The Or Zaruaa Synagogue () is an Orthodox

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

congregation and

synagogue A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...

, located at 3 Shmuel Refaeli Street, in the

Nachlaot Nachlaot (, also ''Naḥlaʾoth'') is a cluster of 32 neigbourhoods, many of them courtyard neighborhoods in central Jerusalem surrounding the Mahane Yehuda Market. It is known for its narrow, winding lanes, old-style housing, hidden courtyards ...

Ahim neighbourhood of

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

. The congregation was founded in 1926 by

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 t ...

Amram Aburbeh for

Maghrebi Jews :''See Mizrahi Jews for more information about the Eastern Jews.'' Maghrebi Jews ( or , ''Maghrebim''), are a Jewish diaspora group with a long history in the Maghreb region of North Africa, which includes present-day Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, ...

from North Africa. The synagogue was named Or Zaruaa after the

Beth Midrash A ''beth midrash'' (, "house of learning"; : ''batei midrash''), also ''beis medrash'' or ''beit midrash'', is a hall dedicated for Torah study, often translated as a "study hall". It is distinct from a synagogue (''beth knesseth''), althoug ...

(study hall) Aburbeh's father Rabbi Shlomo Aburbeh held in his home in Avraham Azriel's court in the Old City of Jerusalem.

Building

The Or Zaruaa Synagogue is listed among the sites for

historic preservation Historic preservation (US), built heritage preservation or built heritage conservation (UK) is an endeavor that seeks to preserve, conserve and protect buildings, objects, landscapes or other artifacts of historical significance. It is a philos ...

by the Jerusalem municipality. The preservation site number of the synagogue is 2638. On 19 February 1997, Judge V. Ziler, President of the Jerusalem District Court, ruled the synagogue was permanently ''hekdesh'', (הקדש).

Description

The Or Zaruaa Synagogue is high, built over two-stories, on a hill,

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of a location's vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) in reference to a vertical datum based on a historic mean sea level. In geodesy, it is formalized as orthometric height. The zero level ...

, with an area of , in the Nachlaot neighborhood in central Jerusalem. The exterior walls are covered with

Jerusalem stone Jerusalem stone (Hebrew: ; ) is a name applied to various types of pale limestone, dolomite and dolomitic limestone, common in and around Jerusalem that have been used in building since ancient times. One of these limestones, '' meleke'', has ...

, as mandated for all buildings in Jerusalem. The first floor, originally built as a home for the rabbi, is a kindergarten. The synagogue itself, on the second floor, is designed in a '' Neo-Mauresque'', or Spanish North-African style, where the men's seats surround the raised Bimah. The hall has a very high ceiling, and includes a women's section (''ezrat nashim''). Tall windows are accentuated by massive stone frames, curved at the top.

History

To build a new synagogue for the growing number of

that were leaving the Old City of Jerusalem for newer neighborhoods, Aburbeh approached Don Yamin Ben Harroch, a philanthropist who led the Jewish community in

Melilla Melilla (, ; ) is an autonomous city of Spain on the North African coast. It lies on the eastern side of the Cape Three Forks, bordering Morocco and facing the Mediterranean Sea. It has an area of . It was part of the Province of Málaga un ...

, Spain, who contributed funds for its construction. On October 26, 1926, the cornerstone laying ceremony for the building took place. Aburbeh said that only Jewish workers would be permitted to work on the building. Aburbeh led the synagogue from 1926 until 1951, when he was elected Chief Rabbi in

Petah Tikva Petah Tikva (, ), also spelt Petah Tiqwa and known informally as Em HaMoshavot (), is a city in the Central District (Israel), Central District of Israel, east of Tel Aviv. It was founded in 1878, mainly by Haredi Judaism, Haredi Jews of the Old Y ...

, Israel.

Activities

The synagogue was inaugurated in 1927 with Aburbeh as its rabbi. For a few years he lived in an apartment built for his family on the first floor of the building until he built a house nearby. The apartment then became the residence of Haim Kobi, the ''

gabbai A ''gabbai'' (), sometimes spelled ''gabay'', also known as ''shamash'' (, sometimes transcribed ''shamas'') or warden ( UK, similar to churchwarden), is a beadle or sexton, a person who assists in the running of synagogue services in some w ...

