The Lisbon Synagogue (formally, the ''Synagogue Shaaré Tikvah''; ) is a historical
synagogue situated in the
civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...
of
Santo António
Santo António (Portuguese for Saint Anthony), also known as Santo António do Príncipe, is the main settlement of the island of Príncipe in São Tomé and Príncipe. It lies on the north east coast. It is the capital of the Autonomous Reg ...
, in the
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...
of
Lisbon, Portugal.
History
![SinagogaLisboa](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/23/SinagogaLisboa.JPG)
There have been
Jews
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
in Lisbon at least since the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
, but the community suffered a major blow in 1497, when an
edict
An edict is a decree or announcement of a law, often associated with monarchism, but it can be under any official authority. Synonyms include "dictum" and "pronouncement".
''Edict'' derives from the Latin edictum.
Notable edicts
* Telepinu Pro ...
by
King Manuel I
Manuel I (; 31 May 146913 December 1521), known as the Fortunate ( pt, O Venturoso), was King of Portugal from 1495 to 1521. A member of the House of Aviz, Manuel was Duke of Beja and Viseu prior to succeeding his cousin, John II of Portugal, as ...
ordered Jews either to convert to Christianity or to leave the country. All synagogues of Lisbon were confiscated by the King and given to Christian
religious orders
A religious order is a lineage of communities and organizations of people who live in some way set apart from society in accordance with their specific religious devotion, usually characterized by the principles of its founder's religious pract ...
. For the Jews that converted to Catholicism, called
New Christians
New Christian ( es, Cristiano Nuevo; pt, Cristão-Novo; ca, Cristià Nou; lad, Christiano Muevo) was a socio-religious designation and legal distinction in the Spanish Empire and the Portuguese Empire. The term was used from the 15th century ...
(''cristãos novos''), the establishment of the
Portuguese Inquisition
The Portuguese Inquisition ( Portuguese: ''Inquisição Portuguesa''), officially known as the General Council of the Holy Office of the Inquisition in Portugal, was formally established in Portugal in 1536 at the request of its king, John III. ...
in 1536 meant a permanent danger of being persecuted. The situation for
Judaism
Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in t ...
in Portugal changed at the beginning of the 19th century, when the Portuguese Inquisition was abolished
and
Sephardi Jews
Sephardic (or Sephardi) Jews (, ; lad, Djudíos Sefardíes), also ''Sepharadim'' , Modern Hebrew: ''Sfaradim'', Tiberian: Səp̄āraddîm, also , ''Ye'hude Sepharad'', lit. "The Jews of Spain", es, Judíos sefardíes (or ), pt, Judeus sefa ...
from
Morocco
Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria t ...
and
Gibraltar
)
, anthem = " God Save the King"
, song = " Gibraltar Anthem"
, image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg
, map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe
, map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green
, mapsize =
, image_map2 = Gib ...
, mostly merchants, started to migrate to Lisbon and other parts of Portugal. During the whole 19th century, the small Lisbon Jewish community had no formal synagogue and had to celebrate their religious rites in private houses.
The tentative construction of a Jewish synagogue occurred in the 19th century, but there were difficulties, namely those associated with its official recognition by Portuguese monarchists.
An official request to construct the synagogue occurred on 4 March 1897, which was sent to London and
Lourenço Marques
Maputo (), formerly named Lourenço Marques until 1976, is the capital, and largest city of Mozambique. Located near the southern end of the country, it is within of the borders with Eswatini and South Africa. The city has a population of 1,088 ...
on 12 October.
[ A commission was established to study its construction, nominated by the Jewish community in Lisbon, represented by Leão Amezalak, Abrahão Anahory, Mark Seruya, Jacob Levy Azancot, Saul Cagi and Jaime Pinto.][
On 23 August 1901, the license was signed to buy the land along ''Rua Alexandre Herculano''. In 1902, though, the lands were donated to the Israeli Committee in Lisbon, and a plan was elaborated by ]Miguel Ventura Terra
Miguel Ventura Terra (1866–1919) was a Portuguese architect.
Ventura Terra studied in Porto and later in the École de Beaux-Arts of Paris in the ''atelier'' of Victor Laloux. Upon his return to Portugal, he became a celebrated architect and ...
(1866-1919), recommended by a commission headed by Joaquim Bensaúde.[ The plan allowed an operating space that could allow 400 men and 200 women to celebrate their religious worship.][ On 25 May the cornerstone was laid for the construction of the building by Abraham E. Levy.][ The synagogue was inaugurated on 18 May 1904, after work by builders Pereira de Campos: it was the first synagogue to be built in Portugal, since the late 15th century. On the same year, a painting was executed by Veloso Salgado.][
In 1940 a commission was established to collect funds for the repair of the roof, which was reconstituted again in 1948.][ A plan was elaborated by architect Carlos Ramos for the repair of the synagogue.][ In May 1949, the synagogue was reopened, during a solemn ceremony with the presence of the Chief Rabbi of Paris, Jacob Kaplan.][
In December 1995, the building was proposed for heritage classification.][
A solemn ceremony marking the 100 years of its construction was celebrated in December 2004.][ Portuguese President ]Jorge Sampaio
Jorge Fernando Branco de Sampaio (; 18 September 1939 – 10 September 2021) was a Portuguese lawyer and politician who was the 18th president of Portugal from 1996 to 2006. A member of the Socialist Party, a party which he led between 1989 a ...
and Israel's Sephardi
Sephardic (or Sephardi) Jews (, ; lad, Djudíos Sefardíes), also ''Sepharadim'' , Modern Hebrew: ''Sfaradim'', Tiberian: Səp̄āraddîm, also , ''Ye'hude Sepharad'', lit. "The Jews of Spain", es, Judíos sefardíes (or ), pt, Judeus sefa ...
Chief Rabbi Shlomo Amar
Shlomo Moshe Amar ( he, שלמה משה עמאר; ar, سليمان موسى عمار; born April 1, 1948)Gantz, Nesanel. "A Chief Rabbi of the Past and Future". '' Ami'', November 5, 2014, pp. 26-27. is the former Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Isra ...
were among the speakers.
Architecture
The synagogue is located in an urban landscape, concealed within the block behind a fence and wall, recessed in an oblique building from the streets. The main facade of the synagogue faces an inner courtyard, since Portuguese law in the 19th century forbade non-Catholic religious temples from facing the street.[
Ventura Terra conceived a temple in a style mixing ]Neo-Byzantine
Neo-Byzantine architecture (also referred to as Byzantine Revival) was a revival movement, most frequently seen in religious, institutional and public buildings. It incorporates elements of the Byzantine style associated with Eastern and Orth ...
and Neo-Romanesque
Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a style of building employed beginning in the mid-19th century inspired by the 11th- and 12th-century Romanesque architecture. Unlike the historic Romanesque style, Romanesque Revival buildings tended to ...
, consistent with the Synagogue architecture in the Moorish Revival
Moorish Revival or Neo-Moorish is one of the exotic revival architectural styles that were adopted by architects of Europe and the Americas in the wake of Romanticist Orientalism. It reached the height of its popularity after the mid-19th centu ...
. The synagogue is a rectangular, symmetrical building oriented west to east oriented towards Jerusalem, with an ample interior spaces, a posterior support spaces and an exterior towards an elevated area.[
The principal facade of the synagogue has its foundations, corners and decorative capstones in stone, with rectangular windows framed in geometric lattices.][ The three registers are divided between the second and third floor a by a frieze, that divide rectangular windows from three rounded windows in the pediment.][ The main doorway includes a Gothic-like portico and doorway flanked by pilasters, used by male members of the congregation, while on the left lateral facade includes another access female members. The posterior facade has three windows in arc, with two rectangular windows on either side.][
The entranceway is composed of a vestibule, support hall, with access to the basement (location of the washrooms and mikve) and access to the upper floors and gallery.][ The annex (to the right of the principal facade) connects to the second gallery, an apartment and integrates (to the west) with the washrooms.][
The interior includes three elements. At the middle of the temple, is a central wing, that extends over the three floors, and by lateral wings divided by pillars and galleries.][ To the front wall, is the ]bima
Bima (Indonesia: ''Kota Bima'') is a city on the eastern coast of the island of Sumbawa in central Indonesia's province West Nusa Tenggara. It is the largest city on the island of Sumbawa, with a population of 142,443 at the 2010 census and 155,1 ...
and elevated almemor in the centre, where the place of the officiants where above five steps is the sanctuary where the rolls of the torah are located.[ On either side and oriented towards the centre are seats for the males, while the women's seats are situated in the superior galleries.][
]
See also
* Synagogue of Tomar
The Synagogue of Tomar ( pt, Sinagoga de Tomar) is a well-preserved medieval synagogue in Tomar, Portugal. Along with the Synagogue of Castelo de Vide, it is one of two existing pre-expulsion synagogues in the country. It is located at 73 Rua Dr. ...
* History of the Jews in Portugal
The history of the Jews in Portugal reaches back over two thousand years and is directly related to Sephardi history, a Jewish ethnic division that represents communities that originated in the Iberian Peninsula (Portugal and Spain).
Before P ...
References
Notes
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External links
Official website
{{Authority control
Gibraltarian diaspora
Jews and Judaism in Lisbon
Moroccan diaspora in Europe
Moroccan-Jewish diaspora
Synagogues in Portugal
Byzantine Revival architecture in Portugal
Synagogues completed in 1904
Religious buildings and structures in Lisbon
Byzantine Revival synagogues
Sephardi synagogues
Sephardi Jewish culture in Europe