The Hurva Synagogue

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

XII JERUSALEM SCENES The Hurva Synagogue Adjacent to the central square of the Jewish Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem an arch of Jerusalem limestone links two parts of the remains of an old building. This is the Hurvah Synagogue, a name derived from the Hebrew word harev, ‘ruin’. Although we think of the return of the Jews to the land, and to Jerusalem in particular, as being something which began towards the end of the nineteenth century, groups of Jews came to live in Jerusalem in earlier times, and the Hurvah Synagogue has its origins in one such return. In 1700 a large group of Jews from Central and Eastern Europe came to Jerusalem under the leadership of Rabbi Judah Hasid. They borrowed money from local Arabs and built themselves a synagogue and living quarters. Being very poor they were unable to repay the money, and in 1721 the synagogue was burnt down. The ruins were referred to as ‘Hurvat Rabbi Judah Hasid’, ‘The Ruins of Rabbi Judah Hasid’, hence the name of the synagogue. It was not until the early nineteenth century that further groups of Ashkenazi (European) Jews came to live in Jerusalem. The synagogue they initially built was not big enough, and in 1852 the British Jew Sir Moses Montefiore obtained permission from the Turkish authorities to build a much bigger structure on the site of the old Hurvah Synagogue. This was an imposing structure and became the centre of Ashkenazi worship in Jerusalem, although its significance declined during the years of the British mandate as many more Jews came to live outside the Old City. In the 1948 War of Independence Jordan took the Old City and blew up the synagogue. When Israel took the Old City in 1967 it was decided to preserve the ruins and build an arch over them, reaching to the height of the destroyed synagogue, as a symbol of the tri- umph of the Jews in getting the Jewish Quarter of the Old City back.—T.B..

Copy Link

Recommended publications

The Monzon Family History in Jerusalem
History in Jerusalem The Events and Personal Stories of the Monzon Family By Arye Monzon Translated by Benjamin Tisser 2 The Monzon Family History in Jerusalem With owner to my dear and loved wife, Ahuva My children Homi and her husband Yossi, Mosh and his wife Goldie, Oded and his wife Einat and all my wonderful grandchildren. Tamuz 5766, July 2007 Jerusalem Israel All rights reserved to the writer Arye Avraham Monzon – 2007 © 10 Aluf Yohai Ben-Nun St. Ramat Beit-Hakerem Jerusalem Tel: +972-77-8850895 Cell: +972-52-8802988 The Monzon Family History in Jerusalem 3 Table of Contents Table of Contents...............................................................................2 Introduction .......................................................................................4 My Family Roots - The Monzon Family.........................................6 History of My Family - The Monzon Family..................................8 Rabbi Yitzchak Monzon...............................................................8 Rabbi Avraham Leib.....................................................................8 The Grave Structure of Our Matriarch Rachel............................8 The Hurvah Synagogue...........................................................10 Choosing a Bride for Rabbi Avraham Leib Monzon ..................19 Rabbi Yoel Yosef Shimon Shemesh ...........................................20 Avraham Yehuda Leib Monzon.................................................26 Monzon Lithography – The First Stone Press In Jerusalem .........30
[Show full text]
A City Carved of Stone an Architectural Treatise on Jerusalem’S Search for Monumentality Ari Lewkowitz
DRUM note: Images have been removed from this paper due to copyright restrictions A City Carved of Stone An Architectural Treatise on Jerusalem’s Search for Monumentality Ari Lewkowitz “To provide meaningful architecture is not to parody history but to articulate it” Daniel Libeskind Ari Lewkowitz JWST409L Professor Cooperman Capital cities, for their own sake and that of the greater nation, maintain a synergy of historical relevance and a future-seeking pragmatism through their architectural design. The city of Jerusalem is no exception. Imbued in its post-1967 development is a certain sympathy for the past in order to massage long-standing notions and images of Jerusalem as an “ideal” city, deserving of various levels of preservation. More precisely, there is a politicized agenda of ethno-nationalist pride in much of the city’s newly built structures directly manifested through the use of monumentality. In order to better understand monumentality, it is important to analyze the current status of monumental architecture and its respective role in ancient civilizations. As part of a larger manifesto on this particular topic, Sigfried Geidion, Jose Luis Sert, and Fernand Leger, pioneering modernist architectural critics from the first half of the 20th century, compiled a short list entitled, “9 Points of Monumentality.” In it, the authors claimed that monuments are “symbols for [man’s] ideals, for their aims, and for their actions…They have to satisfy the eternal demand of the people for translation of their collective force into symbols” (1943). This strikes upon a major component of this debate, that monumentalizing goes far beyond a singular person, regional place, or specific event, and attempts to capture a combined pathos of the community- however widespread that community wants to be defined.
