GERMANY: Germany's largest synagogue torched by the Nazis reopens its doors in Berlin after 7-year restoration
- 00:00:04
- ITN Source
GERMANY: Germany's largest synagogue torched by the Nazis reopens its doors in Berlin after 7-year restoration
Germany's largest synagogue, a century old landmark torched by the Nazis and left to fester in communist east Berlin, reopens its doors in the latest sign of the country's Jewish revival. Located in the German capital's now trendy district of Prenzlauer Berg, the 1,000-seat synagogue reopened on Friday (August 31), returning to its former glory thanks to a painstaking seven-year restoration project that cost seven million euros (9.56 million U.S. dollars). The restoration of the blue-domed temple follows the opening of a new synagogue in Munich in 2006 and the ordination of Germany's first rabbis since World War Two. At a ceremony attended by Interior Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble, there was a mood of celebration in the towering building. Golden chandeliers now hang from the ceiling, intricate hand-cut stonework adorn the altar and the blue dome glitters with golden stars. Germany is now home to an estimated 100,000 Jews, compared with 12,000 after the war. Before the war there were some 600,000 Jews living in Germany -- a community that was devastated by the Nazis. The head of Germany's Jewish Council, Charlotte Knobloch was enthusiastic about the reopening of the country's largest synagogue. "This event is something very extraordinary. I know that era and I experienced the era when synagogues were being destroyed," she told Reuters. "I know that Judaism has a future here. We don't just have the community members but we have the buildings where we can feel at ease and where we can pray to our God," Knobloch added. Hundreds of synagogues across the country were destroyed, many on November 9-10 1938, known as Kristallnacht. The east Berlin temple was also set on fire that night but neighbours extinguished it to protect nearby homes.
ITN Source | September 1, 2007
