Past and Present

The post-war years saw great efforts made to bring the Community of Ferrara back to life. The premises of the synagogue complex on via Mazzini 95 housed the displaced and a temporary synagogue was set up in via Vignatagliata. Later, in 1947, the German Temple was reopened and today is still the site of holiday services. Later, even the smaller Fanese Temple was returned to service, the place where Shabbat (Saturday) prayers are now held.

In 1949, two plaques were affixed on the façade of the synagogue complex in memory of the Jewish deportees, victims of racial hatred, who did not return from the extermination camps, a monument that invites passers-by not to forget.

In time, relations with Ferrara were slowly rebuilt. The stories of Giorgio Bassani made the city known internationally. Paolo Ravenna, a prominent and well- known lawyer, stood out for his efforts to enhance the city and community spaces, with the intent of opening them to a larger audience. To this end, he engaged Bassani and others as well, and especially Bruno Zevi, the architect, to restore the Ferrara City Wall to its former glory.

The history of the Jewish Community of Ferrara is, despite the difficulties, a positive one, made up of famous and lesser-known individuals, characterized by the great resilience of its members. A family that can be warm and contentious, open and reserved, but always enamored of its city.