| Great Synagogue of Baghdad | |
|---|---|
Arabic:كنيس بغداد العظيم | |
 The Great Synagogue, undated | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Orthodox Judaism(former) |
| Rite |
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| Ecclesiastical or organizational status | |
| Status |
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| Location | |
| Location | Baghdad |
| Country | Iraq |
  Shown within Baghdad | |
| Coordinates | 33°20′28.68″N44°23′47.04″E / 33.3413000°N 44.3964000°E /33.3413000; 44.3964000 |
| Architecture | |
| Type | Synagogue architecture |
| Style | Mesopotamian |
| Established | 597BCE(as a congregation) |
TheGreat Synagogue of Baghdad (Arabic:كنيس بغداد العظيم), also known as theShaf ve’Yativ Synagogue orShad veYativ Synagogue[a] is a formersynagogue andOrthodoxJewishcongregation, located inBaghdad,Iraq. Rebuilt several times, the building now serves as aJewish museum.[2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]
The building is traditionally believed to stand on the site of anancient synagogue built by KingJeconiah, who was exiled from theLand of Israel toBabylon in 597BCE. It is said that material gathered from the ruins of theTemple in Jerusalem was used in its construction.[10] The ancient synagogue is reputed to accommodate approximately 20,000 worshippers,[1] while the current former synagogue and museum building is one eighth in size of the original building.[11][12][13][14][15]
King Jehoiachin, along with many other Jews, was exiled to the city ofNehardea inBabylon, which corresponds to modern-day Baghdad.[16] This city was strategically located at the confluence of theEuphrates andMalka rivers.[16] The Jewish community in Nehardea established the first Jewish settlement there, continuing to send offerings to theFirst Temple inJerusalem, which were transported from Babylon.[16] Nehardea became the capital for theBabylonian exilarch, and there is evidence suggesting that the first exilarch hailed from this community.[16] Additionally, the Nehardean community founded an academy that became one of the most significant centers of Jewish learning in theMiddle East by the early third century CE.[16] It is believed that parts of theBabylonian Talmud were composed at this academy.[16] However, the academy was destroyed in 259 CE, and its operations moved toPumbedita.[16]
When the Jews were exiled to Babylon, the Prophet Ezekiel's significant accomplishment was the construction of a synagogue. Ezekiel buried half of the soil he had collected in the bag that the defeated King Jehoiachin carried with him to Babylon for his eventual burial. This soil was placed in the synagogue's foundation.[17]
This synagogue is considered the first of its kind in history, and Ezekiel referred to it asKehila Kedousha, which means "Holy Community." It became a central place for uniting the exiled Jewish community. Jews worshipped there under the rule of the Babylonians, Persians, and Greeks, continuing even after Alexander the Great's conquest of Persia.[17]
After the Persians took control of Babylon from the Greeks following Alexander's death, the Jewish community in Babylon lived relatively peacefully under their own leadership, known as theResh Galuta (Head of the Diaspora), which the Greeks translated asExilarch. However, the new Persian rulers accused the Jews of collaborating with their Greek enemies, using this as a justification to strip them of self-rule. The position ofResh Galuta was abolished, and a Persian official was appointed to oversee the Jewish community, including collecting taxes. This position, which had been taken from the Jews, was later restored by the Arab invaders centuries later.[17]
In response to their treatment, the Jews rebelled. The revolt, led by two brothers and a cousin from theZutra family, was quickly suppressed, and the leaders were executed. This shows the importance the Jews placed on freedom, as they were willing to sacrifice their lives for it.[17]
As conditions worsened under the Persian governors, the Jews sought a new settlement. They secretly moved to an area between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, founding a new city called Baghdad, a name derived from the wordsBagh (garden) andDad (city). The Jews covertly dismantled the synagogue in Babylon and transported it, along with the soil from King Jehoiachin's bag, to Baghdad, where it remained in the same spot.[citation needed]
This synagogue, calledSlat le-Kbiri (The Great Synagogue), had a unique structure—four walls but no roof, as the community needed natural light for reading the Torah during evening and morning prayers. The walls of the synagogue were over two feet thick. The reason for this thickness was revealed when a Sefer Torah became too damaged to be used in prayer. The Jews would bury the worn-out holy texts in the wall, sealing them with available materials. According to tradition, the Sefer Torah must be buried above the feet, not below, out of respect for its holiness.
