, native_name_lang = , image = Melbourne synagogue.jpg , image_upright = 1.2 , alt = , caption = Melbourne Synagogue, pictured in 2006 , map_type = Australia Melbourne , map_size = 250 , map_alt = , map_relief = 1 , map_caption = Location in ,

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , religious_affiliation = Modern Orthodox Judaism , locale = , location = Toorak Road, ,

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

, rite = , tradition = , country = Australia , administration = Melbourne Hebrew Congregation , consecration_year = , organisational_status = Active , functional_status = Synagogue , heritage_designation = , ownership = , governing_body = , leadership = , bhattaraka = , patron = , religious_features_label = , religious_features = , architect = , architecture_type = , architecture_style = , founded_by = , creator = , funded_by = , general_contractor = , established = , groundbreaking = , year_completed = , construction_cost = , date_demolished = , facade_direction = , capacity = , length = , width = , width_nave = , interior_area = , height_max = , site_area = , temple_quantity = , monument_quantity = , shrine_quantity = , inscriptions = , materials = , elevation_m = , elevation_footnotes = , nrhp = , added = , refnum = , footnotes = , website = The Melbourne Hebrew Congregation (

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

: ק"ק שארית ישראל), or Toorak Shule, is the oldest

Jewish 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 ...

congregation in

, Australia. Formed in 1841, the congregation was originally located on

Bourke Street Bourke Street is one of the main streets in the Melbourne central business district and a core feature of the Hoddle Grid. It was traditionally the entertainment hub of inner-city Melbourne, and is now also a popular tourist destination and ...

before moving in 1930 to

Toorak Road Burwood Highway is a major transportation link with Melbourne's eastern suburbs. It begins in the suburb of Kooyong, Melbourne at the junction of the Monash Freeway as Toorak Road between Monash Freeway and Warrigal Road, and finishes in Bel ...

South Yarra South Yarra is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 4 km south-east of Melbourne's Melbourne central business district, Central Business District, located within the Cities of City of Melbourne, Melbourne and City of Sto ...

History

The first Jews in Melbourne arrived around the time of the city's founding in 1835. Jewish

High Holiday The High Holidays also known as the High Holy Days, or Days of Awe in Judaism, more properly known as the Yamim Noraim ( he, יָמִים נוֹרָאִים, ''Yāmīm Nōrāʾīm''; "Days of Awe") #strictly, the holidays of Rosh HaShanah ("Jew ...

services were first held in 1839, and in 1841 the Melbourne Hebrew Congregation was formed. The congregation's first synagogue building, located at 472 Bourke Street, was erected in 1847, with a seating capacity of 100.Melbourne Hebrew Congregation – beginnings
Reverend Moses Rintel arrived to serve as the congregation's

rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...

. After a number of disputes, however, Rev Rintel left the congregation in 1857 and formed the East Melbourne Hebrew Congregation. He was replaced by Rev EM Myers, who was followed by Rev WI Marks and Rev AF Ornstein. The 1850s saw the arrival of some 300 Jewish families from

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

and the Province of Posen,

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...

to Melbourne, prompting the construction of a new larger synagogue on the Bourke Street site. Benefactor David Benjamin laid the foundation stone of the 650-seat building in March, 1855. The synagogue was re-consecrated in 1877, at which time Rabbi Dattner Jacobson was appointed rabbi. In 1883 he was succeeded by Rabbi Joseph Abrahams, who went on to serve the congregation for some forty years. Notable members during this period included Sir Benjamin Benjamin, the Hon

Edward Cohen Edward Aaron Cohen (1822 – 13 April 1877) was an Australian merchant and a Victorian colonial politician. He served as Mayor of Melbourne from 1862 to 1863. Early life Cohen was born in London, the son of Henry Cohen and Elizabeth Cohen (''n ...

, and

Ephraim Zox Ephraim Laman (Lamen) Zox (22 October 1837 – 23 October 1899) was an Australian financier and politician. Family Zox was according to some sources born in Liverpool, England, son of Eliazer Laman Zox (died 1882), proprietor of a large cap-ma ...

. In 1891 the congregation celebrated the marriage of John and Hannah Victoria Monash.

Raphael Benjamin Raphael Benjamin (June 19, 1846 – November 15, 1906) was an English-born rabbi who ministered in Australia and America. Life Benjamin was born on June 19, 1846 in London, England the son of Elias Benjamin and Mary Lazarus. Benjamin attended t ...

was assistant rabbi and reader of the congregation from 1874 to 1882. In 1923 Rabbi Abrahams was succeeded by Rabbi

Israel Brodie Sir Israel Brodie (10 May 1895 – 13 February 1979) was the Chief Rabbi of Great Britain and the Commonwealth 1948–1965. Biography He was educated at Balliol College, Oxford. He served as a Rabbi of Melbourne Hebrew Congregation in Austra ...

, who later became chief rabbi of the

British Commonwealth The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the Co ...

. In 1930 the congregation moved to Toorak Road, South Yarra, where the current 1300-seat synagogue building stands. In October 1932 the congregation celebrated the Bar Mitzvah of

Zelman Cowen Sir Zelman Cowen, (7 October 1919 – 8 December 2011) was an Australian legal scholar and university administrator who served as the 19th Governor-General of Australia, in office from 1977 to 1982. Cowen was born in Melbourne, and attended ...

, who later became Governor-General of Australia. In April 1937 Rabbi Brodie returned to England, and in August 1938 Rabbi

Harry Freedman Harry Freedman (''Henryk Frydmann''), (April 5, 1922 – September 16, 2005) was a Canadians, Canadian composer, English hornist, and music educator of Polish birth. He wrote a significant amount of symphony, symphonic works, including the scores ...

succeeded him. Following

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

the synagogue had a full membership for the first time in its history. In December 1947 Rabbi Hugo Stransky was appointed rabbi. In February the following year the congregation conducted the funeral service of Sir

Isaac Isaacs Sir Isaac Alfred Isaacs (6 August 1855 – 11 February 1948) was an Australian lawyer, politician, and judge who served as the ninth Governor-General of Australia, in office from 1931 to 1936. He had previously served on the High Court of Au ...

, the first Australian-born Governor-General. Rabbi Izaak Rapaport was appointed rabbi in September, 1952. The congregation today enjoys a large and diverse membership with its chief minister, Rabbi Shlomo Nathanson.

References

Bibliography

* .

External links

Melbourne Hebrew Congregation website
{{Authority control Synagogues in Melbourne 1841 establishments in Australia Synagogues completed in 1841 Modern Orthodox synagogues Religious organizations established in 1841 Buildings and structures in the City of Melbourne (LGA)

History

See also

References

Bibliography

External links