Maimonides Synagogue
The Synagogue of Moses Maimonides ( Hebrew בית כנסת הרמב"ם Bet Knesset ha-Rambam , Arabic كنيس ابن ميمون), also known as the Rav Mosche Synagogue , is a historically significant Jewish place of worship in the medieval el-Muski district of the Egyptian capital, Cairo .
Already in the 10th century there was a synagogue on this site, about two centuries before the Andalusian philosopher, doctor and astronomer Maimonides was expelled from Córdoba by the Almohads , moved to Egypt and studied and worked in the neighboring yeshiva . According to local tradition, he was buried here for a short time before his bones were transferred to Tiberias . The synagogue was rebuilt in the 19th century, at that time the area around it was known as the “Jewish quarter” (Haret el-Yahoud) . The synagogue and its associated yeshiva have been ascribed miraculous healing powers.
Until the practice was banned by the Egyptian government in 1948, people in need of healing in the synagogue were put to sleep in a lower room of the synagogue so that they could dream of Maimonides, which should help them recover. After several thousand Jews were expelled from Egypt in the course of the Suez War in 1956, the Maimonides synagogue was closed. It was last used in the 1960s and then left to decay. It was in the middle of a slum with major garbage disposal problems and was on the verge of collapse due to groundwater and earthquakes. The ceiling collapsed in 1992, despite the fact that the synagogue was officially declared ancient in 1986. In 2005 the Torah shrine had a broken door and the still visible Star of David was only hanging by a thread.
From June 2009 to March 2010, the synagogue was restored for $ 2 million under the direction of Zahi Hawass , chairman of the Supreme Council on Antiquities . The Israeli ambassador to Egypt, Zvi Mazel , concluded by saying that the original colors had been perfectly restored. The inauguration ceremony, which attracted numerous Egyptian Jews from the European diaspora , took place on March 7, 2010, but the official opening ceremony was canceled by the government because, according to Hawass, “Jews danced and drank alcohol in the synagogue,” which was a “ Provocation to Millions of Muslims in Egypt and the World ”. He later described the cancellation as a "slap in the face of the Zionist enemy".
Web links
- Omar Sinan: Egypt Unveils Restoration of Famous Synagogue. ABC News International, accessed in 2009 .
- Egypt scraps synagogue ceremony after 'provocative' acts. Yahoo News , accessed March 14, 2010 .
Coordinates: 30 ° 3 ′ 3.5 ″ N , 31 ° 15 ′ 45.5 ″ E