Pre-Site Visit Reflections:
During our time in Berlin, we will enjoy the privilege of holding our class time at the Neue Synagoge (New Synagogue) on Oranienburgerstrasse. As a Jewish person on this trip, I think it is extremely significant that in the midst of our learning and visiting sites of Jewish (and other) persecution and violence, we are anchored by a material and spatial expression of Jewish life and vitality.
This shul, named in relation to the Alte Synagoge (Old Synagogue) first opened its doors in 1866 to a congregation of 3,200. It remained in continuous operation until March 1940, in spite of a brief interruption during the November 1938 pogrom. Thankfully, Berlin police chief Wilhelm Krützfeld encouraged rampaging SA troops to extinguish the flames in the building, preventing it from sustaining notable structural damage. However, the building was desecrated in 1943 and used as a warehouse by the Nazi Regime before it was damaged significantly by Allied bombing that same year.
The building was partially refurbished in the 1950s, and then fully refurbished and renovated (save for the historic building front) in the mid-1990s. Today, the building houses the Centrum Judaicum, a textual and material archive housing objects of historic religious and cultural significance, as well as providing a sanctuary of learning and study. In addition, it currently supports an egalitarian congregation led by a female Rabbi, a nod to the German roots of modern Reform Judaism, and is recognized as a culturally significant site by the nation. We are very fortunate to be staying very close to the synagogue, and we may especially enjoy its view in the evening hours as it is illuminated by the warm glow of the street below.
As this is the first synagogue we will be visiting in Europe, I thought it might be helpful to cover a few customs:
- If men are offered a kippah (yarmulke), they must be worn to cover the head at all times inside the synagogue – However, while one might see men wearing a tallit, or prayer shawl, non-Jewish men are not expected or permitted to wear this garment.
- “Respectful” clothing is customary – minimize exposed shoulders/short skirts/midriff
- When handling religious items or garments, they are treated with care and respect. If dropped on the floor, it is customary to kiss one’s fingertips and touch it to the object while picking it up.
- Some orthodox Jews will not touch/shake hands with those of the opposite gender, this will likely not be encountered in Germany, but it is possible. One can recognize an orthodox Jewish person who may be averse to touching the opposite gender through the presence of long skirts/wigs (women) and sidelocks/beirds/tzitzit (strings hanging from the hips) for men.
- Jewish people often pray with their hands covering their eyes – this can be unfamiliar and can even appear as though someone is crying, but don’t worry! This is just prayer!
Post-Site Visit Reflections:
Berlin’s Neue Synagoge represents the nuance and complexity of Berlin’s Jewish heritage, migration, persecution, and endurance. We returned to this space multiple times during our stay in the city, for both museum visitation and class sessions, and were met with warmth, hospitality, and engaging discussions at every instance. On behalf of the group, we extend our deepest gratitude to this community for sharing their holy space with us.
The remnants of war and conflict remain on the interior of the building, the ceiling firemarked and left untouched, perhaps as a reminder of the legacy of global Jewish life as a people in whom the past endures. Other representations of National Socialism are evident in the preserved material culture in the museum, such as the Torah curtains still bearing the boot prints of officers who desecrated the space during the era. This preservation of material clearly touched by history is a further representation of the memorialization of the Holocaust in this community – the tangible damage to the space is preserved not to retain the presence of violence and antisemitism, but as a reminder of the endurance of the Jewish community specifically under the Nazi Regime.
Current exhibition theme of Tuet auf die Pforten roughly translates to “open up the gates” – perhaps signaling the openness and integration of the (reform) Jewish community in Berlin compared to earlier iterations. It is connected to the initial Hebrew signage on the building, which is currently being preserved inside the museum and is available for visitors to view. The lettering was modernized in recent years, and the same phrase can be found on the building’s exterior today.
The current shul can be found on one of the upper floors, and reflects a much smaller congregation than that of the pre-war community. As explained by our museum guide, this synagogue was not in continuous operation following WWII, and the current Jewish community using the space is composed mainly of Russian-speaking Eastern European Jews. This fragmentation of the community is more broadly reflective of the migrational patterns and experiences of global Jewry, often framed by a lack of permanence and migrational agency.
The community has been impacted by the events of October 7th, featuring various “missing person” posters on the exterior of the building to signify the ongoing retention of Israeli hostages. As with most Jewish communities, this community has a specific diaspora orientation and relationship to global geopolitical events, undoubtedly informed by the cultural memory of the Shoah.
Furthermore, I found it an interesting exercise to compare the histories of Berlin’s Neue Synagoge to Victoria’s Congregation Emanu-El. The two synagogues opened only one year apart, 1866 and 1865 respectively, however represent drastically different relationships to diasporic Jewish identity, experience with violence and atrocity (i.e. the Shoah), and displacement/continuous occupation, signifying the significance of place-based cultural memory of the Shoah and its material memorialization.
Overall, Berlin’s Neue Synagoge is a site of Holocaust memorialization, however this function is secondary to that of telling the story of Berlin’s reform Jewish community (within which the Holocaust is a significant chapter). In this way, this site portrays the Holocaust as a significant, though not final, nor defining, element in Berlin’s Jewish heritage, and overall expresses the Holocaust Experience of Berlin’s Jewish community with dignity and sensitivity.
Citations:
Oranienburger Strasse Synagogue. Oranienburger Straße – Jewish Community of Berlin. (n.d.). http://www.jg-berlin.org/en/judaism/synagogues/oranienburger-strasse.html
New synagogue. berlin.de. (n.d.). https://www.berlin.de/en/attractions-and-sights/3560461-3104052-new-synagogue.en.html