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The Synagogue (torah) (read)



Sound background: Rafailas Karpis (tenor), Darius Mažintas (piano)

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All panoramas of this object: Sinagogue (3)

Description

Haskalah - theJewish secular enlightenment movement - spread throughout Vilnius during 1830-1840. The first secular publications - history books translated by the first prominent writer of that period, Mordechai Ginzburg (1795-1846), and the poems of Abraham Dov Lebenson (1794-1876) - appeared even earlier, during 1820-1830. Jewish students began to enrol at the Vilnius Gymnasium. In 1846, during M.Ginzburg's funeral, Jewish enlighteners (maskilim) declared that they needed avenue for their meetings, and decided to establish their own synagogue for that purpose. Their initiative was supported by the Vilnius authorities, and they were granted a permit to open such a synagogue in 1847. It was called "Taharat Hakodesh" ("Cleansing of the Sacrality"). The synagogue was orthodox in nature, but its rituals were accompanied by choral singing (along the lines of synagogues of Germany , where the reform movement of Judaism began to form); it was therefore called a "Choral" synagogue, and it was this second name which became the more popular.

During the 19th century, the synagogue functioned in various buildings, but in 1899 its leadership acquired a plot of land from the merchant V.EIiyashberg, on Zavalnos (Pylimo) St. In 1902, architect David Rosenhaus drew up a project, and the synagogue was opened in September 1903, during Rosh-Hashana. The building had elements of a Mauretanian style. A women's section and room for the choir were arranged on the second floor.

S.Dubnow attended the opening ceremony, and in his memoirs wrote the following: "The leadership of the "Taharat Hakodesh" choral synagogue appointed me a place of honour by the eastern wall… My spirit was pervaded by cantor Bernstein's sorrowful singing of the solemn hymn, 'Unetane tokef'."

Abraham Bernstein (1866-1932) was cantor at the choral synagogue for several decades. He was also known as a composer, and wrote approximately 150 musical works on a Jewish theme. One of his pupils was Moishe Kusevitski (1899-1966) - he sang in the synagogue choir at the beginning of the 1920s. Famous Zionist, writer, and Vilnius deputy to the First Russian State Duma, Shmaryahu Levin, was synagogue preacher for two years.

Synagogue members in the 19th century included known writers Abraham Dov Lebensohn, Aisik Meyer Dik, Kalman Shulman, and rabbi Zeiig Minor, who bequeathed his valuable library to the synagogue. Prior to the First World War, members included the city's most famous Jews: writer Samuel Leyb Zitron (1860-1930); businessman Joseph Shabad (father of future community leader Zemach Shabad); synagogue architect David Rosenhaus (killed in Ponar in 1941); public figure and merchant, and chairman of the first Judenrat (July-August, 1941) Saul Trotsky (killed in Ponar in 1941 during the liquidation of the first Judenrat); the bankers and public figures brothers Bunimovich; community executive member Ephraim Pruzhan (also killed in Ponar in 1941); and many other Jewish community activists. The Taharat Hakodesh synagogue is one of the few Jewish prayer houses to have survived the Second World War ( Vilnius had a total of 102-104 Jewish prayer houses during the first quarter of the 20th century).

The synagogue building has been restored over the last years. Famous cantors, including the great Joseph Malovani, who has been granted the title of honorary cantor of the Vilnius Choral Synagogue, have been coming to sing at the Synagogue increasingly more often in these past years. Since 2001 the Chairman of the Jewish Religious Community of Vilnius is Dr. Simon Alperovitch, Synagogue's gabai - Haim Glik.

Genrikas Agranovskis

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