The Wimbledon Synagogue

The Wimbledon Synagogue (formally, Wimbledon and District Synagogue), a member of the Movement for Reform Judaism, is a synagogue in the London Borough of Wandsworth at Queensmere Road, Wimbledon Park, on the boundary with the London Borough of Merton. Its Rabbi is Adrian Schell and its Chair is Ruth Bragman.[1]

The Wimbledon Synagogue
Religion
AffiliationReform Judaism
LeadershipAdrian Schell (Rabbi);[1]
Ruth Bragman (Chair)
Year consecrated1951 (original building in Worple Road); 1997 (current building)
StatusActive
Location
Location1 Queensmere Road, Wimbledon Park, London Borough of Wandsworth, London SW19 5QD
CountryEngland, United Kingdom
The Wimbledon Synagogue is located in Greater London
The Wimbledon Synagogue
Location in London
AdministrationMovement for Reform Judaism
Geographic coordinates51°26′21″N 0°13′25″W
Architecture
Completed
  • Current building: 1953 (1953)
  • Adapted for synagogue use: 1997 (1997)
Website
www.wimshul.org

The community was established in 1949[2] and was based at Worple Road, Wimbledon from 1952 to 1997.[2] In 1997 it moved to its present premises, adapting a 1953 building which previously belonged to Southlands College,[3] now part of the University of Roehampton. The building also houses a Jewish nursery school, Apples and Honey.[4][5]

The synagogue community has been described in The Jewish Chronicle as particularly welcoming.[6]

History
The synagogue building

The synagogue came into being at a meeting of the local Jewish community at the Wimbledon Hill Hotel in February 1949. In its first year the membership, of 60 families, was little more than one-tenth of what it is now. Services were held in temporary accommodation. The community decided to build a new synagogue on a site at 44 Worple Road in Wimbledon. The foundation stone was laid on 8 April 1951 by Ernest Abelson and Leonard Montefiore (of the West London Synagogue) and the synagogue was formally opened and dedicated on 25 May 1952 by Rabbi Dr Leo Baeck.[3] In September 1997 the synagogue moved to its present site, adapting the former Athlone Hall (dating from 1953).[3]

Previous Rabbis

In 1953 the synagogue appointed its first minister, Rabbi Charles Berg. When he retired in 1974, the community had grown to 750 members. He was succeeded by Rabbi Hillel Avidan (1974–1980), Rabbi Daniel Smith (1982–1993), Rabbi Robert Shafritz (1993–1996) who died suddenly in office,[7] Rabbi William Woolf (1997–2002), and Rabbi Sylvia Rothschild and Rabbi Sybil Sheridan who job shared[8] from 2003 until 2014.[9] Rabbi Jason Rosner was the synagogue's Rabbi from November 2015[9][10][11] to September 2016.[12]

Rabbis

Adrian Schell is the synagogue's full-time Rabbi; he took office in November 2020.[1][13][14][15][16]

Rabbi Tony Hammond is the Rabbi Emeritus,[17] having previously been the synagogue's interim part-time Rabbi.[2][12][18]

Notable congregants

Facilities and activities

As of 2021 the synagogue has 850 members.[1] Services are held every Shabbat on Friday evening and Saturday morning as well as for all Jewish festivals. Services are egalitarian; men and women sit together and take an equal role in the religious life of the community. As well as a cheder and an educational programme for children for young people,[22] the synagogue runs a programme of arts and cultural activities, workshops and lectures.[23]

The synagogue houses three book collections. The David Nathan Library has nearly 2000 books covering Judaism, Israel, history, biography, fiction etc. The Harry Urban Holocaust Library concentrates on the personal stories of survivors of the Shoah. There is also a children's book collection. The collections are catalogued using the Classification System for Libraries of Judaica employed by Leo Baeck College.[24]

The community has a monthly membership newsletter, Kehillah.

The synagogue has three sets of stained glass windows. Their abstract designs were made by Graham Jones with Peters Glass Studio in Germany.[25][26] The acacia wood ark doors, which were part of the 2016 refurbishment, were designed with architect Allan Schwarz, who runs the Mezimbite Forest Center in Mozambique.

