Subscribe to Print Edition | Sat., August 01, 2009 Av 11, 5769 | | Israel Time: 19:47 (EST+7)
Haaretz israel news English
web haaretz.com
Haaretz Toolbar
Diplomacy
Defense Jewish World Opinion National
Print Edition
Car Rental
Books Haaretz Magazine Business Real Estate Maccabiah Travel Week's End Anglo File
Brazilian rabbis standing over the exposed foundations of the historic Kahal Zur Israel Synagogue as they are being excavated by archeologists in the Brazilian city of Recife in 2000. (Reuters)
Share |
Last update - 00:00 12/11/2007
Synagogue in Brazilian town Recife considered oldest in the Americas
By Reuters
Tags: Jews, synagogue, Brazil

Flanked by bustling cafes in downtown Recife on Brazil's northeastern coast is a little-known treasure of Jewish history in the New World - the oldest synagogue in the Americas.

Sephardic Jews built the two-story Kahal Zur Israel Synagogue before 1641 - most likely in 1636 - when they enjoyed religious freedom under the Dutch, who ruled part of the northeast region from 1630 to 1654 to control sugar production.

The Mikve Israel Congregation in Curacao, a Dutch Antilles island in the Carribean, was considered by some to have been the first congregation in the Americas. But it was founded only in 1651, also by Sephardic Jews from Holland.
Advertisement

In the world's largest Catholic nation, whose best known icon is the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro, the Recife synagogue became an important symbol of the Jewish heritage in Brazil.

Based on old maps, archeological excavations uncovered the remnants of the synagogue, including the original Mikvah - a bath for religious ceremonies - under six layers of floors. The restored synagogue reopened in December 2001.

Since then it has become one of the main stops on the city's tourist circuit and its archives attract scores of Brazilian and foreign historians.

Their studies are gradually unveiling the prominent role Jews had in early Brazilian society.

"It challenges the stereotypical view that Brazilian culture is based on a tripod of Portuguese, [native] Indians and Africans," said Tania Kaufman, head of the Jewish Historical Archive in Recife, the capital of Pernambuco state.

"We now know Jews were a fundamental part of Brazil's cultural melting pot."

Historical records in Brazil and Amsterdam show Jews helped build the sugar industry, roads, bridges, and a basic sewage system in the northeast. Many also made money by trading slaves.

At its height in 1645, the Jewish community in Recife counted 1,630 members, the same number as in the thriving Jewish community of Amsterdam, according to Dutch historian Franz Leonard Schalkwijk.

"The economic dominance of the Jews prompted various protests [from Catholics and Protestants]," wrote Schalkwijk in his book "Church and State in Dutch Brazil."

When Dutch rule ended in 1654, Jews were expelled, killed or forced to go into hiding under the Roman Catholic Inquisition. One group from Recife defied storms and pirates to reach what is today New York, where they founded the first Jewish congregation in North America, called Shearith Israel, "the remnants of Israel."

An exhibition entitled "Pernambuco, Brazil - a gateway to New York" stirred much interest at the U.S. Center for Jewish History in 2004-05, recalls Kaufman.

The restored synagogue and renewed interest in the legacy of their ancestors is reinforcing the identity of Recife's Jewish community, which has dwindled by more than half to 300 families from two decades ago as many left for bigger cities.

In 2005, Recife received from Israel its first permanent Rabbi since 1654.

There are four synagogues in Recife but many Jews choose to celebrate their weddings and Bar Mitzvahs in the Kahal zur Israel because of its symbolism.

"It's an enormous source of pride," said Ivan Kelner, president of the Israelite Federation of Pernambuco state.

The synagogue is also at the center of a broader cultural renaissance. In November of every year, a Jewish festival offering dance, cinema, and food, from Gefilte fish to fluden, attracts around 20,000 visitors.

"The synagogue is a symbol of the revival of Jewish culture, it has galvanized our community," said Denys Sznejder, a choreographer who heads a Jewish folkloric dance group in Recife.

