian Jewish community in Rome, initially organizing Talmud Torah for children, and within a year, he was teaching 120 boys.

The Channukkia in Piazza Barberini

In the 1970s, around 1972, the Rebbe began to emphasize how the Chanukah holiday could encourage the observance of Judaism through events related to the holiday itself and the lighting of the menorah. In 1974, a Chabad rabbi from Philadelphia organized the first public lighting of a large menorah in front of Independence Hall, considered the cradle of the United States as a nation. The menorah, about one and a half meters tall, became the first event of its kind in the United States. Subsequently, in 1975, the Chabad rabbi from the University of San Francisco, California, Rav Chaim Drizin, conceived the idea of building and lighting a large menorah in public. This initiative greatly pleased the Rebbe, who began to promote it among the emissaries of the Chassidic movement worldwide.

In 1987, Rav Itzchak Hazan, director of Chabad in Rome, explored the possibility of organizing a similar event in his city. He approached Rav Toaff, asking for his help in obtaining the necessary permits and involving him in the initiative. Rav Toaff fully supported the project and wrote a letter introducing Rav Itzchak to the City Council, requesting their support for the event. The idea was also well received by the City of Rome. Rav Itzchak thought that Piazza Barberini could be the most suitable location, both for its central position in the heart of Rome and for the open space it offers, where a ceremony could be held without interfering with traffic. The City granted the necessary permits to erect the large menorah in the middle of the square, and since then, it has always fully supported this initiative, considering it a fixed and characteristic event in Roman life.

Developments in Rome

In 2000, Rabbi Shalom and Mrs. Hazan, Rabbi Ronnie and Mrs. Canarutto established their Chabad Houses in Rome under the auspices of Rabbi Itzchak Hazan.

Then in 2008, Chabad Piazza Bologna was established by Rabbi Menachem and Rivkie Lazar in December 2008, Chanukkah 5769, under the auspices of the Chabad Rabbi of Rome, Rabbi Itzchak Hazan.

Developments in Milan

Meanwhile, in Milan, Rabbi A. Hazan oversaw the development of Jewish activities: he took over the direction of the Lubavitch Youth Organization in 1980 and founded the Enzo Modena center in the same year; in 1994, he opened the Beith Menachem center and in 1995, he established the Beit Chabad in the Ghetto of Venice. In 1996, he became the director of the Merkos School in Milan and in 2008, he was appointed rabbi of the Ohel Yaakov synagogue.

In 1983, it was the turn of Rabbi Shaikevitz, of blessed memory. He moved to Italy on Shlichus after his marriage to Sola, daughter of Rabbi Gershon Mendel and Bassie Garelik, Chief Shluchim of Italy. Following the passing of Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka Schneerson, the Rebbe's wife, he founded Beit Chabad Milano on Via Luigi Soderini. He also established a local Yeshiva and was the administrator of the Beth-Hanna seminary. Soft-spoken and friendly, Rabbi Shaikevitz was the contact for hundreds of tourists and businessmen who visited Milan over the years and sought a minyan and a kosher meal.

Chabad in Venice

In the early '90s, Rabbi Rami Banin and Rebbetzin Banin settled in Venice to establish the Beit Chabad of Venice. The project includes a yeshiva. They also founded a kosher Jewish restaurant, 'Gam Gam,' just steps from the Ponte delle Guglie, and they continuously welcome streams of Jewish tourists from around the world.

Chabad in Trieste

Rabbi Ariel Haddad was appointed Shliach for Chabad Trieste by Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson. In 2003, he was officially appointed Chief Rabbi of Judovska skupnost Slovenije (JSS), the sole Jewish entity in Slovenia. In May 2022, he resigned from all his positions in JSS to assume the role of Chief Rabbi of the Jewish Association of Slovenia. He currently resides in Trieste, where he coordinates Chabad community activities and works as the director of the Jewish Museum of Trieste.

The influx of Shluchim in Italy continues

Still under the approval of the Rebbe, in 1995 Rav Igal Hazan, Rav Bechor, and then Rav Levi Hazan, son of Rav Avraham Hazan, and Rav Yoseph Hadad, son of Rav Yeshua Hadad, arrived in Milan, among many others. The Chabad Shluchim, sent by the Rebbe to Italy, have had and continue to have an incredible impact on Judaism and Italian Jews, drawing closer and strengthening hundreds of Jews in numerous Italian cities day by day, thus preparing them for the imminent arrival of the Messiah.