The Synagogue of Arcachon is a Jewish synagogue at 36 Avenue Gambetta in Arcachon, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France.
The Synagogue of Arcachon is a Jewish synagogue at 36 Avenue Gambetta in Arcachon, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France.
Construction of a synagogue in the area was financed by eccentric industrialist Daniel Iffla of Bordeaux, who went by the name Osiris. The synagogue was opened on December 21, 1879, when Osiris' niece, singer Emma Moyse, married Sigismund Bardac., [1] [2] Osiris donated the building to the Israelite Regional Consistory of Bordeaux, itself a member of the Central Israelite Consistory of France. [3]
The location was strategically chosen, as it is on the street leading from the Thiers Jetty and the Rail station in Arcachon. In 1895,Daniel Iffla built the "Alexandre-Dumas villa" in the style of other Villas in Arcachon, at 1 allée Brémontier in Arcachon, about a 10 minutewalk from the synagogue.
During a round-up of Jews on January 10, 1944, organized by French collaborator Maurice Papon, 12 Jews from Arcachon were arrested. They were originally brought to the Grand Synagogue of Bordeaux before later being transported by train with 305 other Jewish prisoners to Drancy internment camp, and later to different Nazi concentration camps, where they were killed. The Normandy landings would happen only six months later. [4]
In 2004, the building was added as one of the monuments historiques of France. It was renovated in 2011. Religious services are offered year round. Since 2012, the synagogue's rabbi has been Eric-Meyer Aziza, who is secretary-general of Jewish-Christian Friendship of France and is heavily involved in Interfaith dialogue.,. [5] [6]
The architect of the synagogue was Ferrand Stanislas. [7] It was built in a rectangle, meant to invoke the style of classic synagogues from the 19th century.
Inside, the Torah ark is semi-circular area inspired by Tuscan style and decorated with Bezants. Along the sides of the Ark are replicas of the stone tablets of the Ten Commandments. The bimah is in the middle of the nave, as is customary with Sephardic Judaism. [8]
On the facade, the upper part of the gable, held by two pillars has an engraving that says
You shall love your neighbor as yourself
— Leviticus 19:18
The verse, which is frequently cited by Jesus to his Disciples speaks to the importance of interfaith dialogue to the community. Above the engraving is another representation of the Stone Tablets of the Ten Commandments. The two tablets are headed with the initials
R. F.
for République française, affirming support for the then-Third Republic.
Gironde is the largest department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of Southwestern France. Named after the Gironde estuary, a major waterway, its prefecture is Bordeaux. In 2019, it had a population of 1,623,749. The famous Bordeaux wine region is in Gironde. It has six arrondissements, making it one of the departments with the most arrondissements.
The following is a list of the 535 communes of the Gironde department of France.
Arcachon is a commune in the southwestern French department of Gironde. It is a popular seaside resort on the Atlantic coast 55 kilometres (34 mi) southwest of Bordeaux, in the Landes forest. It has a sandy beach and a mild climate said to be favourable for invalids suffering from pulmonary complaints.
La Teste-de-Buch is a coastal commune in the Gironde department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in Southwestern France. Until 13 June 1994, it was officially known simply as La Teste.
The arrondissement of Bordeaux is an arrondissement of France in the Gironde department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region. It has 82 communes. Its population is 950,099 (2016), and its area is 1,521.8 km2 (587.6 sq mi).
The Israelite Central Consistory of France is an institution set up by Napoleon I by the Imperial Decree of 17 March 1808 to administer Jewish worship and congregations in France. He also directed the establishment of regional Israelite Consistories, subordinate to the Central Consistory, across France. The consistories were ranked as établissements publics du culte. Given Napoleon's political emancipation of the Jews, he wanted a representative body that could deal with his government.
The arrondissement of Arcachon is an arrondissement of France in the Gironde department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region. It has 17 communes. Its population is 150,979 (2016), and its area is 1,469.8 km2 (567.5 sq mi).
The Union Libérale Israélite de France (ULIF), commonly referred to as the rue Copernic synagogue, is a Liberal Jewish synagogue, located in Paris, France. Inaugurated on the first of December 1907, it is the oldest Reform synagogue in France.
Audenge is a commune in the Gironde department in southwestern France.
Gujan-Mestras is a commune in the Gironde department in southwestern France. It is twinned with Santa María de Cayón, Spain
A Jewish consistory was a body governing the Jewish congregations of a province or of a country; also the district administered by the consistory.
The beginnings of the history of the Jews in Besançon go back to the Middle Ages, a period during which the Jews settled in the city attracted by its activity as a commercial place. The community was founded at the end of the 14th century and, due to its status as a free imperial city, Besançon remained one of the only territories in present-day France to tolerate Jews after their expulsion from the kingdom of France in 1394. The community was nevertheless expelled in turn from Besançon in the middle of the 15th century. The Jews made a tentative return to the city in the 18th century, but it was only after the French Revolution, which emancipated them, that their situation in the Franche-Comté capital stabilized. Although the Jewish community never exceeded 2,000 people except on the eve of the Second World War, it experienced great economic success during the industrial revolution at the end of the 19th century, when the Lipmann family founded LIP, a brand of watchmaking which then became one of the economic engines of the region and remained associated with the name of the city.
Louis-Lazare Kahn, known as Admiral Louis Kahn, was the first French Jewish Admiral, and a leader of the French Jewish community.
Daniel Iffla (1825–1907), known as Osiris, was a financier and philanthropist.
David Raynal was a French politician of the French Third Republic. He was a member of the Chamber of Deputies of France (1879–1897) and Senate of France (1897–1903). He was twice minister of public works in the governments of Léon Gambetta and Jules Ferry. He was minister of the interior in the government of Jean Casimir-Perier.
The synagogue of Lausanne is a synagogue located on Avenue de Florimont in Lausanne, Vaud, Switzerland.
The Synagogue of Amiens is a Jewish Synagogue in the city of Amiens in the Department of Somme, France. The synagogue, rededicated in 2017, replaces two previous buildings.
Keren Or Synagogue is a Reform Jewish Synagogue which serves as the synagogue for the Liberal Jewish Community of Lyon. It is located at 15 Rue Jules Vallès in Villeurbanne.
A Statue of Heracles stands in the Parc Mauresque in Arcachon, in the southwestern French department of Gironde. The marble statue by local sculptor Claude Bouscau was installed in 1948 to commemorate the actions of the French Resistance in fighting German occupying forces during the Second World War. The statue of the ancient Greek hero Heracles stands 3.1 metres (10 ft) tall, nude except for the skin of the defeated Nemean lion.
