View source for Great Synagogue of Europe

{{Short description|Synagogue in Brussels, Belgium}}
{{For|similarly named synagogues|Great Synagogue (disambiguation){{!}}Great Synagogue}}
{{Use British English|date=January 2024}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2024}}
{{Infobox religious building
| building_name         = Great Synagogue of Europe
| native_name           = {{unbulleted list|{{native name|fr|Grande synagogue d'Europe}}|{{native name|nl|Grote Synagoge van Europa}}}}
| native_name_lang      =
| image                 = Bruxelles — La Grande Synagogue — Grote Synagoge van Brussel.jpg
| image_size            = 275px
| caption               =
| location              = {{lang|fr|Rue de la Régence|italic=no}} / {{lang|nl|Regentschapsstraat|italic=no}} 32<br/>1000 [[City of Brussels]], Brussels-Capital Region
| country               = Belgium
| map_type              = Belgium Brussels
| map_size              = 250
| map_relief            = 1
| map_caption           = Location of the synagogue in [[Brussels]]
| geo                   = {{coord|50|50|20|N|4|21|18|E|type:landmark_region:BE|display=inline,title}}
| religious_affiliation = [[Judaism]]
| district              = [[Sablon, Brussels|Sablon/Zavel]]
| status                = [[Synagogue]]
| functional_status     = Active
| leadership            = Albert Guigui
| website               =
| architect             = {{ill|Désiré De Keyser|fr}}
| architecture_type     = [[Synagogue architecture]]
| architecture_style    = [[Romanesque Revival architecture|Romanesque Revival]]
| facade_direction      =
| groundbreaking        = 1875
| year_completed        = 1878
| construction_cost     =
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The '''Great Synagogue of Europe''' ({{langx|fr|Grande synagogue d'Europe}}; {{langx|nl|Grote Synagoge van Europa}}), formerly known as the '''Great Synagogue of Brussels''' ({{langx|fr|Grande synagogue de Bruxelles|link=no}}; {{langx|nl|Grote Synagoge van Brussel|link=no}}), is the main [[synagogue]] in [[Brussels]], Belgium, which was dedicated as a focal point for [[History of the Jews in Europe|European Jew]]s in 2008.
The building was designed in 1875 in a [[Romanesque architecture|Romanesque]]-[[Byzantine architecture|Byzantine]] style by the architect {{ill|Désiré De Keyser|fr}} and constructed in 1878. The synagogue survived [[the Holocaust]] in which 25,000 [[History of the Jews in Belgium|Belgian Jew]]s died. Its [[chief rabbi]] is Albert Guigui and there are approximately 15,000 persons of Jewish faith in the city (as of 2008).<ref name="BBC">{{Cite news |date=2008-06-04 |title=New status for Brussels synagogue |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7435232.stm |work=BBC News}}</ref> It is located at 32, [[:fr:Rue de la Régence|rue de la Régence/Regentschapsstraat]] in the [[Sablon, Brussels|Sablon/Zavel]] district (south-eastern part of [[Pentagon (Brussels)|Brussels' city centre]]). This site is served by the [[Trams in Brussels|tram]] stop {{lang|fr|Petit Sablon|italic=no}}/{{lang|nl|Kleine Zavel|italic=no}} (on lines 92 and 93)
==History==
===Early history===
Shortly following [[Belgian Revolution|Belgian independence]], in 1831, Judaism was recognised as an official religion (besides [[Roman Catholicism]], the country's majority faith, and [[Protestantism]]).<ref>Caroline Sägesser, ''Les structures du monde juif en Belgique'' (in French), Courrier hebdomadaire du CRISP, no. 1615, 1998</ref><ref>Martine Cohen and Jean-Philippe Schreiber, ''Les juifs de France et de Belgique à la croisée des chemins: du paradigme confessionnel à la société multiculturelle'' (in French), N.p., 2009</ref> Despite this recognition, the Jewish community in Brussels had no place of worship, so in 1833, it acquired a building called the ''Petite Boucherie'' ("Small butcher's shop") on what is now the {{lang|fr|Place de Dinant|italic=no}}/{{lang|nl|Dinantplein|italic=no}}<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Synagogue et Consistoire de Bruxelles – Inventaire du patrimoine architectural |url=https://monument.heritage.brussels/fr/Bruxelles_Pentagone/Rue_de_la_Regence/32/30489 |access-date=2024-11-04 |website=monument.heritage.brussels |language=fr}}</ref> (formerly the {{lang|fr|Place de Bavière|italic=no}}/{{lang|nl|Beierenplein|italic=no}}) in central Brussels from the Society of Friends of Fine Arts and converted it into a synagogue. This first synagogue was inaugurated a few months later by the first Chief Rabbi of Belgium, [[Eliakim Carmoly]].
