The Choral Synagogue of Vilnius (), officially, Taharat Ha-Kodesh Choral Synagogue in Vilnius, 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 at 39 Pylimo Street (originally Zawalna Street), in the

Old Town In a city or town, the old town is its historic or original core. Although the city is usually larger in its present form, many cities have redesignated this part of the city to commemorate its origins. In some cases, newer developments on t ...

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ) is the capital of and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, most-populous city in the Baltic states. The city's estimated January 2025 population w ...

, in the

Vilnius County Vilnius County () is the largest of the 10 counties of Lithuania, located in the east of the country around the city Vilnius and is also known as Capital Region or Sostinės regionas by the State Data Agency, Lithuanian statistics department and ...

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

. Designed by Daniel Rosenhaus and Aleksejus Polozovas in an

eclectic Eclectic may refer to: Music * ''Eclectic'' (Eric Johnson and Mike Stern album), 2014 * ''Eclectic'' (Big Country album), 1996 * Eclectic Method, name of an audio-visual remix act * Eclecticism in music, the conscious use of styles alien to th ...

combination of the

Romanesque Revival Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a style of building employed beginning in the mid-19th century inspired by the 11th- and 12th-century Romanesque architecture. Unlike the historic Romanesque style, Romanesque Revival buildings tended t ...

and

Moorish Revival Moorish Revival or Neo-Moorish is one of the exotic revival architectural styles that were adopted by architects of Europe and the Americas in the wake of Romanticism, Romanticist Orientalism. It reached the height of its popularity after the mi ...

styles, the building was completed in 1903. The Choral Synagogue is the only synagogue in Vilnius that is in use. All other synagogues were completely destroyed or partly desecrated during

World War II 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 ...

, when Lithuania was occupied by Nazi Germany, and by the

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

authorities after the war.

History

It is the only active synagogue that survived both

the Holocaust 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 ...

and Soviet rule in Vilnius, that once had over 100 synagogues. Despite practising in the Orthodox

Ashkenazi Ashkenazi Jews ( ; also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim) form a distinct subgroup of the Jewish diaspora, that Ethnogenesis, emerged in the Holy Roman Empire around the end of the first millennium Common era, CE. They traditionally spe ...

rite Rite may refer to: Religion * Ritual, an established ceremonious act * Rite (Christianity), sacred rituals in the Christian religion * Ritual family, Christian liturgical traditions; often also called ''liturgical rites'' * Catholic particular ch ...

, the synagogue was built in the traditions of a community that practised

Reform Judaism Reform Judaism, also known as Liberal Judaism or Progressive Judaism, is a major Jewish religious movements, Jewish denomination that emphasizes the evolving nature of Judaism, the superiority of its Jewish ethics, ethical aspects to its ceremo ...

. The exterior of this unusual, very attractive Moorish-styled synagogue features two-tone brick, used to create horizontal lines in the

façade A façade or facade (; ) is generally the front part or exterior of a building. It is a loanword from the French language, French (), which means "frontage" or "face". In architecture, the façade of a building is often the most important asp ...

. There are three arches above the entrance with a large arch above it all, featuring stained glass windows below the arch and interesting moldings highlighting the arch and the façade above it. Stained glass windows with intricate Moorish detailing are featured on towers on either side of the entrance. Below the roofline, repeated Moorish motifs are incorporated into the molding to stunning effect. Above the pitch of the roof rests two tablets, featuring the

Ten Commandments The Ten Commandments (), or the Decalogue (from Latin , from Ancient Greek , ), are religious and ethical directives, structured as a covenant document, that, according to the Hebrew Bible, were given by YHWH to Moses. The text of the Ten ...

inscribed in

Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...

. According to one source, the synagogue was not attractive: During the Soviet occupation the synagogue was nationalised and the building was turned into a metal factory, with subsequent considerable damage as a result of this use. The building was restored in 2010 and opened again as a synagogue shortly thereafter. International donations and a small community of Jews in Vilnius support the synagogue. The synagogue holds services and is open to visitors. In 2019, the synagogue along with the Jewish community headquarters was temporarily closed due to threats from

right-wing Right-wing politics is the range of political ideologies that view certain social orders and hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this position based on natural law, economics, authority, property ...

groups. The decision coincided with a rise in antisemitic rhetoric related to public debate about honoring Lithuanian collaborators.

Gallery

'Choral Synagogue' Vilnius - Flickr - FaceMePLS.jpg, Synagogue interior 8 Vilnius- Synagogue Chorale-DSC05176.JPG, Synagogue interior 8 Vilnius- Synagogue Chorale-DSC05178.JPG, Synagogue interior 1916 Vilniaus choral Synagoge adj.jpg, Synagogue in 1916 Vilna synagogue.jpg, A Yiddish flag on the synagogue's fence

References

External links

Lithuanian Jewish community
{{Authority control 1847 establishments in Lithuania 20th-century synagogues in Lithuania 21st-century attacks on Jewish institutions Ashkenazi Jewish culture in Lithuania Ashkenazi synagogues Eclectic architecture Jewish organizations established in 1847 Moorish Revival architecture in Lithuania Moorish Revival synagogues Orthodox synagogues in Lithuania Romanesque Revival synagogues Synagogues in Vilnius Synagogues completed in 1903

History

Gallery

See also

References

External links