The Kahal Zur Israel Synagogue (; ; ) was a former

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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 197 Rua do Bom Jesus (Rua dos Judeus), in the old city of

Recife Recife ( , ) is the Federative units of Brazil, state capital of Pernambuco, Brazil, on the northeastern Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of South America. It is the largest urban area within both the North Region, Brazil, North and the Northeast R ...

, in the state of

Pernambuco Pernambuco ( , , ) is a States of Brazil, state of Brazil located in the Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast region of the country. With an estimated population of 9.5 million people as of 2024, it is the List of Brazilian states by population, ...

, in northeastern

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. The synagogue was established in 1636 by Portuguese and Spanish

Sephardic Jews Sephardic Jews, also known as Sephardi Jews or Sephardim, and rarely as Iberian Peninsular Jews, are a Jewish diaspora population associated with the historic Jewish communities of the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal) and their descendant ...

who had taken refuge in

Dutch Brazil Dutch Brazil (; ), also known as New Holland (), was a colony of the Dutch Republic in the northeastern portion of modern-day Brazil, controlled from 1630 to 1654 during Dutch colonization of the Americas. The main cities of the colony were the c ...

, fleeing forced

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, and were joined by

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s, who possibly helped to build the structure and were already living in the colony. It was the first synagogue erected in the Americas. The building was destroyed in the early part of the 20th century and a new building constructed on the same site, that now serves as a

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. The museum features a

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and

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, as well as archeological excavations displaying various parts of the original synagogue, such as the ''

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''.

History

In 1630, Moses Cohen Henriques led a Jewish contingent to Itamaracá, an island off Brazil. From there they settled in Recife. After his retirement circa 1636 from privateering for the Dutch and perhaps pirating, Cohen Henriques assisted his brother, Abraham Cohen, in establishing the Kahal Zur Israel synagogue. It is perhaps one of the only synagogues to have been partially established by a pirate. From 1636 to 1654, the synagogue functioned on the site of the houses no. 197 and 203 ''Rua do Bom Jesus'' (formerly ''Rua dos Judeus'', lit. 'Street of the Jews'). It flourished in the mid-17th century when the Dutch briefly controlled this part of northeastern Brazil. The synagogue then served a community of approximately 1,450 Jews. It had a

cantor A cantor or chanter is a person who leads people in singing or sometimes in prayer. Cantor as a profession generally refers to those leading a Jewish congregation, although it also applies to the lead singer or choir director in Christian contexts. ...

, Josue Velosino, and a

rabbi A rabbi (; ) is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi—known as ''semikha''—following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of t ...

Isaac Aboab da Fonseca Isaac Aboab da Fonseca (or Isaak Aboab Foonseca) (February 1, 1605 – April 4, 1693) was a rabbi, scholar, kabbalist, and religious writer. In 1656, he was one of several elders within the Portuguese-Jewish community in Amsterdam and for a time ...

, sent to Recife in 1642. In 1654, the Dutch surrendered to the Portuguese, only after the Jews were guaranteed safe passage from the colony, evading Portuguese persecution. Aboab da Fonseca and Cohen Henriques, as well as most of the Jews of the Dutch colony, left. The original synagogue structure survived until the early 20th century when it was torn down. The site has been confirmed by an archaeological excavation. In 2001 the decision was made to create a Jewish museum in the two-story house with two shops located on the first floor then standing on the site of the old synagogue.

Present day

The Jewish museum, designed to resemble synagogues built in the 17th and 18th centuries by Sephardic Jews from

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and

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

, opened in 2001. Today, there are four synagogues in Recife. Many Jews choose to celebrate their weddings and '' Bnei Mitzvot'' celebrations in the ''Kahal Zur Israel'' because of its symbolism as a connection to their long history in the country. The synagogue is also at the center of a broader cultural renaissance. Every November, a Jewish festival offering dance, cinema, and food, from '' gefilte fish'' to '' fluden'', attracts around 20,000 visitors to the synagogue and the ''Rua do Bom Jesus'' (''Rua dos Judeus'').

Notes

References

External links

José Luiz Mota Menezes: Sinagoga Kahal Zur Israel, Recife
José Luiz Mota Menezes' reconstruction of Kahal Zur Israel (Portuguese) 4 April 2020

Jobson Figueiredo's restoration project
The Jewish Community of Recife
ANU – Museum of the Jewish People *Dougherty, Ro

{{Authority control 17th-century synagogues in South America Buildings and structures associated with the Dutch West India Company Destroyed synagogues Dutch Brazil Ethnic museums in Brazil Former synagogues in Brazil History museums in Brazil Jewish museums in Brazil Jews and Judaism in Recife Museums in Recife Museums established in 2001 Portuguese-Brazilian culture Portuguese-Jewish diaspora Religion in the Dutch Empire Religious buildings and structures in Recife Sephardi Jewish culture in Brazil Sephardi synagogues Spanish diaspora in Brazil Spanish-Jewish diaspora Synagogues completed in 1636 Synagogues preserved as museums 17th-century religious buildings and structures in Brazil