The Chief Rabbinate of Cyprus is the official supreme rabbinic institution in the Republic of Cyprus. Its responsibilities include appointing rabbis, registering Jewish marriages, establishing rabbinical regulations, operating the kashrut system, and more.
The Chief Rabbinate is headed by Rabbi Arie Zeev Raskin, the Chief Rabbi of Cyprus.
The offices of the Rabbinate and the Office of the Chief Rabbi are located in the city of Larnaca at the address Apollodorou 4, 6020 Larnaca
The activities of the Chief Rabbinate in Cyprus are divided among its various branches as follows:
Kosher Department/Cyprus Kosher – Cyprus Kosher is the only officially authorized agency for the kosher certification of factories and production lines in Cyprus. The department deals with the supervision and certification of kosher products in Cyprus, Shechita (kosher slaughtering), approval of imported products sold in stores and kosher departments in local supermarkets, and extensive advocacy on issues concerning kosher with the government and official agencies.
Mikvah Department – supports the establishment and operation of Mikvahs (ritual pools) throughout Cyprus. In addition, the department responds to public inquiries, questions and answers, and halachic rulings regarding the kosher status of Mikvahs in Cyprus and matrimonial matters.
Marriage Department – authorizes rabbis to perform Jewish weddings and supervises the observance of Jewish marriages in Cyprus according to Jewish law. The department deals with marriage registration in Cyprus and in various countries in coordination with the rabbinical institutions and the relevant authorities in the Land of Israel and around the world and assists in the issuance of the appropriate certificates that the bride and groom need in order to marry legally and religiously.
Brit Mila (circumcision) Department – The department assists in performing a Jewish circumcision correctly, and if necessary, provides logistical solutions and professional advice so that the Brit Mila is conducted properly.
Burial Department (Hevra Kadisha) – Hevra Kadisha of the Chief Rabbinate of Cyprus manages and maintains the Jewish cemetery in the city of Larnaca that has existed for decades and takes care of all the needs of purification, burial, and the necessary approvals. The department helps in identifying the deceased whose family is overseas and in moving the deceased from Cyprus to the desired burial place when requested. In addition, the burial department engages with government officials to protect rights of the Jewish deceased and prevent situations of desecration of the deceased.
Judaica Department – The department provides Judaica products, Torah scrolls, mezuzahs, tefillin, and more, and operates a service for checking tefillin and mezuzahs.
The chief rabbinate, in Judaism, is a supreme religious authority whose decisions bind all those under its jurisdiction.
The prototype of the chief rabbinate was the Great Sanhedrin of Jerusalem, which, until the destruction of the Second
Temple in AD 70, issued legislation and interpreted Jewish Law for all the Jewish people.
The Chief Rabbi (Hebrew: רב ראשי Rav Rashi) is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of
that country’s Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities.