A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It has a place for prayer where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as weddings, bar and bat mitzvahs, choir performances, and children's plays. They also have rooms for study, social halls, administrative and charitable offices, classrooms for religious and Hebrew studies, and many places to sit and congregate. They often display commemorative, historic, or modern artwork alongside items of Jewish historical significance or history about the synagogue itself.
The Touro Synagogue or Congregation Jeshuat Israel is a synagogue built in 1763 in Newport, Rhode Island. As the only surviving synagogue building in the U.S. dating to the colonial era, it is the oldest synagogue building still standing in the United States and North America. In 1946, it was declared a National Historic Site.
The history of the Jews in Ireland extends for more than a millennium. The Jewish community in Ireland has always been small in numbers in modern history, not exceeding 5,500 since at least 1891.
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.
Bevis Marks Synagogue, officially Qahal Kadosh Sha'ar ha-Shamayim, is an Orthodox Jewish congregation and synagogue, located off Bevis Marks, Aldgate, in the City of London, England, in the United Kingdom. The congregation is affiliated to London's historic Spanish and Portuguese Jewish community and worships in the Sephardic rite.
The West London Synagogue, abbreviated WLS, and fully the West London Synagogue of British Jews is a Reform Jewish congregation and synagogue, located near Marble Arch, at 34 Upper Berkeley Street, in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England, in the United Kingdom.
Sir Otto Moses Jaffe, JP, also spelt Jaffé, was a German-born British businessman, who was twice elected Lord Mayor of Belfast and was a leader of the Jewish community in the city.
Jews' Court is a Jewish museum and Liberal Jewish congregation and synagogue, located on Steep Hill in Lincoln, Lincolnshire, England, in the United Kingdom. The building was listed as a Grade I building in 1953 and houses the headquarters of the Society for Lincolnshire History and Archaeology.
The Belfast Jewish Community is the Jewish community in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Its Rabbi is the Rev David Kale. The community follows the Ashkenazi Orthodox ritual. Membership has fluctuated from 78 in 1900, approximately 1500 during World War II, about 375 after World War II, to 350 in 1945, 380 in 1949 and 200 in 1999. The congregation was fewer than 80 people as of January 2015.
Congregation Rodeph Sholom is a Reform Jewish synagogue at 7 West 83rd Street on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City, New York. Founded in 1842 by German Jewish immigrants, it is one of the oldest synagogues in the United States.
Anshe Sholom B'nai Israel is a Modern Orthodox Jewish congregation and synagogue located at 540 West Melrose Street, in the Lakeview neighborhood on the north side of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States.
Historic synagogues include synagogues that date back to ancient times and synagogues that represent the earliest Jewish presence in cities around the world. Some synagogues were destroyed and rebuilt several times on the same site. Others were converted into churches and mosques or used for other purposes.
Congregation Tifereth Israel is an Orthodox Jewish congregation and synagogue, located in the Corona section of Queens, in New York City, New York, in the United States. It was founded by Ashkenazi Jews who had moved to Queens from Manhattan's Lower East Side. Estée Lauder and her parents were early members.
The Temple Emanuel, also known as Congregation Emanuel, is a Reform Jewish congregation and synagogue, located at 51 Grape Street, in Denver, Colorado, in the United States.
Synagogues may be considered "oldest" based on different criteria, and can be oldest in the sense of oldest surviving building, or oldest in the sense of oldest congregation. Some old synagogue buildings have been in continuous use as synagogues, while others have been converted to other purposes, and others, such as the Touro Synagogue, were shuttered for many decades. Some early established congregations have been in continuous existence, while other early congregations have ceased to exist.
Merthyr Synagogue is a former Jewish synagogue located on Bryntirion Road in the Thomastown section of Merthyr Tydfil, Wales. It is a Grade II listed building and is the oldest purpose-built synagogue in existence in Wales.
The New Synagogue is a former Orthodox Jewish congregation and synagogue, located at 21 Raszkowska Street, in Ostrów Wielkopolski, in the Greater Poland Voivodeship of Poland. Designed by Moritz Landé in the Moorish Revival style and completed in 1860, the former synagogue is located in the city's center, which was the northern edge of the former Jewish district.
The Bradford Synagogue, officially Bradford Reform Synagogue, is a Reform Jewish congregation and synagogue, located at 7 Bowland Street in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, in the United Kingdom. Established as a congregation in 1873, the synagogue building was completed in 1881. The synagogue building was listed as a Grade II* building in 1989.
