Great Synagogue (Sydney)

The Great Synagogue was built to unite two Jewish congregations in Sydney which worshiped at the time in synagogues in York Street and Macquarie Street. The York Street Synagogue had been designed in the Egyptian Revival style[6] by James Hume and built in 1844.[7] The first moves were made in 1864 towards obtaining a suitable site for a newer, larger synagogue.

In 1871 a meeting was held at York Street to discuss buying land available in Elizabeth Street. It was suggested a meeting be held with the Macquarie Street Synagogue to unite in purchasing the land for a synagogue to serve the whole community. John Solomon, a builder, purchased the land at auction for £2,000 in 1871 and held it until the congregation could raise sufficient funds. The proposal was for a synagogue and educational facilities. The money was to be raised by sale of land in Kent Street which had been granted for a Jewish school but never used. Further money was raised by the sale of the York and Macquarie Street properties. An appeal was also launched to fund the new building, accompanied by a photograph of the Central Synagogue in London (opening in 1870 and destroyed by bombing in 1941) which was intended to serve as the model for the Sydney building. Thomas Rowe, a Cornish architect based in Sydney, was selected in 1872 by means of a limited competition, the other competitors being George Allen Mansfield and Benjamin Backhouse; Rowe also acted as the construction manager for the new building. The building of the synagogue was partly based on the Princes Road Synagogue, Liverpool. The foundation stone was laid in January 1875 by Saul Samuel, Postmaster General, the first Jewish minister of the Crown in the British Empire. A bazaar was held by the women of the congregation in Martin Place in December 1875 to raise extra funds.[2]

The principal contractor for stonework was Aaron Loveridge, founder of the modern firm of Loveridge & Hudson. The contract drawings by Rowe, and signed by Loveridge, are held by Sydney's Mitchell Library. Other notable firms connected with the work were William Coleman (carpentry and joinery), Fletcher Brothers (decorative cast iron), Lewis and Steel (decorative plaster), Cornelius and Co of Philadelphia (gas fixtures), Minton Hollins & Co (tiles), P. N. Russell & Co (cast iron columns), and Lyon & Cottier (stained and etched glass).[2]

The synagogue was consecrated on 4 March 1878, but its decoration was not completed until 1883.[8][9] At the time of completion the synagogue was one of the first large Victorian buildings erected in Sydney.

The Great Synagogue possesses records of births, marriages and deaths which have taken place since the first entry was made on 1 November 1826. It also houses the AM Rosenblum Museum and the Falk Library, where weekday services take place.

In 1988 the Bicentennial Council of NSW recognised the importance of the building and recommended a significant grant for restoration work on the Elizabeth Street façade.

The Great Synagogue combines elements of Byzantine style and Gothic characteristics.[10] The building is often described as the "cathedral synagogue" of Australia.

The Great Synagogue consists of two main sections: the original synagogue (house of worship) with a ladies' gallery, at the Elizabeth Street end, and a five-storey modern section at the Castlereagh Street end behind the facade of the original Beadle's residence. The original eclectic design in Victorian Free Gothic style was described at the time of consecration as Byzantine interspersed with Gothic elements. The Elizabeth Street frontage and towers are of Pyrmont stone, and the remainder of the early structure is brick with cast-iron columns and timber floors, and a slate roof. The Castlereagh Street facade is stone at ground floor level, with rendered brickwork above.

