The Amiens Synagogue () is an

Orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pag ...

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

congregation and

synagogue A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...

, located in the city of

Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; , or ) is a city and Communes of France, commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme (department), Somme Departments of France, department in the region ...

in the Department of

Somme __NOTOC__ Somme or The Somme may refer to: Places *Somme (department), a department of France * Somme, Queensland, Australia * Canal de la Somme, a canal in France *Somme (river), a river in France Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Somme'' (book), ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. The synagogue, rededicated in 2017, replaced two previous buildings.

History

In 1933 the ''Association cultuelle israélite de la Somme'' was founded in Amiens and began an affiliation with the

Israelite Central Consistory of France The Israelite Central Consistory of France () is an institution set up by Napoleon I by the Imperial Decree of 17 March 1808 to administer Jewish worship and congregations in France. He also directed the establishment of regional Israelite Consisto ...

, one of the key Orthodox bodies in France. The congregation's first president was René Louria, a businessman and confectioner in Amiens. The first synagogue building was dedicated in 1935 by the Jewish community, located in a building on Rue du Cloître-de-la-Barge, not far from the cathedral and the courthouse.

Jean Moulin Jean Pierre Moulin (; 20 June 1899 – 8 July 1943) was a French civil servant and hero of the French Resistance who succeeded in unifying the main networks of the Resistance in World War II, a unique act in Europe. He served as the first Presid ...

, then secretary general of the

Prefecture A prefecture (from the Latin word, "''praefectura"'') is an administrative jurisdiction traditionally governed by an appointed prefect. This can be a regional or local government subdivision in various countries, or a subdivision in certain inter ...

of the Somme, attended the dedication of the building. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the synagogue was expropriated and set to be sold by the Nazis. Collaborationist forces in Amiens occupied the synagogue during the occupation of the city. The synagogue was returned to the Jewish community following the

Liberation of France The liberation of France () in the Second World War was accomplished through diplomacy, politics and the combined military efforts of the Allied Powers, Free French forces in London and Africa, as well as the French Resistance. Nazi Germany in ...

. The community's

Torah scroll A Sephardic Torah scroll rolled to the first paragraph of the Shema An Ashkenazi Torah scroll rolled to the Decalogue file:Keneseth Eliyahoo Synagogue, Interior, Tora Cases.jpg">Torah cases at Knesset Eliyahoo Synagogue, Mumbai, India ...

had been safeguarded during the war by non-Jewish members of the community. After the war, the community rebuilt despite losing synagogue president René Louria at

Auschwitz Auschwitz, or Oświęcim, was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It consisted of Auschw ...

Remembrance ceremony

On December 2, 1951,

Le Souvenir français Le Souvenir français is a French association for maintaining war memorials and war memory, comparable to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. It was created in 1887 in the departments of Alsace and Lorraine. Young women in traditional dress ...

, a French association for maintaining war memorials and war memory, organized a ceremony at the synagogue to remember those in the Jewish community who were killed during the war. Rabbi Paul Bauer of Paris gave a speech at the event, making a point to remember all the dead of the war, regardless of their political, philosophical or religious views. The service was celebrated by Henri Kahn, the chief officiant of the Grande synagogue de Paris.

Moving locations

In 1968, the synagogue was moved because the block where it was located was undergoing construction, requiring demolition of the building. A new synagogue opened its doors in 1969 at Port d'Amont, close to the Pont Beauvillé, where the community used a re-purposed garage as a worship space. Due to a 2004 real estate deal, the synagogue's location at Port d'Amont was also moved. A new synagogue building was built a few meters from the original building on Rue du Cloître-de-la-Barge. The building was dedicated on October 22, 2017, with

Chief Rabbi of France Chief Rabbi () is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of that country's Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities. Since 1911, through a capitulation by Ben-Zion Meir H ...

Haïm Korsia Haïm Korsia (born 27 September 1963) is the Chief Rabbi of France. He was elected by the Central Consistory. Already serving as Jewish chaplain of the French army, Korsia was also head of a rabbinical school. He was elected in June 2014 and b ...

in attendance, as well as Jewish and political figures from

Lille Lille (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city in the northern part of France, within French Flanders. Positioned along the Deûle river, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Prefectures in F ...

, Paris and Amiens.

Architectural characteristics

The new

Modernist Modernism was an early 20th-century movement in literature, visual arts, and music that emphasized experimentation, abstraction, and Subjectivity and objectivity (philosophy), subjective experience. Philosophy, politics, architecture, and soc ...

Amiens Synagogue is the work of

Paul Chemetov Paul Chemetov (6 September 1928 – 16 June 2024) was a French architect and urbanist. He was best known for his collaborations with Borja Huidobro. Biography Chemetov was born in Paris on 6 September 1928. As a student, he belonged to the Un ...

, who was influenced by the

Bauhaus The Staatliches Bauhaus (), commonly known as the , was a German art school operational from 1919 to 1933 that combined Decorative arts, crafts and the fine arts.Oxford Dictionary of Art and Artists (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 4th edn., ...

style. It is constructed according to a

Parallelepiped In geometry, a parallelepiped is a three-dimensional figure formed by six parallelograms (the term ''rhomboid'' is also sometimes used with this meaning). By analogy, it relates to a parallelogram just as a cube relates to a square. Three equiva ...

ic plan. The facade, overlooking the Port d'Amont, is understated, decorated only with a Menorah. The sides of the building have

mashrabiya A ''mashrabiya'' or ''mashrabiyya'' () is an architectural element which is characteristic of traditional Islamic architecture, architecture in the Islamic world and beyond. It is a type of projecting oriel window enclosed with carved wood latti ...

openings that resemble Stars of David.''Le Courrier picard du 22 octobre 2017'' A side door with the

Tablets of Stone According to the Hebrew Bible, the Tablets of the Law (also Tablets of Stone, Stone Tablets, or Tablets of Testimony; Biblical Hebrew: לוּחֹת הַבְּרִית ''lūḥōṯ habbǝrīṯ'' "tablets of the covenant", לֻחֹת הָאֶבֶ ...

leads to the ground floor, where the sanctuary is located. On the south wall is a

commemorative plaque A commemorative plaque, or simply plaque, or in other places referred to as a historical marker, historic marker, or historic plaque, is a plate of metal, ceramic, stone, wood, or other material, bearing text or an image in relief, or both, ...

inscribed with the names of those lost from Amiens during the

Shoah The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

. Upper floors in the building include a meeting room and other bedrooms. Synagogue d'Amiens 6.jpg, Synagogue d'Amiens 9.jpg, Synagogue d'Amiens 5.jpg,

References

Bibliography

* *

External links

Photomontage représentant la nouvelle synagogue d'Amiens, sur le site d''Amiens Aménagement''

Histoire des Juifs en Picardie
{{Synagogues in France 1933 establishments in France 20th-century synagogues in France Buildings and structures in Amiens Jewish organizations established in 1933 Modernist architecture in France Modernist synagogues Orthodox synagogues in France Synagogues completed in 1935 Synagogues completed in 1969 Synagogues completed in 2017