[Show full text]
A Letter to Zlatko Kopljar on the Occasion of the Work
GALERIE ISABELLA CZARNOWSKA A letter from Ory Dessau to Zlatko Kopljar on the occasion of the work “K19” Artist Zlatko Kopljar was invited to present his vertical-rectangular brick structures in the circular space of The Barrel Gallery in Zagreb. The structures are made with a particular kind of bricks, manufactured during World War Two in Jasenovac camp, outside Zagreb, by prisoners. After the war the people from the surrounding villages were taking those bricks and used them as building blocks for their houses. Eventually, Kopljar decided to keep the space of the gallery empty and constructed the structures, brick by brick, in front of the building, around the fountain. The following text is written in the form of a personal letter, which I delivered to Kopljar on the evening of the opening. Dear Zlatko, I decided to write you this personal letter because I cannot simply inhabit a critical external stance in relation to your work. When it comes to K19, being a Jewish Israeli, third generation of survivors, makes it impossible for me to judge and interpret it from the outside. My thoughts are moving around and go back and forth to many different directions, when associated with your K19, which I find ethical as much as conceptual, a personal gesture as much as a theoretical gesture. One of the directions my thoughts go through includes a story I want to share with you on architect Louis Kahn and his 1968 revolutionary proposal for the restoration of the ruined Hurva Synagogue in the Jewish quarter of old Jerusalem, a proposal that was never put into effect, that remained a pure concept.
[Show full text]
Designing the Western Wall Plaza: National and Architectural Controversies*
Designing the Western Wall Plaza: National and Architectural Controversies* ALONA NITZAN-SHIFTAN Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Center for Advanced Studies in the Visual Arts Immediately after Israel captured Jerusalem's Old City during the contending ideologes, but also take, in the forms, compositions and 1967 war it bulldozed the Mugharbe Quarter off the area adjacent to techniques they suggest, distinct positions in fierce national and the\Vestern\Vall. National, municipal and military authorities agreed archtectural debates. that the corridor between the neighborhood and thewall was too narrow Moshe Safdie's 1974 design proposal alone had generated two for a nation to gather and 'meet its past.' Once the post war stream of ministerial committees which reached opposing conclusions, extensive pilgrims reduced, Israelis were taken by surprise. The central assembly public hearings, and a 1980 revised version of the archtect. Like all space of the State of Israel, and the holiest site for Jews since Titus other proposals, it was never executed. Since ths design became the destroyed Herod's SecondTemple in A.D. 70, became an amorphous measure cord for other projects, it forms the spine of my dwussion. field of debris and awesome stones. fig. 2. Moshe Sajd~e,hrst design proposal for the Western Woll Plaza, 1971. Safdie's design, whch extended over 60000 square meters, created a huge hierarchcal theater of descending cubes. It was inspired by hg. I. Arthur Kutcher, Exlsnng cond~tlonof the Western Woll enurons Yosephus Plavius description of Herod's Jerusalem as well as by the Captivated by the site, archtects harried to propose designs for the Oriental vernacular of the city.
