The Dublin Hebrew Congregation (Terenure) synagogue in Dublin, dedicated 70 years ago in 1953, is up for sale, due to its dwindling orthodox congregation, according to the Jewish Chronicle and local media.
The asking price for the distinctive building, designed by the Irish architect Wilfrid Cantwell and noted for its flat facade marked by a row of stars of David above a row of square windows, is reported to be €7.5 million.
The interior of the synagogue is noted for striking stained glass windows by Stanley Tomlin.
The synagogue’s congregation is downsizing to a smaller space nearby, the news reports state.
Maurice Cohen, chairman of the Jewish Representative Council of Ireland, told The Irish Times that upkeep of the synagogue was “very expensive” and “numbers [in attendance at services] have gone down dramatically”.
This was being exacerbated, he said, as “the older generation passes away while younger people were less likely to attend.”
He said, however, that the decision to sell the synagogue was “not a story of decline” so much as of changing patterns of practice among Jews in Ireland.
“As with most religions, attendance at services is not as great as it used to be,” he was quoted as saying. But, he said, synagogue attendance was more prevalent among orthodox Jews that progressive or secular Jews — and the progressive and secular Jewish population was growing.
Watch a video about the synagogue and local Jewish history (made for primary and middle school pupils), by the Dublin City Libraries:
In a blog post, Patrick Comerford, who grew up near the synagogue, recalled that when the synagogue opened it was opposite a major movie house — and had the nickname “cinema-gogue”
He noted that the architect Wilfrid Cantwell, was known for his church architecture, “particularly in years immediately after Vatican II. From 1976 until he retired in 1993, he specialised as a consultant in church design.”
Read the article in the Irish Times
Read a blogpost by Patrick Comerford about the synagogue
1 comment on “Ireland: Dublin’s orthodox Terenure synagogue is for sale, reportedly for €7.5 million”
The Synagogue should be bought by the World’s Jewish community.
It is an important part of our society and history.