'' of the Synagogue, and his family for the next 40 years. Or Zaruaa was a ''

beit midrash A ''beth midrash'' (, "house of learning"; : ''batei midrash''), also ''beis medrash'' or ''beit midrash'', is a hall dedicated for Torah study, often translated as a "study hall". It is distinct from a synagogue (''beth knesseth''), although ...

'' (study house), where lessons were taught, as well as a synagogue.

Gallery

בית הכנסת אור זרוע.JPG, The synagogue exterior Or Zaruaa synagogue Jerusalem interior Chandelier tall long window with colorful glass.jpg, The synagogue interior with stained glass window The cornerstone laying ceremony for the Or Zaruaa synagogue building founded by Rabbi Amram Aburbeh.jpg, tCornerstone laying in 1926 Memorial Rabbi Amram Aburbeh at Or Zaruaa Synagogue.JPG, Rabbi Amram Aburbeh memorial plaque at Or Zaruaa synagogue. Or Zaruaa synagogue Jerusalem interior Parochet, blue with golden embroidered letters Rabbi Shlomo Hai Knafo.jpg, A memorial parochet to Rabbi Shlomo Hai Knafo donated by his wife Esther. Or Zaruaa Synagogue, Jerusalem, Israel parochet with State of Israel emblem, Menorah and olive tree branches leaves.jpg,

Parochet A ''parochet'' (; ), meaning "curtain" or "screen",Sonne Isaiah (1962) 'Synagogue' in The Interpreter's dictionary of the Bible vol 4, New York: Abingdon Press pp 476-491 is the curtain that covers the Torah ark (''Aron Kodesh'') containing the ...

with the emblem of the

State of Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

, Menorah, and olive tree branches with leaves. Or Zaruaa Synagogue, Nachlaot, Jerusalem ,Israel interior parochet memorial..jpg,

Torah Ark A Torah ark (also known as the ''hekhal'', , or ''aron qodesh'', ) is an ornamental chamber in the synagogue that houses the Torah scrolls. History The ark is also known as the ''ark of law'', or in Hebrew the ''Aron Kodesh'' () or ''aron ha-Kod ...

(Aron Hakodesh) dark black background decorated with the symbols of the 12 tribes of the ancient

Israelites Israelites were a Hebrew language, Hebrew-speaking ethnoreligious group, consisting of tribes that lived in Canaan during the Iron Age. Modern scholarship describes the Israelites as emerging from indigenous Canaanites, Canaanite populations ...

. Or Zaruaa synagogue Jerusalem exterior door wooden and magen david zion.jpg, Wooden door entrance to first floor decorated with

magen david The Star of David (, , ) is a symbol generally recognized as representing 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 was used for decor ...

(star of David) and the word

Zion Zion (; ) is a placename in the Tanakh, often used as a synonym for Jerusalem as well as for the Land of Israel as a whole. The name is found in 2 Samuel (), one of the books of the Tanakh dated to approximately the mid-6th century BCE. It o ...

in Hebrew. Or Zaruaa synagogue Jerusalem exterior wall engraved stone sign, Yeshiva donated by Yamin Ben Harroch 1927.jpg, Stone

commemorative plaque A commemorative plaque, or simply plaque, or in other places referred to as a historical marker, historic marker, or historic plaque, is a plate of metal, ceramic, stone, wood, or other material, bearing text or an image in relief, or both, ...

on the exterior wall stating: Yeshiva donated by Mr Yamin Ben Harroch in 1927. File:Or Zaruaa synagogue Jerusalem exterior sign , philantropist Yamin Ben Harroch 1927.jpg, Exterior sign stating that the synagogue was supported by philanthropist Yamin Ben Harroch, and founded in the year 1927.

Notes

References

External links

* * * * {{Tourism in Jerusalem 1927 establishments in Mandatory Palestine 20th-century synagogues in Israel Moorish Revival architecture in Israel Moorish Revival synagogues North African-Jewish culture in Israel Orthodox synagogues in Israel Sephardi Jewish culture in Jerusalem Sephardi synagogues Spanish-Jewish diaspora Synagogues completed in 1927 Synagogues in Jerusalem