The interior is decorated with moulded plaster, carved timber and stained glass, all embellished with abstract patterns to avoid representation of living forms. Surviving timber stairs at the Elizabeth Street end have strongly carved balustrades. Walls are painted with gold leaf highlights, and the furniture is mostly of polished timber and brass. Some original colour schemes survive, notably on the ceiling of the Elizabeth Street porch, while the midnight blue ceiling with gold leaf stars has been repainted to the original design several times. Timber floors are raked at both ground and gallery levels, and the centre section of the ground floor and Ark steps, like the porch, are tiled in tessellated and mosaic work. The basement contains a hall which has steel portal frames supporting the columns and floor above, and also contains the A M Rosenblum Museum and Rabbi Falk Library. The modern section, constructed of reinforced concrete, contains offices, classrooms & meeting rooms, together with a lift & fire stairs, and has a top floor with an openable roof. The modern stained glass windows in the Castlereagh Street facade were designed by Louis Kahan of Melbourne. The building contains examples of venerable sacred scrolls and religious artefacts, including a menorah (nine-branched candelabrum) made by Rabbi L. A. Falk.[8][2]

The present synagogue has the traditional feature of an elevated ladies' gallery. When first erected, the bimah was central, as is traditional. However, to increase seating capacity the bimah was moved forward to the western wall in 1906. Over the years, extensive additions and alterations have been made to the other facilities appurtenant to this building, including the construction of a succah, excavation and construction of a large reception area below the synagogue itself, construction of the Rabbi Falk Memorial Library, installation of electricity in the chandeliers, and installation of a shabbat elevator. A useful overview of the synagogue's history is provided by the 2008 book edited by Rabbi Raymond Apple.[1]

Rev Alexander B Davis was the Chief Minister of the York Street Synagogue beginning in 1862 and became the first Chief Minister of The Great Synagogue in 1878 until his retirement in 1903.

In 1905 Rabbi Francis Lyon Cohen was appointed Rabbi of The Great Synagogue and charged with establishing a Beth Din in Sydney, which still exists today. From 1909 he was assisted by Rev Marcus Einfeld as Cantor and from 1922 by Rev (later Rabbi) LA Falk as Second Rabbi. Rabbi Falk served until his death in 1957, leaving an important library.

Cohen died in office in 1934 and was succeeded briefly by Rabbi Ernest Levy. Rabbi Dr. Israel Porush was appointed Rabbi in 1940. Porush was born in Jerusalem, and educated in there and in Germany. He was living in London when he met his wife Bertha Link.[12] Porush became the most senior rabbi in Australia and retired in 1972.

From 1973 to 2005 Rabbi Raymond Apple led the congregation and made several changes to the synagogue, including introducing the priestly blessing on festivals, instituting a male choir and enabling the first individual bat mitzvah on a Shabbat morning.

The cantor from 1964 to 1989 was Rev Isidor Gluck, who guided the service towards a less English and more Eastern European style, while maintaining its cantorial and choral nature.

Rabbi Jeremy Lawrence was rabbi from 2005 to 2014 and was very involved with interfaith work. In 2015 he was succeeded by the present Chief Minister, Rabbi Dr Benjamin Elton. Rabbi Elton is also the Orthodox Rabbinic Consultant to the Executive Council of Australian Jewry and the New South Wales Jewish Board of Deputies.

Presidents of The Great Synagogue have included George Myers, George Judah Cohen, Israel Green, Sidney Sinclair AM OBE Life President, Rosalind Fischl, Stephen Rothman, and currently David Lewis.

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  Bimah of The Great Synagogue
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  Architectural detail. This inscription reads Beth Israel (House of Israel)
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  Elizabeth Street wheeled window. Reinforced concrete spokes were added to the inside of this window during World War II for protection against blast damage.[1]
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  Detail of entrance
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  Porch capital, Elizabeth Street by Thomas Wran
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  The 1844 Old Synagogue in Sydney - very similar Egyptian style to Hobart Synagogue and Launceston Synagogue

• History of the Jews in Australia
• List of synagogues in Australia and New Zealand

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Great Synagogue.

• Official website
• The Great Syngagogue of Sydney
• A history of the Great Synagogue, Sydney
• Great Synagogue rabbis and the British Chief Rabbinate
• Ellmoos, Laila (2008). "Great Synagogue". Dictionary of Sydney. Dictionary of Sydney Trust. Retrieved 9 October 2015. [CC-By-SA]