[[File:Bruxelles, Synagogue -05.jpg|thumb|left|upright|The Great Synagogue in the early 20th century]]
In 1875, the community had a larger synagogue built at its current address on the [[:fr:Rue de la Régence|Rue de la Régence/Regentschapsstraat]] in the [[Sablon, Brussels|Sablon/Zavel]] district of Brussels. To avoid it being mistaken for a church, the architect {{ill|Désiré De Keyser|fr}} decided for a [[Romanesque architecture|Romanesque]]-[[Byzantine architecture|Byzantine]] style.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=Grande synagogue de Bruxelles — Patrimoine - Erfgoed |url=https://patrimoine.brussels/news/grande-synagogue-de-bruxelles |access-date=2024-11-04 |website=patrimoine.brussels}}</ref> The [[stained glass]] windows were made by Henri Dobbelaere from [[Bruges]], the [[bronze]] chandeliers are by the ''Compagnie des Bronzes de Bruxelles'', and the furniture and the place where the [[Tablets of Stone|Tablets of the Law]] are kept are by the cabinetmaker L. Demeuter.<ref name=":0" /> The Great Synagogue of Brussels was inaugurated in 1878<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /> by the Chief Rabbi [[Élie-Aristide Astruc]].
===1982 terrorist attack===
On [[Rosh Hashanah]], 18 September 1982, the synagogue was attacked by a man with a [[submachine gun]], seriously wounding four people.<ref>{{Cite news |date=20 September 1982 |title=AROUND THE WORLD; Hunt Is On in Brussels For Synagogue Raider |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/09/20/world/around-the-world-hunt-is-on-in-brussels-for-synagogue-raider.html |work=The New York Times}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=21 September 1982 |title=Terror in Europe: Explosion in Paris, Machine Gun Attack in Brussels Mar Rosh Hashanah |url=https://www.jta.org/1982/09/21/jewish-holidays/rosh-hashanah/terror-in-europe-explosion-in-paris-machine-gun-attack-in-brussels-mar-rosh-hashanah |work=JTA}}</ref> The attack has been attributed to the [[Abu Nidal Organization]], a [[Palestinian political violence|Palestinian militant group]].<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Enders |first1=Walter |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=feC4d5c4V5wC&pg=PA54 |title=The Political Economy of Terrorism |last2=Sandler |first2=Todd |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2011 |isbn=9781139504706 |pages=53–54}}</ref>
===Dedication as "Great Synagogue of Europe"===
On 4 June 2008, the synagogue was dedicated as the "Great Synagogue of Europe" by then-[[President of the European Commission]], [[José Manuel Barroso]], who signed a dedication document alongside two [[chief rabbi]]s, with his name later inscribed on a plaque inside the building. It was envisioned to become a "symbolic focal point for Judaism in Europe", comparable to [[St. Peter's Basilica]] for [[Roman Catholics]]. The dedication ceremony featured the reading of a specially crafted "Prayer for Europe" and performances by the {{ill|European Choir|fr|Chœurs de l'Union européenne}}, which consists of 100 singers from 20 EU member states.<ref name="EUO">{{Cite web |last=Runner |first=Philippa |date=2008-06-04 |title=Barroso to inaugurate European synagogue |url=https://euobserver.com/eu-political/26268 |access-date=2024-03-21 |website=EUobserver |language=en}}</ref>
==See also==
{{stack|{{Portal|Belgium|European Union|Judaism}}}}
* [[Conference of European Rabbis]]
* [[History of the Jews in Belgium]]
* [[History of the Jews in Europe]]
* [[History of Brussels]]
* [[Religion in the European Union]]
== References ==
{{Reflist}}
===Bibliography===
* {{cite book |ref={{harvid|Mardaga|1994}} |title=Le Patrimoine monumental de la Belgique: Bruxelles |volume=1C: Pentagone N-Z |location=Liège |language=fr |publisher=Pierre Mardaga |year=1994 |url=https://monument.heritage.brussels/files/cities/1000/documents/03-vol-c-fr-def_k.pdf |pages=181–182}}
==External links==
* {{Commons category-inline|Great Synagogue of Brussels}}
{{Synagogues in Belgium}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Great Synagogue Of Europe}}
[[Category:1878 establishments in Belgium]]
[[Category:20th-century attacks on Jewish institutions]]
[[Category:Abu Nidal attacks]]
[[Category:Byzantine Revival architecture in Belgium]]
[[Category:Byzantine Revival synagogues]]
[[Category:Jewish organizations established in 1878]]
[[Category:Jews and Judaism in Brussels]]
[[Category:Palestinian terrorist incidents in Belgium]]
[[Category:Religious buildings and structures in Brussels]]
[[Category:Romanesque Revival architecture in Belgium]]
[[Category:Romanesque Revival synagogues]]
[[Category:Synagogues completed in 1878]]
[[Category:Synagogues in Belgium]]