Meserich Shul or Meseritz Shul, also known as Edes Israel Anshei Mesrich, Edath Lei'Isroel Ansche Meseritz or Adas Yisroel Anshe Mezeritz ("Community of Israel, People of Mezertiz"), is a 1910 Orthodox synagogue in the East Village of

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. It was built by a congregation established in 1888 consisting of immigrants from

Międzyrzec Podlaski Międzyrzec Podlaski ( la, Meserici, german: Meseritz) is a city in Biała Podlaska County, Lublin Voivodeship, Poland, with the population of 17,162 inhabitants . The total area of the city is . Międzyrzec is located near the Krzna river, not f ...

, a city in Biała Podlaska County,

Lublin Voivodeship The Lublin Voivodeship, also known as the Lublin Province ( Polish: ''województwo lubelskie'' ), is a voivodeship (province) of Poland, located in southeastern part of the country. It was created on January 1, 1999, out of the former Lublin, C ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

which was known as a center of Jewish learning. It was designed by Herman Horenburger in the

Neo-Classical style Neoclassical architecture is an architectural style produced by the Neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century in Italy and France. It became one of the most prominent architectural styles in the Western world. The prevailing style ...

, and is located at 415 East 6th Street between Avenue A and First Avenue.Betts, Mary Beth (ed.) et al. (October 9, 2012
''East Village/Lower East Side Historic District Designation Report''

New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) is the New York City agency charged with administering the city's Landmarks Preservation Law. The LPC is responsible for protecting New York City's architecturally, historically, and cu ...

, p.126 Pesach (Paul) Ackerman served as Rabbi from 1969 until his death on June 14, 2013.

Jewish life in Międzyrzec

Since the 16th century Międzyrzec was home to a large Jewish community. At the end of the 1930s in the reborn Polish Republic approximately 12,000 inhabitants, or 75% of its population, were Jewish.

Architecture

The congregation, founded in 1888, originally worshiped in a building on Clinton Street. The building which now houses the synagogue was originally built in 1841 as a 2 1/2-story house for J. B. Murray. Herman Horenburger designed the conversion into a synagogue in 1910. It is similar in style to Congregation Kolbuszower Teitelbaum Cheva Banai at 622 East 5th Street, which was also built in 1910; both have sunburst pediments. The synagogue is unusual in being a very small, urban congregation on a narrow lot that has an extremely beautiful Neo-Classical facade, and is the last operating "tenement synagogue" in the East Village.Staff (August 15, 2008
"Preservation Alert from the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation: Congregation Mezritch Synagogue"

Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation Village Preservation (formerly the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation, or GVSHP) is a non-profit organization which advocates for the preservation of architecture and culture in several neighborhoods of Lower Manhattan, New York. ...

Andrew Berman of the

called it "an intact historic gem." Architectural historian and

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, th ...

professor Gerald R. Wolfe describes the synagogue's "most attractive interior... The unusually narrow building has balconies which extend almost to the middle of the sanctuary, and through the intervening space, broad rays of light from two overhead skylights seem to focus on the Ark and on a large stained glass panel above it. The soft-yellow-colored panes of the two-story-high window are crowned by an enormous Mogen David tar of Davidof red glass which seems to dominate the entire room."

Andrew Dolkart Andrew Scott Dolkart is a professor of Historic Preservation at the Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation (GSAPP) and the former Director of the school's Historic Preservation Program. Professor Dolkart i ...

, a

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

professor of historic preservation, believes that the building should be preserved, because cities should preserve "architecture that not only reflects the lives and history of the rich, but also the incredibly history of common people in New York."

Development controversy

The congregation is negotiating with

Joshua Kushner Joshua Kushner (born June 12, 1985) is an American billionaire businessman, heir and investor. He is the founder and managing partner of the venture capital firm Thrive Capital, co-founder of Oscar Health, and the son of billionaire real estate ...

, part of the family that owns the '' New York Observer'' newspaper. Kushner plans to tear down the present synagogue and build a six-story residential building, housing the synagogue in a modern space on the lowest two floors. According to historic preservationist Samuel D. Gruber, there is a feasible but more costly alternative which would preserve the synagogue building and construct apartments above it. A coalition of neighborhood groups including the

, the East Village Community Coalition, and Jewish groups have rallied to save the building and have asked the

to landmark the building. The Kushners later pulled out of the development deal. In October 2012, the Landmarks Preservation Commission created the East Village/Lower East Side Historic District, which included in its boundaries the Meserich Synagogue. The synagogue reopened in March 2017 with a ceiling put at balcony level above the beautifully restored sanctuary to separate it from the luxury apartments that were built.

References

Notes

External links

* {{Lower East Side Synagogues in Manhattan Orthodox synagogues in New York City Lower East Side Polish-Jewish culture in New York City Synagogues completed in 1910 1910 establishments in New York City Neoclassical architecture in New York City Neoclassical synagogues