[Show full text]
PDF (Volume 1)
Durham E-Theses The old city of Jerusalem: aspects op the development op a religious centre Hopkins, W. J. How to cite: Hopkins, W. J. (1969) The old city of Jerusalem: aspects op the development op a religious centre, Durham theses, Durham University. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/8763/ Use policy The full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that: • a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in Durham E-Theses • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Please consult the full Durham E-Theses policy for further details. Academic Support Oce, Durham University, University Oce, Old Elvet, Durham DH1 3HP e-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 0191 334 6107 http://etheses.dur.ac.uk Summary It is generally recognised that the Old City of Jerusalem is first and foremost a religious centre of great importance in Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Yet the exact nature of the impact of roHgi nn on± the geography of the city is not so clearly known. The way in which religion through the pilgrim trade has over the centuries permeated into the general economy of the city would suggest that the influence of this factor is large.
[Show full text]
Hurva Synagogue in the Jewish Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem, I Wasn’T Expecting the Magnificent Grandeur That Awaited Us
FallJA.qxd:Layout 1 7/28/10 12:33 PM Page 46 PhotoEssay By Toby Klein Greenwald Return to theHurva Photos: Toby Klein Greenwald When I had the occasion to attend the brit milah of a family member this year on Yom Ha’atzmaut in the renovated Hurva Synagogue in the Jewish Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem, I wasn’t expecting the magnificent grandeur that awaited us . ixty-two years after the destruction centuries, the Hurva hosted the in- Kook reportedly arose from his chair Sof the synagogue by the Jordani- stallation of Rabbi Avraham Yitzhak and repeated the words, emphasizing ans during Israel’s War of Inde- HaKohen Kook as chief rabbi of the them. This was an event that made pendence, the Hurva, once the largest Land of Israel, at which time Rav waves, since Rav Kook was voicing his and most impressive synagogue in the Kook said that the synagogue had a view that there should be no capitula- Land of Israel, has been rebuilt and re- special holiness, in addition to the ho- tion on the subject of the sovereignty of stored to its former glory. liness of Jerusalem. the Jews in the Land of Israel. The Jewish landmark in Jerusalem Sir Herbert Samuel, a Jew and But since the destruction of the in the nineteenth and early twentieth Britain’s high commissioner of Hurva by the Jordanian Arab Legion, Palestine, was once invited to read the the Hurva had become a symbol of the haftarah for Shabbat Nachamu from destruction of the entire Jewish Quar- Toby Klein Greenwald is a journalist, pho- the bimah.
[Show full text]
Hoffman V. Director of the Western Wall
HCJ 257/89 HCJ 2410/90 1. Anat Hoffman 2. Dr. Bonna Haberman 3. Dr. Judith Green 4. Rendel Fine Robinson v. 1. Director of the Western Wall 2. Ministry of Religious Affairs 3. Chief Rabbinate of Israel 4. Minister of Religious Affairs 5. Minister of Justice 6. Commander of the Old City Police Precinct, Israel Police, Jerusalem 7. Commander of the Jerusalem District, Israel Police 8. Israel Police 9. Sephardic Association of Torah Guardians – Shas Movement 10. Rabbi Simcha Miron 11. Agudat HaChareidim – Degel HaTorah 12. Rabbi Avraham Ravitz HCJ 257/89 1. Susan Alter 2. Professor Susan Aranoff 3. Professor Phyllis Chesler 4. Rivka Haut 5. Professor Norma Baumel Joseph 6. Professor Shulamit Magnus 7. International Committee for Women of the Wall, Inc. v. 1. Minister for Religious Affairs 2. Director of the Western Wall 3. Commissioner of the Israel Police 5. Attorney General HCJ 2410/90 H. Kadesh, U. Ganor for the Plaintiffs in HCJ 257/89; N. Arad, Director of the High Court of Justice Department of the State Attorney’s Office for Respondents 1-8 in HCJ 257/89 and the Respondents in HCJ 2410/90; Z. Terlo for Respondents 9-12 in HCJ 257/89; A. Spaer for the Petitioners in HCJ 2410/90. The Supreme Court sitting as High Court of Justice [January 26, 1994] Before President M. Shamgar, Deputy President M. Elon, Justice S. Levin Facts: The two petitions concern the arrangements for prayer in the Western Wall Plaza in Jerusalem. The Petitioners request to conduct prayer services in the Western Wall Plaza, while carrying Torah scrolls and wearing tallitot [prayer shawls].
