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The Abraham Avinu Synagogue ( he, בית הכנסת על שם אברהם אבינו) was built by
The synagogue is mentioned by Rabbi Naftali Hertz Bachrach in his 1648 book ''Emek HaMelech''. The book deals with the 
In 1971 the Israeli Government approved the rebuilding of the synagogue, courtyard and adjoining buildings. Work on the restoration was underway in 1976.
The man instrumental in re-discovering and rebuilding the synagogue was local Hebron resident Ben Zion Tavger. He was a prominent physicist in the Soviet Union at Gorky University noted for his work in the Magnetic Symmetry phenomenon. He moved to Israel in 1972 and became a chair at Tel Aviv University. Tavger wrote in his book ''My Hebron'' about the Avraham Avinu synagogue: "I let my eyes wander around the interior of the synagogue. I had time to think and recall its previous state, five or six years ago, and thought of the sequence of events that had transpired. When I first came here, the place had indeed gone by the name of "Avraham Avinu Synagogue", but its name had seemed completely disconnected from its essence... To me it had seemed obvious that we had to dig and clear out the refuse and rubbish from the site, to reveal the splendor of the synagogue for all to see."
Today, the rebuilt synagogue is used each Friday night by the Jewish residents of Hebron to hold prayer services. The synagogue is also open to visitors each day of the week so they can learn about the history of the synagogue, and hold private services.
Today, a plaque with the cover of the book Emek HaMelech and the full text in the original printing hangs on a plaque on the wall of the rebuilt Avraham Avinu synagogue.
Photo gallery
of Avraham Avinu synagogue including vintage and modern pictures.
Abraham Avinu Synagogue's websiteAvraham Avinu Synagogue page on Hebron.comVideo
of Prof. Ben Zion Tavgar discussing his excavation of the Avraham Avinu Synagogue (Hebrew)
Video
historical overview of Avraham Avinu neighborhood {{Authority control Orthodox Judaism in the West Bank Orthodox synagogues Synagogues in the West Bank Jews and Judaism in Hebron 16th-century synagogues Rebuilt synagogues Religious buildings and structures completed in 1540 Buildings and structures demolished in 1948
Hakham
''Hakham'' (or ''chakam(i), haham(i), hacham(i)''; he, חכם ', "wise") is a term in Judaism, meaning a wise or skillful man; it often refers to someone who is a great Torah scholar. It can also refer to any cultured and learned person: "He ...
Malkiel Ashkenazi Malkiel (also spelled Malchiel) Ashkenazi (Hebrew: מלכיאל אשכנזי) was a Sephardic rabbi and leader of the Jewish community in Hebron in 1540.
The story of his leading a community in Hebron has its root in 1517, when the Ottoman Turks ...
in the Jewish Quarter of Hebron
Hebron ( ar, الخليل or ; he, חֶבְרוֹן ) is a Palestinian. city in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Nestled in the Judaean Mountains, it lies above sea level. The second-largest city in the West Bank (after East J ...
in 1540. The domed structure represented the physical center of the Jewish Quarter of Hebron. Located in the Old City of Hebron, it became the spiritual hub of the Jewish community there and a major center for the study of Kabbalah
Kabbalah ( he, קַבָּלָה ''Qabbālā'', literally "reception, tradition") is an esoteric method, discipline and Jewish theology, school of thought in Jewish mysticism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal ( ''Məqūbbāl'' "rece ...
. It was restored in 1738 and enlarged in 1864. The synagogue stood empty since the 1929 Hebron massacre
The Hebron massacre refers to the killing of sixty-seven or sixty-nine Jews on 24 August 1929 in Hebron, then part of Mandatory Palestine, by Arabs incited to violence by rumors that Jews were planning to seize control of the Temple Mount in ...
and was destroyed after 1948.
History
The synagogue is mentioned by Rabbi Naftali Hertz Bachrach in his 1648 book ''Emek HaMelech''. The book deals with the kabbalah
Kabbalah ( he, קַבָּלָה ''Qabbālā'', literally "reception, tradition") is an esoteric method, discipline and Jewish theology, school of thought in Jewish mysticism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal ( ''Məqūbbāl'' "rece ...
, but in the introduction, he mentions a dramatic story about the Avraham Avinu synagogue.
Jordan
Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...
took control of the area in 1948, and after this time a wholesale market, trash dump and public toilet were placed on the site of the Jewish Quarter. The ruins of the synagogue were turned into a goat and donkey pen. The adjacent, "Kabbalists' Courtyard" was turned into an abattoir.
In 1971 the Israeli Government approved the rebuilding of the synagogue, courtyard and adjoining buildings. Work on the restoration was underway in 1976.
The man instrumental in re-discovering and rebuilding the synagogue was local Hebron resident Ben Zion Tavger. He was a prominent physicist in the Soviet Union at Gorky University noted for his work in the Magnetic Symmetry phenomenon. He moved to Israel in 1972 and became a chair at Tel Aviv University. Tavger wrote in his book ''My Hebron'' about the Avraham Avinu synagogue: "I let my eyes wander around the interior of the synagogue. I had time to think and recall its previous state, five or six years ago, and thought of the sequence of events that had transpired. When I first came here, the place had indeed gone by the name of "Avraham Avinu Synagogue", but its name had seemed completely disconnected from its essence... To me it had seemed obvious that we had to dig and clear out the refuse and rubbish from the site, to reveal the splendor of the synagogue for all to see."
Today, the rebuilt synagogue is used each Friday night by the Jewish residents of Hebron to hold prayer services. The synagogue is also open to visitors each day of the week so they can learn about the history of the synagogue, and hold private services.
Today, a plaque with the cover of the book Emek HaMelech and the full text in the original printing hangs on a plaque on the wall of the rebuilt Avraham Avinu synagogue.
See also
*List of oldest synagogues
Historic synagogues include synagogues that date back to ancient times and synagogues that represent the earliest Jewish presence in cities around the world. Some synagogues were destroyed and rebuilt several times on the same site. Others wer ...
References
Further reading
*External links
Photo gallery
of Avraham Avinu synagogue including vintage and modern pictures.
Abraham Avinu Synagogue's website
of Prof. Ben Zion Tavgar discussing his excavation of the Avraham Avinu Synagogue (Hebrew)
Video
historical overview of Avraham Avinu neighborhood {{Authority control Orthodox Judaism in the West Bank Orthodox synagogues Synagogues in the West Bank Jews and Judaism in Hebron 16th-century synagogues Rebuilt synagogues Religious buildings and structures completed in 1540 Buildings and structures demolished in 1948