Jewish Life Expands in Tropical French Paradise

With just 400 residents, the Jewish community on the tiny Caribbean island of Martinique makes up less than .1 percent of the French territory’s population.

They comprise a small group, but a vibrant one, sporting a long history amidst the island’s rolling white sand beaches. Today, the community runs a handful of institutions, including a large Sephardic-style synagogue with daily prayer services, preschool, kosher grocery store, and, following a grand opening earlier this year, its first Chabad-Lubavitch center.

Locals, many of whom can either trace their ancestry back to the first Jews who settled on the island in the early 17th century as Dutch traders or to the Portuguese refugees fleeing the establishment of the Inquisition in nearby Brazil, credit much of the modern-day religious resurgence to Rabbi Moshe and Simcha Nemni.

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“We owe them everything,” gushes Audrey Korchia, a young mother and longtime community member. “They have created a Jewish life for our children.”

The Nemnis, who formally opened the Chabad House just last month, arrived in 2003, finding a local Jewish life consisting of little more than the synagogue. There was a ritual bath, but it was not up to standards as defined by the Code of Jewish Law.

The couple soon set up the preschool on the synagogue’s grounds, organized weekly Torah study sessions, and planned holiday events. Moshe Nemni called a colleague at the French Jewish Federation about the ritual bath – known in Hebrew as a mikvah – and, with the rabbi’s guidance, made the necessary changes himself.

“They are just extremely helpful people,” said Beverly Ellie. “They are very precious to us.”

Rabbi Moshe and Simcha Nemni and their children

According to the Nemnis, the new Chabad House reflects the community’s further growth.

“Our first project is to open a Jewish day school for the children,” said Moshe Nemni. “We have received tremendous encouragement from the entire community, and the government.”

The new institution’s first event will be a grand celebration in honor of Purim, which begins this year the night of Feb. 27. The Nemnis are planning a children’s carnival, and a full day of lectures, workshops and the reading of the Scroll of Esther for the adults.

Simcha Nemni credited the laid-back island vibe with providing a backdrop conducive to Jewish life.

“The island is fairly quiet,” she explained.

Newcomers from the metropolises of France and Israel who wouldn’t ordinarily attend synagogue or other Jewish functions, she said, find themselves returning time and again.

“The Chabad House,” she stated, “is not only about religion. It is about strengthening a community.”