More Jewish World news and features
PROMOTION: Mamilla Hotel
Bookmark to del.icio.us  
 
Hamas leader speaks
Khaled Meshal says group would accept Palestinian state on 1967 borders.
Anti-Israel bias?
Media watchdog says UK press was biased in coverage of Gaza war.
  1.   There are many Jews throughout the western Catholic world 03:21  |  Roman Catholic 12/11/07
  2.   Jews left for "bigger cities" 06:19  |  Simon 12/11/07
  3.   To No 1, Jews came to the New World runing away from the Church 06:24  |  Jorge 12/11/07
  4.   congregation shearith israel 06:45  |  realism 12/11/07
  5.   Am Israel Hai is not just a song ! 13:58  |  Akram Zekaria 12/11/07
  6.   Jews come to brazil, many years before. 16:09  |  boris 12/11/07
  7.   to paulo of lisbon - who destroyed the synagogue ? 16:11  |  mb 12/11/07
  8.   Oldest Synagogue in the Americas 21:38  |  B Lionarons 13/11/07
  9.   to boris 11:31  |  Harry 03/12/07
  10.   Brazilians 00:08  |  Manny 30/03/08
  11.   How can I reach synagogue in Receife? 05:06  |  Marcyanne 31/08/08
  12.   visit to Recife 19:33  |  Patricia Vile 01/08/09
Special Offers
Advertisement
hotel Jerusalem
David Citadel Hotel, come stay at the finest of Jerusalem hotels.
Master's Program in Desert Studies
An innovative, multidisciplinary, international program specialized in Desert Research
Dead Sea Cosmetics .Summer Specials
Velvet Hand Cream just $14.90
Handmade In Tel Aviv
Itay Noy, Timepiece Maker
ISRAEL ARMY SURPLUS STORE
IDF insignia,Uniforms, Paladium Boots Watches, Israel Army T-shirts & Collectibles
Dead Sea Salt Beauty and skin care
From the Dead Sea Coupon cofe Haaretz for 10% off!
Eldan Rent a Car
Israel's leading car rental company offers you a 20% discount on online reservations
Junkyard
Junk a car - get free towing nationwide and a tax-deductible receipt
More Headlines
18:38 Report: Lebanon man gets life for Israel spying
18:33 Report: Fatah to oppose recognizing Israel as Jewish state
18:24 Hezbollah: Obama providing cover for Israeli 'crimes'
09:56 Saudi Arabia rejects U.S. call for ties with Israel
17:05 Iran begins trial of moderates over election protests
13:59 Assad: Return of Golan to Syria is non-negotiable
13:29 Lebanese cleric: Arab patience with Obama wearing thin
00:15 WATCH: Daily news round-up from Israel
18:04 Report: Iran confirms arrest of 3 U.S. tourists near Iraqi border
10:20 Hamas leader: We will accept a Palestinian state within 1967 lines
19:36 Hamas arrests 21 Fatah men en route to West Bank summit
09:54 IN DEPTH / Nuclear diplomacy in the Middle East
13:48 Holocaust survivor, 89, found strangled to death in N.Y. home
Home | TV | Print Edition | Diplomacy | Opinion | Arts & Leisure | Sports | Jewish World | Site rules |
| Israel 2009 election results | Makom: Engaging on Israel
| Search engine marketing
Haaretz.com, the online edition of Haaretz Newspaper in Israel, offers real-time breaking news, opinions and analysis from Israel and the Middle East. Haaretz.com provides extensive and in-depth coverage of Israel, the Jewish World and the Middle East, including defense, diplomacy, the Arab-Israeli conflict, the peace process, Israeli politics, Jerusalem affairs, international relations, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, the Palestinian Authority, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, the Israeli business world and Jewish life in Israel and the Diaspora.
© Copyright  Haaretz. All rights reserved