Renovation and construction work is under way to upgrade infrastructure and facilitate visits by religious pilgrims and others to the tombs of noted Hasidic rabbis and other orthodox Jewish heritage sites in five towns and cities in eastern Hungary — Miskolc, Sátoraljaújhely, Nagykálló, and Nyírtass in the northeast, and Makó, in the south.
The EU-funded project, supported by the Hungarian government, is called “The Hungarian Jewish Heritage Route in Eastern Hungary” (Magyar zsidó örökség útja Kelet-Magyarországon) and is overseen by a consortium led by Mazsihisz, the umbrella organization of Hungary’s Neolog Jewish communities, along with the municipal administration of Makó, and two Hasidic foundations that deal with cemeteries and pilgrimage sites: Hácár Hákodes Tass Foundation (Nyírtass), and the Chevra Kadisha of Yetev Lev Satmar Congregation (Sátoraljaújhely).
The EU grant of 1.4 billion forints (about €4 million) comes under a broader program for the development of religious cultural heritage tourism.
The project was formally announced at Hanukkah in December 2018 at a news conference in Miskolc, and on-site work began in 2019.
An article on the Mazsihisz website quoted Mazsihisz president, András Heisler as telling the news conference that the goal was “to create long-term sustainable tourism services that preserve and showcase the pre-war cultural, religious and historical heritage of Jews in the eastern region. The intention was that the development and operation of services would increase tourism and create jobs in the area.”
Heisler also added that the idea for such a project dates from 2006, when on a trip to Canada he visited a Hasidic community with roots in Nyirtass and learned from them that accommodation conditions for pilgrims visiting the tombs of rabbis in eastern Hungary were inadequate.
The project includes the renovation of synagogue buildings and the renovation or construction of visitor centers, memorials, and accommodation. There are also plans for exhibitions. Zsuzsanna Toronyi, head of the Hungarian Jewish Museum and Archives, told the 2018 news conference that a cultural space will be created at all five locations to help Jewish and non-Jewish visitors, from Hungary and abroad, understand the cultural significance of these sites.
Makó, Nyírtass, Nagykálló and Sátoraljaújhely are key destinations for Hasidic pilgrims from around the world who come to pray at the tombs of important rabbis, particularly on the anniversary of their death.
Miskolc, the fourth largest city in Hungary, is the only location covered by the project to have a small yet active Jewish community. It also has an active Orthodox synagogue. The improvement of facilities there could allow Miskolc to serve as an anchor for pilgrims and other visitors to Jewish heritage sites in the region.
Dedicated in 1863, the synagogue, on Kazinczy street, was designed in neo-Romanesque/neo-Moorish style by Ludwig von Forster, the same architect who designed the great Dohany St. synagogue in Budapest. Its rather austere facade hides opulent interior decoration, today in poor condition.
The synagogue stands in a Jewish communal courtyard complex that includes a mikvah, prayer house, Jewish community building, kosher restaurant, and Holocaust memorial, and .renovation work on the synagogue complex is currently underway. One building will become a guest house for pilgrims and will also house a prayer room and a museum, where educational events will also be open to schools and the community at large. Jewish community president Péter Szlukovinyi told local media that that the renovations should be completed by the end of August. He said work was not affected by Covid-19 measures.
The renovation of the synagogue itself is planned to begin soon under the same EU-funded project.
Work in the other towns includes:
Nyírtass
This village between Nyíregyháza and Kisvárda is where the Tosh Hasidic dynasty originated. The Tosh Hasidim are now based in Kiryas Tosh, near Montreal, Quebec, but every year many of its members go to Nyirtass to visit the graves of the Tosher rebbes in the Jewish cemetery.
A one-story building is currently under construction that will host a pilgrim’s hotel, a prayer room for 80 people, a dining room, a kosher kitchen and a ritual bath. It should also include an exhibition area.
Nagykálló
Located 15 kilometers from Nyíregyháza with a population today of 10.000 people, Nagykálló was home to Rabbi Isaac Taub, founder of the Kaliv Hasidic dynasty, and has been his final resting place since he died in 1821. A pilgrimage house will be built next to the Nagykálló Jewish cemetery at a cost of 113.3 million forints (around €320.000).
Rabbi Taub, born in 1751 probably in Szerencs, was the first Hasidic Rebbe to permanently live in Hungary and led the Nagykálló Jewish community for 40 years, from 1781 to 1821. He was known for his mystical interpretation of dreams and for his songs, some of which are still popular among Jews and non-Jews – the most famous is probably “Szól a Kakas Már” (“The Cock Is Always Crowing).”
Here’s a video clip of the postwar Kaliver rebbe (1923-2019) in Jerusalem, singing Szól a Kakas Már:
Sátoraljaújhely
Located on the border with Slovakia, Sátoraljaújhely was the home of Moshe Teitelbaum, one of the founders of Hungarian Hasidism, who is buried in an ohel in the town’s old Jewish cemetery.
Originally from Poland, Rabbi Teitelbaum moved to Sátoraljaújhely at the beginning of the 19th century and led the Jewish community until his death in 1841. He was revered as a mystical healer and drew a huge following.
Work to renovate and modernize the pilgrim’s hostel on Kossuth street costing 22 million forints (around €62.000) are being carried out by a local company called Zempléni Építő és Gépészeti. The building was already used as a hospitality center by the Chevra Kadisha of Yetev Lev Satmar Congregation, one of the members of the consortium.
Makó
Every year hundreds of pilgrims gather in Makó from all over world to pay their respects to Rabbi Moses Vorhand (1860 – 1944) on the anniversary of his death. Once a thriving Jewish center, today Makó has only one synagogue, the Orthodox synagogue; the Grand Neolog synagogue was demolished in the 1960s.
Last year, in the context of the EU funded tourism project, a 1.3 km road leading to the Jewish cemetery where Rabbi Moses Vorhand is buried was built, and in March, renovation work started at the Orthodox synagogue (which already had undergone extensive renovation 18 years ago).
According to local media, the work should be completed this summer; it includes the insulation of the walls, the repainting of both the exterior and interiors, and the restoration of the interior decorations. In addition, a visitor center dedicated to Jewish heritage sites in Makó is to be put in place in the small building adjacent to the synagogue.
“The Hungarian Jewish Heritage Route in Eastern Hungary” is one of several EU-funded Jewish heritage tourism and preservation projects that have been carried out in Hungary in recent years.
As we wrote in 2017, another EU funded project called “Footsteps of Wonder Rabbis” already functions as a tourism hub in northeastern Hungary, serving religious pilgrims and mainstream tourists alike. This project has its headquarters in the synagogue complex in Mád, which includes a museum and a guest house, and mainly focuses on Jewish heritage routes in the Tokaj wine-making region.
In 2013, thanks to a €1.41-million transnational grant from the EU’s European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), the historic Pásti street synagogue in Debrecen and the Zion synagogue across the border in Oradea, Romania, were restored with the aim of promoting religious tourism itineraries and cultural educational programs.
In June 2018, the Rediscover project Jewish heritage tourism project started. It includes nine mid-sized cities in eight countries of the EU’s Danube Region, with the municipality of Szeged, Hungary the lead partner. The €1.8 million project, mostly funded by the ERDF, aims to “explore, revive and present the hidden intellectual heritage along with locally available Jewish cultural heritage of project partners”. The project will run until May 31, 2021.