Over time, the synagogue was repaired several times, especially after floods caused by the Tigris River. Despite these challenges, it remained the main place of prayer for most Baghdadi Jews. In 1897, Hacham Ezra Sasson Dangoor began to manage the synagogue as a volunteer.[18]
After World War I, Iraq came under British Mandate, and the British authorities worked to improve public infrastructure. In the 1920s, floodwaters from the Tigris reached the Jewish quarter, including the Great Synagogue, causing significant damage. A British city planner, inspecting the damaged buildings, found that a wall of the synagogue had collapsed and deemed it dangerous. He ordered its demolition, but the Jewish community protested. Undeterred, the city planner sent a demolition crew.[17]
As the workers approached the wall to begin demolition, a mysterious fire broke out, followed by a powerful explosion. The workers’ clothes caught fire, and they fled in panic, shouting, “This is the God of the Jews! Do not anger the God of the Jews.” Following this incident, the city planner decided to reinforce the wall rather than demolish it.[17]
There is a possible scientific explanation for the explosion. The Jews had buried old, unusable holy books in the thick walls. These books, written on calfskin, were organic materials, and when sealed tightly underground, they could produce methane gas. When exposed to air and sunlight, this gas can cause an explosion. However, the community believed that the explosion was theShekhina (divine presence) protecting the synagogue, and this interpretation became widely accepted. As a result, the Great Synagogue was saved from demolition, and the event was regarded as a miracle.[17]
Since the mass exodus of Jews from Iraq in the early 1950s, the fate of the Great Synagogue has been uncertain. According to Sami Sourani, the synagogue is now under the control of the Custodian of Absentee Property, a department of the Iraqi government that manages Jewish assets that were frozen in 1951. Many Jewish properties, including synagogues and schools, have been repurposed as government warehouses, but there is little information about the current status or condition of the Great Synagogue. It remains unclear whether the synagogue is being properly maintained or how the Iraqi government is managing Jewish properties in general.[17]
There have been rumors that some Jews have requestedUNESCO to designate the Great Synagogue as aWorld Heritage Site. However, architectKanan Makiya, who published a book on ancient buildings in Baghdad, made no mention of Jewish buildings in the city, aside from a brief general note, although he did refer to a nearbyChaldean Catholic church. In 1950, theIraqi government issuedlaissez-passers to Jews leaving the country, but these were issued at theMeir Tweg Synagogue in theBataween district, not at Slat le-Kbiri. Jews who were leaving Iraq gathered at the Massouda Shemtov synagogue before being transported by bus toBaghdad International Airport. After this period, the Great Synagogue, located in a district that had once been home to a significant Jewish population, ceased to be used for prayer, along with the other synagogues in the area.[17]
Allan Daly, who visited the synagogue in 1971 with his father to complete government paperwork, recalls seeing open scrolls of leather Sefarim scattered on the ground and benches inside the synagogue. His father, fearing that they might be recognized as knowing Hebrew, quickly called him away. This was Daly's only visit to the synagogue. Sami Sourani offers a possible explanation for the presence of Sefarim in Slat le-Kbiri. He suggests that the Iraqi government may have collected the holy books from all synagogues in Baghdad and stored them in one central location, such as the Great Synagogue, as a precaution against theft. Sourani also mentions that theIraqi Jewish Community in the UK requested that the Iraqi government release a few Sefarim to Jewish communities in Europe and North America. In response, the Iraqi government agreed to send three Sefarim to the Jewish community in the UK, three to the Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue in Montreal, and three to a synagogue in New York. However, details about the fate of these Sefarim are unclear.[17]
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