[Show full text]
Monitoring According to Paragraph 169 of the Operational Guidelines Old City of Jerusalem and Its Walls
Monitoring according to Paragraph 169 of the Operational Guidelines Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls (148( Nominated 1981 State of Conservation Report 2015Presented to The World Heritage Committee Introduction Monitoring the state of conservation of the World Heritage Site of the Old City of Jerusalem is an obligation that follows the directives appearing on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Local authorities and agencies carry out initiatives which are consistent with the principles and policies set out in the strategic plan for revitalization and conservation of the Old City of Jerusalem. Actions performed through 2015 portray an ongoing attempt to protect the site of the Old City while improving the lives of its inhabitants and its use by tourists. Continuing efforts have been taking place to further advance the infrastructure and public facilities, all in compliance with sustainable safeguarding of the outstanding cultural values, authenticity and integrity of the Old City. These include planning endeavours; infrastructure improvement; accessibility and signage; and cultural events. The annual monitoring report surveys the ongoing actions and lists some new initiatives in the areas inside the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem – Intra Muros sites – as per the UNESCO declaration. TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION 2 1. TOWN PLANNING 6 1.1 LOCAL PLANS 6 a. 195990 - New Scheme for the Jewish Quarter 6 b. 166249 and 166256 Residential Blocks Plans 6 1.2 DETAILED SCHEMES IN THE OLD CITY 7 a. Scheme 11053 - The Liba (core) House 7 b. Scheme 62950 - Tifferet Israel 7 c. Scheme 193482 7 d. Scheme 105536 7 e. Scheme 188995 7 f.
[Show full text]
Architecture Ehlinger & Associates First Quarter 2016
ARCHITECTURE EHLINGER & ASSOCIATES FIRST QUARTER 2016 before the latest re- Ya’acov Salomon upon recom- building and the mendation of Ram Karmi, commissioned destruction that pre- Louis I. Kahn, Architect and Professor ceded this latest re- at the Pennsylvania School of building. It was dubbed Architecture to design the replacement Hurva in the late 18th Hurva synagogue. Kahn’s schemes century because of the between 1968 and 1973 included a ruins that occupied the memorial garden incorporating the site at that time. This original Hurva ruins, a new synagogue synagogue was founded on an adjacent lot, and a promenade on property that had “Route of the Prophets” leading to the always been the site of a Western Wall of the Temple Mount. synagogue and yeshiva When the then Mayor of Jerusalem, in the very early 18th Teddy Kollek, learned of the full import century by followers of of Kahn’s vision, he opposed it stating: Judah he-Hasid, but it “Should we in the Jewish Quarter have a was destroyed only a few building of major importance which years later in 1721 by competes with the Mosque (al Aqsa) and Muslims. It lay in ruins the Holy Sepulcher and should we have for over 140 years and it any building which would compete in was during this period importance with the Western Wall of the that it acquired its name Temple?” Boston Architect Moshe as Hurva (ruin). Then the Safdie supported Kahn also, but it was Perushim rebuilt it in rejected. 1864, and although they also named it the Beis HURVA SYNAGOGUE Yaakov Synagogue, it still informally retained The Hurva Synagogue in the Jewish the name Hurva.
