Shaar Hashomayim is a synagogue in
Sudbury, Ontario, Canada.
It was dedicated on April 24, 1960. That year, the congregation joined the
United Synagogues of America, the chief organ of
Conservative Judaism
Conservative Judaism, also known as Masorti Judaism, is a Jewish religious movements, Jewish religious movement that regards the authority of Jewish law and tradition as emanating primarily from the assent of the people through the generations ...
.
Approximately 30 families attend the Shaar Hashomayim synagogue.
It has 25 active families.
Building
Exterior
The Shar Hashomayim synagogue is a
post-modern-style building.
Its exterior is composed of a simple
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 ...
constructed of brown brick with white trim.
The exterior has a large sculpture constructed out of seven concrete pillars that represents the
menorah.
The green space surrounding the building backs onto a woodland, as well as a
ravine
A ravine is a landform that is narrower than a canyon and is often the product of streambank erosion. Ravines are typically classified as larger in scale than gullies, although smaller than valleys. Ravines may also be called a cleuch, dell, ...
. The view is guided towards the sky because the building appears to be horizontal, but this is contrasted with the repetition of vertical windows at the front .
On the exterior of the building, there is a dedication stone that marks the legacy of the Jewish Community.
Interior
The building has seven thin vertical windows that divide the illumination into seven streams of light to represent the
menorah.
This large window inside is behind the synagogues bema and the vertical pieces diffuse the eastern sunlight.
There is unobstructed view of the
ner tamid to the left of the bema.
Architect
The architect was Mandel Charles Sprachman (January 15, 1925, Toronto - February 11th, 2002),
a graduate of the
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...
School of Architecture who ran his own architecture firm.
Programs and services
Shaar Hashomayim welcomes Jews of every denomination
as well as members of any other faith.
[
Every service always includes women and men.]Hebrew school
Hebrew school is Jewish education focusing on topics of Jewish history, learning the Hebrew language, and finally learning one's Torah Portion, in preparation for the ceremony in Judaism of entering adulthood, known as a Bar or Bat Mitzvah. Heb ...
on Sundays for the kids in the families of the Jewish community.
Documentation
The Shaar Hashomayim synagogue was featured in a project by three University of Toronto architecture graduates; Sheldon Leitt, Lynn Milstone, and Sid Tenenbaum.[ Between1976 and 1980, the students took pictures of synagogues across Canada.][
The student published a book entitled ''Treasures of the people: The synagogues of Canada'' (Toronto: Lest & Orpen Dennys Limited, 1985).][https://www.toronto.ca/city-government/accountability-operations-customer-service/ {{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210426092631/https://www.toronto.ca/city-government/accountability-operations-customer-service/ , date=2021-04-26 .]
References
Buildings and structures in Greater Sudbury
Synagogues in Ontario
Synagogues completed in 1960
20th-century synagogues in Canada
Conservative synagogues in Canada