Reviving Jewish Life on the Beautiful Greek Islands

by Mendel Scheiner – chabad.org

Atop a hill overlooking the sky-blue Aegean Sea, nestled amid lime-washed houses painted to reflect the searing Mediterranean sun, sits a new Chabad center.

Welcome to Chabad-Lubavitch of Mykonos. The picturesque Greek island, a part of the Cyclades islands in the heart of the Aegean, was once a tranquil fishing village, sustained by its iconic windmills and maritime trade. The island’s culture began to shift in the 1950s, when shipping tycoon Aristotle Onassis became a frequent visitor. Entranced by its serenity, he helped transform the island into a destination for the rich and famous.

Its white cubic homes scribbled with purple bougainvillea vines, golden beaches and rocky coastlines made the Greek island one of the most attractive destinations in the world. Today, its 1.5 million annual visitors account for the vast majority of the island’s economy.

For years, the estimated 80,000 yearly Jewish visitors found themselves without access to even the most basic elements of Jewish culture: no kosher food, no minyan, no synagogue. Separated by 93 miles of sea, Rabbi Mendel and Nechama Hendel, co-directors of Chabad of Athens, worked to improve the conditions of Jewish life in Mykonos remotely, but they felt more was needed.

That all changed when the Hendels reached out to Rabbi Uziel Moshe and Shterna Sara Friedland, a young Israeli couple, and asked them if they would be interested in leading the Jewish community of Mykonos.

Accepting the challenging mission was a natural decision for the Friedlands.

“My inspiration comes from the Rebbe [Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, of righteous memory],” Rabbi Friedland says. “His love for every Jew, no matter how far away they were, was unparalleled, and it’s an immense privilege to be the Rebbe’s representative to this island.

The couple first visited what would become their new home for Rosh Hashanah 2024.

“We saw the potential immediately,” says Freidland. “There was such a warm and open atmosphere, and local Jews and tourists here were looking for a place for spiritual support and Jewish belonging.”

They returned permanently just a few weeks ago, opening the only active synagogue not just in Mykonos, but the entire Cyclades Islands.

Divine Providence and Ancient Roots

Two kilometers of turquoise sea from Mykonos, half-eaten sanctuaries and scorched colonnades lie in solitude. The ruins of ancient Delos are now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, with only a few archaeologists allowed to live there.

Discovered in 1912 by archaeologist André Plassart, the uninhabited island is curiously home to the world’s oldest known synagogue outside the Land of Israel. Located on the eastern edge of the island, the building faces southeast toward Jerusalem. There, archeologists have found a prayer room with stone benches surrounding a bimah.

In a room off to the side of the main hall there is evidence of a cistern believed to be an ancient mikvah. The Greek inscription “Theos Hypsistos” (the Most High G‑d) was found in the sanctuary, a phrase often associated with Jewish monotheists in the Hellenistic world. The modest synagogue, surrounded by massive pagan temples, even predates many of the Second Temple-era synagogues in the Holy Land.

Today, the Friedlands are reviving Cycladic Jewry, cultivating a space for Jewish life through daily prayer services and Torah classes. Despite opening only this May, Chabad of Mykonos is expecting to welcome a new sefer Torah next month.

Rabbi Friedland has also launched kosher catering for weddings, bar mitzvahs, bat mitzvahs, and tourists. Sharing the essence of Jewish continuity with Mykonos, Shterna Friedland leads a mikvah program for women, who immerse in the Aegean Sea.

“It’s beautiful to have Jewish life here,” says Moshe Zouganelis, a native of Mykonos who owns a local cocktail bar. “Every time I step into shul, it feels like home, like I have finally found my family.”

When the rabbi had showed up at Zouganelis’s doorstep carrying boxes of frozen meat, his curiosity piqued. Receiving a shipment of more than 1,000 kilograms of kosher meat from Paris for the Jews of Mykonos, Rabbi Friedland was in a desperate search for storage. Although Moshe had never rented out his space before, he gladly agreed, as it was for kosher meat for the Chabad.

Since that day, Zouganelis has become an avid supporter of Chabad of Mykonos. He now attends synagogue multiple times a week, puts on tefillin, passes up VIP guests to complete a minyan, and ensures that any Jew who enters his bar is directed to the Chabad center.

Reflecting on his childhood, Zouganelis shares, “Growing up in Mykonos, we had nothing. We knew we were Jewish, but with no synagogue or Jewish school, there was simply no way to connect. For the longest time, I was searching for a way back to my heritage, and now, it’s come to me, right to my door.”