[Show full text]
Christianity in Jerusalem Today
Christianity in Jerusalem Today Raymond Cohen Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Boston College Paper presented to the conference on ―Christianity and the East: Fostering Understanding‖ Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah, May 14-16, 2009 Introduction Christianity in Jerusalem has entered its third millennium under the shadow of conflict: Between Islam and the West; between Israelis and Palestinians; and among the Christian communities themselves. Although Christianity as a representative and institutional presence remains stronger than ever in Jerusalem, and pilgrims pour in, Arab Christians are today a small minority in the city. Looking out over Jerusalem from the Hebrew University on Mount Scopus I have a splendid view of a walled city whose origins are lost in antiquity but which is cherished by the three great monotheistic religions, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. It has four quarters: Jewish, Christian, Muslim, and Armenian. Three domes compete for the eye of the beholder: Most prominent is the seventh century golden Muslim Dome of the Rock dominating the Muslim Quarter and built on the site known to Jews and Christians as the Temple Mount, because it was here that the great Hebrew temples of Solomon and Herod stood. Above and to the west at the heart of the Christian Quarter is the dome over the rotunda of the twelfth century Church of the Holy Sepulchre. It was erected by the Latin Crusader Kingdom on the fourth century foundations of the Emperor Constantine‘s original church, itself constructed over the Emperor Hadrian‘s pagan second century Temple of Aphrodite. Further to the west up the hill is the tower and cupola of the new Hurva synagogue.
[Show full text]
Simulation of Daylight in the Architecture of Louis I
Simulation of Daylight in the Architecture of Louis I. Kahn: A Study of the Un-built Hurva Synagogue M. Saleh Uddin Southern Polytechnic State University, Georgia, USA http://www.salehuddin.com and www.spsu.edu [email protected] Abstract. One of the most powerful aspects of Louis I. Kahn’s architectural space is his handling of natural light. Kahn believed that architecture began with the ‘making of a room’ and that ‘a room is not a room without natural light.’ Throughout his career, he explored bringing light into interiors in the most imaginative ways. Kahn used endless possibilities, from small devices to complex dome structures, to create a poetic and spiritual light inside buildings. The purpose of this paper is to present the theories and practices of natural light in architecture by Louis Kahn, who has deftly used it as a creative medium in his design of buildings. Starting from development of theories, this research focuses on how he implemented his theories into practice. As a case study, the Hurva Synagogue project is selected to analyze its unique lighting solutions. Many of Kahn’s previous concepts can be traced to the Hurva, making it an ideal project for lighting study. Since Hurva Synagogue is an un-built project, recent techniques of computer graphics is used to understand how daylight illuminates the interior in different times of the day and year in both still images and in 3D animations. Keywords: Louis I Kahn, Daylight Simulation, 3D Model, Animation. Introduction Oriental designers filtered the light to create soft in- terior spaces and Islamic architects veiled daylight The relationship between natural light and architec- with complex grilles to cast patterns of light on walls tural form is intimate.
[Show full text]
THE LIGHT Saints Constantine & Helen Greek Orthodox Church Webster, Massachusetts
THE LIGHT Saints Constantine & Helen Greek Orthodox Church Webster, Massachusetts www.schwebster.org Our Beautiful Church during the Christmas season Vol. 14, No. 12 December 2018 WHAT SHALL WE OFFER YOU? CHRIST IS BORN! “What shall we offer you, of His Son, our Lord Jesus O Christ, who for our sake Christ. How the world has GLORIFY HIM! appeared on earth as a changed because of this un- human? Every creature fathomable gift! made by you offers you LIVING BREAD thanksgiving. The angels On one hand, the world LUNCHEON offer you a hymn. The doesn’t seem to have changed 12:30-1:30PM heavens, a star. The magi, much. We still have violence, gifts. The shepherds, their wars, corruption and greed, DEC 1 wonder. The earth, its cave. illness, suffering, and death. The wilderness, a manger. Yet one fundamental thing has And we offer to you changed indeed changed! God CHRISTMAS a Virgin Mother.” has entered the world, tasted RETREAT every aspect of our life except This beautiful hymn we sing sin, including death itself, and 9AM DEC 8 during the Vespers of Christ- has opened up a new path for mas reminds us of an essen- all humanity to follow. ST NICHOLAS tial part of Christmas - gift- giving. Yes, gift-giving is es- Through this gift of Jesus SUNDAY sential, but not in the sense Christ, we now have a con- DEC 9 that most of us think about it. crete example of a perfect life From childhood, we dream of and a true human being in the Christmas because of all the midst of a fallen society.
[Show full text]