Social action

Wimbledon Synagogue is a Fairtrade synagogue and has been involved for many years with the Faith in Action Merton Homeless Project, a charity which works with a range of agencies to support homeless, precariously housed and other marginalised people within the London Borough of Merton.[27] It has also accommodated local homeless people overnight as part of the Merton Night Shelter initiative.

In the media

In 2010 Wimbledon Synagogue hosted the first ever broadcast of BBC Radio 4's Any Questions? from a synagogue. The programme's broadcast coincided with the 200th anniversary of the first Reform Judaism service.[28][29][30]

See also

References
  1. "Minister enjoys serving at Wimbledon". The Jewish Chronicle. 19 March 2021. Retrieved 20 March 2021.
  2. "Wimbledon and District Synagogue". JCR-UK. 5 January 2021. Retrieved 20 March 2021.
  3. "60 years of memories of Wimbledon & District Synagogue". www.jtrails.org.uk. 2009. Retrieved 30 July 2015.
  4. Firsht, Naomi (16 April 2015). "Why the view's so good from south London". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved 29 February 2016.
  5. "Nursery". Families. The Wimbledon Synagogue. Retrieved 3 August 2016.
  6. Secret Shul Goer (Wolfson, Rina) (9 August 2017). "The Secret Shul-Goer No.5 – Wimbledon Reform". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved 2 December 2018.
  7. Singer, David, ed. (1998). American Jewish Yearbook 1998 (PDF). American Jewish Committee. p. 247. ISBN 0-87495-113-5. Retrieved 30 July 2015.
  8. Sheridan, Sybil (10 June 2009). "What future for the Jews left in Ethiopia?". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved 7 August 2017.
  9. Firsht, Naomi (18 June 2015). "American is gearing up for Wimbledon". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  10. Firsht, Naomi (29 January 2016). "Synagogue solar panels will take some beating". The Jewish Chronicle. Archived from the original on 7 March 2016. Retrieved 4 February 2016. Alt URL
  11. "Wimbledon welcomes Rabbi Jason Rosner" (Press release). Movement for Reform Judaism. 6 November 2015. Archived from the original on 17 November 2015. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
  12. Welch, Ben (4 October 2017). "Wimbledon's wait for rabbi". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  13. "Wimbledon Synagogue appoint a new rabbi" (Press release). Movement for Reform Judaism. July 2020. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
  14. Frot, Mathilde (8 July 2020). "Wimbledon Synagogue appoints new rabbi". Jewish News. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
  15. "South London's biggest shul says it has found a Wimbledon winner". The Jewish Chronicle. 10 July 2020. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
  16. "Rabbi Adrian Schell". The Wimbledon Synagogue. Retrieved 15 May 2021.
  17. "Rabbi Tony Hammond". The Wimbledon Synagogue. Retrieved 17 July 2023.
  18. Welch, Ben (19 May 2017). "Muslim builds bridges by teaching at London cheder". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
  19. Frick, Evelyn (11 June 2021). "18 Things to Know About Jewish Actor Brett Goldstein". Hey Alma. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
  20. North, Nic (16 June 2022). "Stage star Thelma Ruby lowers the curtain on her sparkling 78-year career with a solo show". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved 18 October 2022.
  21. Reuben, Susan (11 May 2017). "Shooting in the dark". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
  22. "Cheder". The Wimbledon Synagogue. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  23. "Adult Education". The Wimbledon Synagogue. Retrieved 30 July 2015.
  24. "Our Library". The Wimbledon Synagogue. Retrieved 5 April 2016.
  25. "Wimbledon Synagogue". Graham Jones. Retrieved 7 October 2022.
  26. "Synagogue Windows and Hebrew Writing". The Wimbledon Synagogue. Retrieved 7 October 2022.
  27. "Wimbledon Synagogue support". Faith in Action Merton Homelessness Project. 27 November 2014. Retrieved 22 April 2019.
  28. Elgot, Jessica (21 May 2010). "BBC to host first synagogue 'Any Questions'". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  29. "BBC Any Questions at Wimbledon". The Jewish Chronicle. 24 November 2016. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
  30. "Any Questions?". BBC Radio 4. 16 July 2010. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
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