The Yusef Abad Synagogue ( fa, کنیسه یوسف آباد ''Kanise-ye Yusef Ābād'', he, בית הכנסת יוסף-אבד) is the main synagogue of

Tehran Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the Capital city, capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is th ...

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkm ...

. It is also one of the largest synagogues of the city. The official name of the Yusef Abad Synagogue is Sukkot Shalom Synagogue. The original building that housed the synagogue was completed in the early 1950s. With the growth of the Jewish population of the capital especially in the Yusef Abad neighborhood, it was decided that a newer building was needed. With the help of local community leaders headed by Avraham Yusian, the construction of the new facade was completed in October 1965. The doors of the new synagogue were opened to the public on

Rosh Hashanah Rosh HaShanah ( he, רֹאשׁ הַשָּׁנָה, , literally "head of the year") is the Jewish New Year. The biblical name for this holiday is Yom Teruah (, , lit. "day of shouting/blasting") It is the first of the Jewish High Holy Days (, , ...

5726 (Hebrew calendar). On February 8, 2003, President

Mohammad Khatami Sayyid Mohammad Khatami ( fa, سید محمد خاتمی, ; born 14 October 1943) is an Iranian politician who served as the fifth president of Iran from 3 August 1997 to 3 August 2005. He also served as Iran's Minister of Culture from 1982 t ...

visited Yusef Abad Synagogue becoming the first

President of Iran The president of Iran ( fa, رئیس‌جمهور ایران, Rayis Jomhur-e Irān) is the head of government of the Islamic Republic of Iran. The president is the second highest-ranking official of Iran after the Supreme Leader. The president ...

to visit a synagogue since the

Islamic Revolution The Iranian Revolution ( fa, انقلاب ایران, Enqelâb-e Irân, ), also known as the Islamic Revolution ( fa, انقلاب اسلامی, Enqelâb-e Eslâmī), was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynas ...

Chief Rabbi Chief Rabbi ( he, רב ראשי ''Rav Rashi'') 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 ...

Yousef Hamadani Cohen,

Haroun Yashayaei Haroun Yashayaei ( fa, هارون یشایایی) is former chairman of the board of the Tehran Jewish Committee and former leader of Iran's Jewish community. On January 26, 2006, Yashayaei's letter to the Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, c ...

, and Morris Motamed attended and represented the Jewish community of Iran. For the event, Chief Rabbi Yosef Hamadani Cohen led the opening the

Torah scroll A ( he, סֵפֶר תּוֹרָה; "Book of Torah"; plural: ) or Torah scroll is a handwritten copy of the Torah, meaning the five books of Moses (the first books of the Hebrew Bible). The Torah scroll is mainly used in the ritual of Tor ...

ark and the reciting of prayers.President Khatami visits the main synagogue in Teheran on Tu B'shvat
Memorial Foundation for Jewish Culture

Gallery

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References

External links

The Center for Research & Analysis of Iranian Jewish HistoryNegaresh Sevom Iranian Jewish Cultural, Social and Analytical Website (Persian)
Synagogues in Tehran {{Iran-synagogue-stub

Gallery

See also

References

Further reading

External links