The United Synagogue (US) is a union of British Orthodox Jewish synagogues, representing the central Orthodox movement in Judaism. With 56 congregations comprising 36,000+ members, it is the largest synagogue body in Europe. The spiritual head of the union is the Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth—a title that bears some formal recognition by the Crown.
Muizenberg is a beach-side town in the Western Cape, South Africa. It is situated where the shore of the Cape Peninsula curves round to the east on the False Bay coast. It is considered to be the main surfing spot in Cape Town and is currently home to a surfing community, centered on the popular 'Surfer's Corner'.
The Giffnock Newton Mearns Synagogue, commonly known as Giffnock Shul, is an Orthodox Jewish congregation and synagogue, located at 222 Fenwick Road in Giffnock, East Renfrewshire, on the south side of Glasgow, Scotland, in the United Kingdom. The synagogue is the largest in Scotland and also features a religious day school for both children and teenagers.
The Gardens Shul, formally the Cape Town Hebrew Congregation (CTHC), also called the Great Synagogue, is a Modern Orthodox Jewish congregation and synagogue, located in the Company Gardens, in the Gardens neighborhood of Cape Town, South Africa. The congregation was established in 1841, making it the oldest Jewish congregation in South Africa.
Jonathan I. Rosenblatt is an American Modern Orthodox rabbi, teacher, lecturer, and counselor.
The Oxford Shul is an Orthodox Jewish congregation and synagogue, located in Riviera, near the suburbs of Saxonwold, Houghton and Killarney, in Johannesburg, in the region of Gauteng, South Africa. The congregation was established in 1943 and moved into its current building in 1962. The sanctuary is one of the largest in the Southern Hemisphere, with seating for 1,500 congregants.
The Birmingham Central Synagogue is an Orthodox Jewish congregation and synagogue, located at 4 Speedwell Road in Edgbaston, Birmingham, in the West Midlands region of England, in the United Kingdom. The congregation, established in 1894, worships in the Ashkenazi rite.
Sir Ephraim Yitzchak Mirvis is a British Orthodox rabbi who serves as the Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth. He served as the Chief Rabbi of Ireland between 1985 and 1992.
The Chassidim Shul, also known as the Chabad House, is a former Hasidic Jewish congregation and synagogue, located in Yeoville, Johannesburg, in the district of Gauteng, South Africa. The congregation worships from a synagogue located in the Savoy Estate.
The Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of Great Britain and the Commonwealth is the senior rabbi of the United Synagogue, a union of British Orthodox Jewish synagogues.
The Great Park Synagogue is an Orthodox Jewish congregation and synagogue, located at 75 4th Street, in Houghton, Johannesburg, in the region of Gauteng, South Africa.
The South African Union for Progressive Judaism (SAUPJ) is an affiliate of the World Union for Progressive Judaism and supports 11 progressive congregations. Rabbi Moses Cyrus Weiler, a founder of Reform Judaism in the country, led the country's first Reform synagogue, Temple Israel in Hillbrow, Johannesburg. Weiler is credited with growing the movement, to represent 15-17% of South African Jewry and establishing 25 congregations in the country. A 2020 joint study by the Institute for Jewish Policy Research and the University of Cape Town showed that 12% of Jews identified as Progressive and that in relative terms the progressive strands are increasing after falling to 7% in 1998 and 2005 studies. In Johannesburg, the community accounts for 7% of the city's Jewry, rising to 18% in Cape Town and 25% in Durban.
The Temple Israel, also known as the Cape Town Progressive Jewish Congregation (CTPJC), is a Progressive Jewish congregation, located in Cape Town, with three synagogues located in each of Green Point, Wynberg and Milnerton, in the Western Cape region of South Africa. As three centres combined, they are the largest Progressive congregation in South Africa, and the second largest Jewish congregation in Cape Town after Marais Road Shul in Sea Point.
Shira Marili Mirvis, is an Israeli Open Orthodox public figure and teacher. In April, 2021 she was chosen as the spiritual leader of the Shirat HaTamar synagogue in Efrat. She is the first woman to hold the position of sole spiritual leader of an Open Orthodox community in Israel. Marili Mirvis was officially installed by the Chief Rabbi of Efrat Shlomo Riskin. In February 2022 Globes named her one of the 50 most influential women in Israel and in June of that year it was announced that she would be appointed by Religious Affairs Minister Matan Kahana as the interim chair of the Efrat municipality's religious council. In addition, Marili Mirvis is a fellow of the Honey Foundation for Israel.
Rabbi Dr David Sherman was a South African and American rabbi. He was the first spiritual leader of a Reform congregation in Cape Town, where he led Temple Israel in Green Point.
The Marais Road Shul, formally the Green & Sea Point Hebrew Congregation (G&SPHC), is a Modern Orthodox synagogue in Sea Point, a seaside suburb of Cape Town. The congregation was first established in 1926, and the synagogue was completed in 1934. It had initially intended to become a branch of the Gardens Shul in the City Bowl, but opted for independence, and became the larger of the two. It is the largest Jewish congregation in South Africa, and by 1994, it had become the largest in the South Hemisphere. The Sephardi Hebrew Congregation, established in 1960, also operates a shul from the G&SPHC's Weizmann Hall on Regent Road in Sea Point.
The Vredehoek Shul, formally the Cape Town Hebrew Congregation, was a Modern Orthodox Jewish congregation and synagogue, located in Vredehoek in Cape Town, South Africa. The synagogue was completed in 1939 and closed in 1993. The Art Deco-style building is a protected South African Heritage Resources Agency site and currently operates as Private Collection, an antique furniture showroom.
The Beit Midrash Morasha is a Modern Orthodox Jewish congregation and synagogue, located on Arthur's Road, in Sea Point, a seaside suburb of Cape Town, South Africa. The congregation was first established in 1897 in District Six, before relocating to Vredehoek in 1945. It moved to its present location in Sea Point in 1954.
The Stellenbosch Synagogue, formally the Stellenbosch Hebrew Congregation, is an Orthodox Jewish congregation and synagogue, located at 44 Ryneveld Street, in Stellenbosch, in the Western Cape region of South Africa. The congregation was established in 1900 and moved into its current building in 1923.
