The Oslo Synagogue ( no, Synagogen i Oslo) is a

synagogue A synagogue, ', 'house of assembly', or ', "house of prayer"; Yiddish: ''shul'', Ladino: or ' (from synagogue); or ', "community". sometimes referred to as shul, and interchangeably used with the word temple, is a Jewish house of worshi ...

Oslo, Norway Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of i ...

. The congregation was established in 1892, but the present building was erected in 1920. Architectural historian

Carol Herselle Krinsky Carol Herselle Krinsky (born 1937 Brooklyn, New York) is an American architectural historian. She graduated from Erasmus Hall High School, studied at Smith College (1957 BA) and New York University, (Ph.D. 1965). Krinsky is a professor of twentiet ...

describes the two-story tall, stuccoed building with a round tower topped with a spire supporting a

Star of David The Star of David (). is a generally recognized symbol of both Jewish identity and Judaism. Its shape is that of a hexagram: the compound of two equilateral triangles. A derivation of the ''seal of Solomon'', which was used for decorative ...

as resembling "a simple and charming country chapel.'

King Harald V Harald V ( no, Harald den femte, ; born 21 February 1937) is King of Norway. He acceded to the throne on 17 January 1991. Harald was the third child and only son of King Olav V of Norway and Princess Märtha of Sweden. He was second in the lin ...

and

Crown Prince Haakon Haakon, Crown Prince of Norway (; Haakon Magnus; born 20 July 1973) is the heir apparent to the Norwegian throne. He is the only son of King Harald V and Queen Sonja. Haakon represents the fourth generation of the sitting Norwegian royal famil ...

visited the synagogue in June, 2009.

History

2006 shooting attack

The synagogue was the site of a 2006 shooting attack, suspected by police to have been perpetrated by four men in a car. No one was injured. The four allegedly were the 29-year-old criminal-turned-Islamist Arfan Bhatti of Pakistani origin, a 28-year-old Norwegian-Pakistani, a 28-year-old Norwegian of foreign origin, and a 26-year-old Norwegian. Bhatti was acquitted for terror charges, but still convicted for co-conspiracy to the shooting (along with several other unrelated charges) which was instead judged as "coarse vandalism". The three other men were acquitted of all charges.

Interfaith peace ring

On 21 February 2015, around 1,000 people formed a human "ring of peace" outside the synagogue on

Shabbat Shabbat (, , or ; he, שַׁבָּת, Šabbāṯ, , ) or the Sabbath (), also called Shabbos (, ) by Ashkenazim, is Judaism's day of rest on the seventh day of the week—i.e., Saturday. On this day, religious Jews remember the biblical storie ...

, to show that they deplore antisemitic violence. The event, which was initiated by a group of young Norwegian Muslims, occurred shortly after a string of terrorist attacks across Europe, including in the Île-de-France attacks in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

and the Copenhagen shootings. According to organizer Hajrah Arshad, the intent of the ring was to show "that Islam is about love and unity." Zeeshan Abdullah, a co-organizer, stated that "We want to demonstrate that Jews and Muslims do not hate each other...We do not want individuals to define what Islam is for the rest of us...There are many more peace-mongers than warmongers." The crowd of Muslims, Jews, and others held hands in unity as Norway's Chief Rabbi

Michael Melchior Michael Melchior ( he, מיכאל מלכיאור; born January 31, 1954) is a Jewish leader, Orthodox rabbi, thinker, and activist. He is a former Minister of Social and Diaspora Affairs, a former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, and a former ...

sang "Eliyahu Hanavi", the traditional song after

Havdalah Havdalah ( he, הַבְדָּלָה, "separation") is a Jewish religious ceremony that marks the symbolic end of Shabbat and ushers in the new week. The ritual involves lighting a special havdalah candle with several wicks, blessing a cup of ...

. The demonstration received international media attention. Some media reports stated that possibly only a minority of those present were Muslims. Ervin Kohn, the president of the Norwegian Jewish community, told enquiring reporters that the exact number of Muslims among those present at the demonstration was impossible to quantify.

References

{{reflist

External links

Det Mosaiske Trossamfund
1920 establishments in Norway 21st-century attacks on synagogues and Jewish communal organizations Antisemitism in Norway Ashkenazi Jewish culture in Norway Ashkenazi synagogues Islam and antisemitism Islamic terrorism and Norway Jews and Judaism in Oslo Orthodox Judaism in Norway Orthodox synagogues Religious buildings and structures in Oslo Jewish organizations established in 1892 Synagogues completed in 1920 Synagogues in Norway

History

2006 shooting attack

Interfaith peace ring

See also

References

External links