Life returns to Germany's synagogues
Seventy-five years after the Night of Broken Glass life has returned to Germany's Jewish community.
Burned down by the Nazis
The Nazis destroyed hundreds of synagogues on the night of November 9, 1938. The so-called "Night of Broken Glass" was one of the peaks of organized violence against Jews in the German Reich. Some synagogues were rebuilt after the World War II while others survived the destruction of the Nazis.
A symbol of belonging
In 2001, the city of Dresden celebrated the opening of their new synagogue. The building which was built in shape of a cube is a symbol for anchoring the Jewish community in the city. It is built at a historical site: the old synagogue of Dresden had also been at the same spot until 1938.
Germany's largest synagogue
The Rykestrasse Synagogue is located in Berlin. After the three years of restoration, the Jewish community brought the Torah scrolls back into the house of worship in 2007. Built in 1904 with space for 1,200 seats, the synagogue is the largest in Germany. The Nazis had not set fire to this synagogue; instead the German military turned it to a stable for horses.
A half-timbered synagogue
Jews who survived World War II worshiped in this synagogue in 1945. The synagogue had been built around 1740, but the army stormed the oldest synagogue of Lower Saxony in 1938, destroyed Torah scrolls and tossed them on the street. Jews were later held in the building until their deportation. The city of Celle restored the synagogue and the re-consecration of the synagogue took place in 1974.
Forced destruction
The Jewish community grew bigger and bigger after the end of the Cold War when many Jews from the former Soviet Union immigrated to Germany. The city Schwerin celebrated the consecration of a new synagogue in 2008, built on the foundation of the city's former house of worship. The Nazis had forced the Jews in Schwerin to destroy their own synagogue.
Oriental radiance
The Westend Synagogue is an imposing building in Frankfurt am Main. The consecration took place in 1910. This is the only synagogue that was not destroyed in the Night of Broken Glass because the fire department extinguished the fire. But the Nazis destroyed buildings and businesses in Frankfurt and deported Jews to concentration camps.
A landmark in Berlin
The New Synagogue's dome has been a part of the Berlin skyline since 1866. With space for 3,000 people, it was the Germany's largest synagogue when it was built. Though damage to the building can be seen today, a police officer prevented it from being burnt down during the Night of Broken Glass. The synagogue now presents information Jewish life and provides a prayer room for visitors.
Special precautions
"My house is a house of prayer for all peoples," this Bible quote welcomes new synagogue visitors in Gelsenkirchen. The new building is located at the same spot where the old synagogue went up in smoke in 1938. Cameras on the outside of the synagogue are security precautions which show that even today there is a fear of anti-Semitic violence.
From opera house to synagogue
The synagogue in Bayreuth is the only synagogue in a baroque style that still serves as a house of worship. Since 1715, the building was an opera house. Later, from 1946 on, the Jewish community changed it to their synagogue and held services there. At the moment the building is being renovated.
An unusual spot
This building was actually a mourning hall at a Jewish cemetery. But after the Nazis destroyed the synagogue downtown Halle an der Saale, the Jewish community converted the mourning hall into a synagogue in 1953. This is the only synagogue in Germany located at a Jewish cemetery.
Rabbinic ordination in Cologne
Until 2012, the Cologne Synagogue hadn't seen four rabbis ordained since before the Holocaust. After the Night of Broken Glass, the synagogue was in ruins and was no reconsecrated until 1959. Jewish life has returned to many parts of the country, including Cologne - as seen by the city's new and old synagogues.