The Great Synagogue of Grodno, Belarus, suffered extensive damage last week from a fire caused by a faulty electrical circuit.
The blaze ruined the room that has been used for prayer while the building is undergoing restoration, as well as destroyed the center’s kitchen. The community recently renovated the synagogue’s front and had started plans for reconstructing the grand inner hall.
The damage from last week’s fire was estimated at nearly $100,000.
Located in the heart of the city, the synagogue was founded in 1578 by Rabbi Mordechai Yaffe, the city’s chief rabbi. Designed by Italian architect Santi Gucci, the original wood building burned down and was replaced two centuries ago by a brick fa?ade. In 1899, a large fire that spread through Grodno damaged the synagogue’s roof and walls. The community rebuilt the structure in 1905.
The synagogue was seized by Soviet authorities after the 1917 Russian revolution. Years later, during the Nazi occupation of the city in World War II, the synagogue was used as an assembly point for Jewish residents being sent to the death camps. Following the war, Soviet authorities transferred the synagogue to civil use.
Through the years, it served as a food warehouse, a pharmacy, a book depot and an arts workshop.
With the collapse of communism, the synagogue—in a severe state of disrepair—was returned in 1992 to the Jewish community. In recent years, under the leadership of Chabad-Lubavitch, Rabbi Yitzchak Kofman has sought to restore the building to its former glory.
The Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS has advised those who wish to assist in the repair from the fire to visit FJC.ru
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