Birobidzhan Synagogue

The Birobidzhan Synagogue, officially the Freyd Community and Beit Menachem Synagogue in Birobidzhan, is a Chabad Jewish congregation and synagogue, located at 19 Lenina Street, in the city of Birobidzhan, in the capital of the Jewish Autonomous Oblast, in Russia.

According to the Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS, it is "the first synagogue in Russia to be built partly with state money".^[2][3] The Russian government allotted US$112,000 to help build the synagogue^[4] that was completed in 2004.^[1]

In 2004, the Chief Rabbi of Russia, Berel Lazar, took part in the 70th-anniversary celebration of the Jewish Autonomous Oblast. Rabbi Lazar and Avraham Berkowitz, the executive director of the Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS, led a delegation to Birobidzhan for the event. Mayor Alexander Vinnikov and Valery Solomonovich Gurevich also participated in the opening.^[5] Governor Nikolay Mikhaylovich Volkov stated that the Birobidzhan Synagogue is the Jewish Autonomous Oblast's first "kosher synagogue, according to Jewish law."^[6] Rabbi Mordechai Scheiner, the Chief Rabbi of Birobidzhan and Chabad Lubavitch representative to the region, said "Today one can enjoy the benefits of the Yiddish culture and not be afraid to return to their Jewish traditions. It is safe without any antisemitism and we plan to open the first Jewish day school here".^[5] The local Jewish community leader, Lev Toitman, also participated.^[7]

According to Rabbi Scheiner, there are 4,000 Jews in Birobidzhan, or just over 5 percent of the town's 75,000 population.^[8] In 2006, Rabbi Scheiner visited the villages of Bira (Jewish Autonomous Oblast), Naifeld, Londoko, Birakan and Birofeld with the Jewish Community of Birobidzhan. Together they inspected local cemeteries and gathered information about the Jews buried there in the years prior to World War II. The names of these individuals are listed in the Memory Book in the Birobidzhan Synagogue. The dates of birth and death are written down according to the Hebrew calendar as well as the Gregorian calendar.^[9] As of 2007, some of the original Jewish settlers were still present in these villages.^[10] Lev Toitman led the community of Birobidzhan from 1997 until he died on September 11, 2007.^[7]

In 2004, the Jewish community in Birobidzhan received an Aron Kodesh. This special storage case for the Torah, from Birobidzhan's sister city in China, was made in accordance with Jewish canons.^[11] In 2008, Shalom Brandman, a resident of Ramat Gan, Israel, donated a Judaic studies collection to the synagogue after his visit to Birobidzhan during the 2007 summer Yiddish program.^[12]

1. ^ ^{a b} "Freyd Community and Beit Menachem Synagogue in Birobidzhan". Historic Synagogues of Europe. Foundation for Jewish Heritage and the Center for Jewish Art at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. n.d. Retrieved September 8, 2024.
2. ^ "A Jewish revival in Birobidzhan? In Stalin's former Jewish haven, locals say ground is ripe for rebirth". Jewish News. October 8, 2004. Archived from the original on May 10, 2011.
3. ^ "Jewish Life in Birobidjan, Russia". Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS. Archived from the original on March 4, 2008.
4. ^ "Russia's Jewish Republic Revived". Jewish Telegraph Agency. September 1, 2003. Archived from the original on May 16, 2012.
5. ^ ^{a b} "Far East Community Prepares for 70th Anniversary of Jewish Autonomous Republic". Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS. Archived from the original on May 18, 2011.
6. ^ "Remote Russian Jews Get Synagogues". Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS. Archived from the original on September 29, 2007.
7. ^ ^{a b} "Far East Jewish Community Chairman Passes Away". Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS. Archived from the original on June 12, 2008.
8. ^ "From Tractors to Torah in Russia's Jewish Land". Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS. Archived from the original on April 11, 2013.
9. ^ "Jewish Cemeteries Catalog for Birobidjan". Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS. Archived from the original on May 18, 2011.
10. ^ "International Yiddish Summer School Opens in Birobidzhan". Archived from the original on January 8, 2008. VOSTOK MEDIA
11. ^ "Birobidjan Jews Get High Tech Gift From Chinese Sister City". Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS. Archived from the original on September 27, 2007.
12. ^ "Jewish Library Gets Helping Hand in Birobidjan". Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS. Archived from the original on May 18, 2011.

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